CTA begins Wilson Station reconstruction

Written by Jenifer Nunez, assistant editor

The Chicago Transportation Authority (CTA) broke ground Dec. 8 on the Wilson Station Reconstruction Project, which will modernize the 91-year-old stationhouse and the station's more than 100-year-old track structure.

 

The $203-million project is one of the largest station projects in CTA history and is the latest in a series of Red Line modernization projects to take place since Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced plans to update the city’s busiest rail line in 2011.

“The Red Line is the backbone of our transportation network and making major investments, like the new Wilson Station, drives economic activity that will benefit the Uptown neighborhood and Chicago for years to come,” Mayor Emanuel said. “In order to build the world-class transit our city needs, we must act now. By doing so, we’re building and investing in our economic future and creating thousands of new, good-paying jobs.”

When the Wilson project is complete in late 2017, riders will have a modern, spacious and more accessible station that will be a new transfer point for Red and Purple Line trains. The project will also relocate and reconstruct 2,200 feet of elevated tracks, signals and supporting infrastructure, eliminating slow zones and improving service reliability for customers.

“Chicago has the second largest mass transit system in the country and also one of the oldest. That’s why I’ve made it a priority to ensure that the CTA has the resources it needs to maintain and modernize its railways, particularly the heavily traveled Red Line,” U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) said. “The new Wilson Station will ensure that commuters in Uptown have a safe and modern station for decades to come. I look forward to working with everyone here to make our mass transit system in Chicago is the most modern, safe and efficient in the country.”

The Wilson project is part of CTA’s Red Ahead program, a $1-billion comprehensive initiative to maintain, modernize and expand the Red Line – Chicago’s most-traveled rail line. State funding supports much of the investment.

The new Wilson Station will feature contemporary architecture, including steel-framed, translucent canopies and a historic restoration of the 1923 stationhouse. There will be three entrance/exits to the station, including the accessible main station entrance on the south side of Wilson Avenue, one auxiliary entry/exit on the north side of Wilson Avenue and an auxiliary entrance on Sunnyside Avenue, which will have ADA-compliant ramps.
The station will feature two island platforms to allow convenient cross-platform transfers between Red Line and Purple Line Express service – making Wilson the only transfer station between the Howard and Belmont stations.

Additional features and amenities of the will include numerous security cameras throughout the station and platforms, CTA Train Tracker displays, wider stairwells, new escalators, security cameras, additional bike parking and other improvements.

The track structure relocation and reconstruction will significantly improve the pedestrian environment on Broadway and Wilson by removing many of the unsightly and ‘L’ structure support columns on Wilson Avenue, Broadway Street and surrounding sidewalks, creating a more pleasant, open streetscape.

 

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