Merchandise Mart station

Merchandise Mart[2][3] is a station on the Chicago Transit Authority's 'L' system, located in the Near North Side neighborhood at 350 North Wells Street in Chicago, Illinois (directional coordinates 320 north, 200 west). The station is elevated above street level, on a steel structure. The turnstiles and customer assistant booth of the station are located on the second level of the Merchandise Mart itself. This is the main entrance to the station.

Merchandise Mart
 
320N
200W
Chicago 'L' rapid transit station
General information
Location350 North Wells Street
Chicago, Illinois 60654
Coordinates41.888675°N 87.633966°W / 41.888675; -87.633966
Owned byChicago Transit Authority
Line(s)North Side Main Line
Platforms2 Side platforms
Tracks2
Construction
Structure typeElevated
Platform levels1
ParkingNo
AccessibleYes
History
OpenedDecember 5, 1930
Rebuilt19871988
Passengers
2020580,038[1]Decrease 74.1%
Rank34 out of 143
Services
Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station
Chicago
toward Kimball
Brown Line Clark/Lake
One-way operation
Washington/Wells
Loop-bound terminus
Chicago
toward Linden
Purple Line
Express
Clark/Lake
Loop-bound terminus
Washington/Wells
One-way operation
Former services
Preceding station Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad Following station
Grand Avenue
toward Milwaukee
North Shore Line Clark/Lake
One-way operation
Randolph/Wells
Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station
Grand
Closed 1970
toward Howard
North Side main line North Water Terminal
Terminus
Clark/Lake
One-way operation
Randolph/Wells
Closed 1995
Location

There are two fare-card only, unattended entrances atop two long stairways accessed directly from Wells Street, just north of Kinzie Avenue. The station is constructed mostly of steel, with wooden platforms covered by a canopy most of their length. There are two side platforms both long enough to support eight-car trains, the longest possible on the CTA system. The southbound platform is just slightly below the level of the station entrance while an enclosed bridge over the tracks connects to the northbound platform on the opposite side.

The station is fully accessible, resulting in a complicated elevator setup. The elevator on the southbound platform can lower from the entrance to the platform, as well as go up to the top of the bridge. Another elevator on the opposite side of the bridge lowers to the northbound platform.

History

Kinzie station

Kinzie was a station on the Northwestern Elevated Railroad's North Side Main Line, which is now part of the Chicago Transit Authority's Brown Line. The station was located at Kinzie Street and Wells Street in the Near North Side neighborhood of Chicago. Kinzie opened on May 31, 1900,[4] and closed in 1921; it was replaced by the Grand station.[5] Today, Kinzie Street is serviced by the Brown Line and Purple Line Express at the Merchandise Mart station.

Merchandise Mart station

The current station opened on December 5, 1930, and was rebuilt from 1987 to 1988. Until 1963 the station also served interurban trains of the North Shore Line. The primary purpose of the station is to serve the Merchandise Mart, one of the world's largest commercial buildings, although there are some galleries and restaurants nearby.

Service

Merchandise Mart serves the Brown Line, but Purple Line Express trains also stop at the station during weekday rush hours. Merchandise Mart was the only Brown Line station not scheduled to receive upgrades or renovation during the Brown Line Capacity Expansion Project. Because of its recent construction from 1987 to 1988, the station is accessible to passengers with disabilities and is already of sufficient length to accommodate eight-car trains, thus no major renovation was needed during the project.

Bus connections

CTA

  • 37 Sedgwick (Weekdays only)
  • 125 Water Tower Express (Weekday rush hours only)

Notes and references

Notes

    References

    1. "Annual Ridership Report Calendar Year 2020" (PDF). Chicago Transit Authority, Ridership Analysis and Reporting. January 19, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
    2. "Merchandise Mart". Chicago Transit Authority. transitchicago.com. Retrieved November 9, 2012.
    3. Cox, Jeremiah. "Merchandise Mart". The Subway Nut. subwaynut.com. Retrieved November 9, 2012.
    4. "Room For All to Ride". Chicago Daily Tribune. May 30, 1900. p. 12.
    5. Garfield, Graham. "Kinzie". Chicago-L.org. Retrieved January 24, 2010.

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