Central station (CTA Purple Line)

For other stations on the CTA system named Central, see Central (CTA).
Central
Location 1024 Central Street
Evanston, Illinois 60201
Coordinates 42°03′50″N 87°41′09″W / 42.063950°N 87.685742°W / 42.063950; -87.685742
Owned by Chicago Transit Authority
Line(s)
  Purple Line
Platforms 1 Island platform
Tracks 2
Connections CTA bus
Construction
Structure type Elevated
History
Opened May 16, 1908
Rebuilt 1931
Traffic
Passengers (2015) 260,517[1] Decrease 1.9%
Rank 137 out of 143[lower-alpha 1]
Services
Preceding station   Chicago "L"   Following station
Terminus
Purple Line
toward Howard or The Loop
Route map
Legend

Purple Line
north to Linden

Central St.

North Shore Line
platform
removed 1970

Purple Line
south to Howard or Loop

Central is a Purple Line station of the Chicago Transit Authority 'L' system. Located at 1024 Central Street in Evanston, Illinois (directional coordinates 2600 north, 1000 west), the elevated platform sits above Central Street, half a block west of Ridge Avenue. The station itself, a Beaux-Arts structure designed by noted transit architect Arthur Gerber, is on the south side of Central Street and is entered at street level, with an auxiliary exit on the north side of the street.[2]

History

Structure

The station was built close by to landmarks that include the Evanston Hospital and offices of NorthShore University HealthSystem, an Evanston fire station, Canal Shores Golf Course, and Chandler Newburger Recreation Center. Ryan Field, home of the Northwestern University Wildcats football team, and Welsh-Ryan Arena, home of Northwestern's basketball team, are a few blocks west of the station. Just west of Ryan Field on the north side of the street is the locally famous hot dog stand, Mustard's Last Stand. A few blocks further west is the Central Street station on Metra's Union Pacific/North Line. Less than a mile separate the two rail stations.

Former service

Footings for the former North Shore Line platform

Central was served by trains of the Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad on the Shore Line Route. Like Foster and Noyes, Central had an additional side platform to the west of the southbound track for exclusive use of the North Shore Line, to prevent disembarking customers from transferring to 'L' trains for free. The platform was removed sometime after the North Shore Line ceased operations over this section of the rapid transit system in 1955, but its concrete footings can still be seen opposite the current platform south of Central Street.

Bus connections

CTA

Notes and references

Notes

  1. ↑ Due to possible double-counting of physically-connected stations, the CTA's official 2015 tally of stations was 146, but for ridership purposes reported having only 143 stations.

References

  1. ↑ "Monthly Ridership Report – December 2015" (PDF). Chicago Transit Authority Ridership Analysis and Reporting. January 11, 2016. Retrieved March 23, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Chicago "L".org: Stations - Central". Retrieved 2008-12-23.

Media related to Central (CTA Purple Line) at Wikimedia Commons

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