CTA to renovate historic Quincy Loop Station, awards construction contract

Written by Jenifer Nunez, assistant editor
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Conceptual, artist’s rendering of Quincy station improvements
CTA

The Chicago Transit Authority's (CTA) Board of Directors has approved a contract for renovations of the historic Quincy station, one of CTA's oldest stations built in 1897.

 

The improvements will preserve the original appearance of the Loop ‘L’ station while upgrading it with the addition of two elevators to make the station accessible to customers with disabilities. The $18.2-million renovation will also include stair replacement, painting, lighting improvements and more.

“The Quincy ‘L’ station has served riders for more than 100 years, providing Chicagoans with convenient access to and from Chicago’s downtown Loop,” said CTA President Dorval Carter. “These improvements will retain the station’s historic appearance while making necessary upgrades including the addition of two elevators.”

Some features from the original historic station, which opened when U.S. President William McKinley was in office, remain today—including pressed metal wreaths and fluted pilasters or columns, located on the stationhouse façade. Much of the station’s appearance has been restored over the years while retaining its historic character. This includes the ticket agent’s booth, which was replicated in the 1980s based on original 1897 plans and is still in use today.

The Quincy station was last renovated in 1988. The station provides more than 2.2 million rides annually on the Brown, Orange, Pink and Purple lines and is a major multi-modal transfer point for 10 CTA bus routes, as well as providing convenient connections to Union Station and the LaSalle Street Metra Station.

The accessibility improvements are another step toward CTA’s push toward 100 percent accessibility across CTA, a goal set by the CTA Strategic Accessibility Program announced in January 2016.

The construction contract for the CTA Quincy Loop Station Upgrade Project was awarded to Ragnar Benson Construction, LLC. Construction is expected to begin later this year.

 

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