Winnetka station

Winnetka is a station on Metra's Union Pacific North Line in Winnetka, Illinois. Winnetka station, located at 754 Elm Street in Winnetka, is 16.6 miles (26.7 km) away from Ogilvie Transportation Center, the inbound terminus of the Union Pacific North Line.[2] In Metra's zone-based fare structure, Winnetka is in zone D. As of 2018, Winnetka is the 68th busiest of Metra's 236 non-downtown stations, with an average of 754 weekday boardings.[1]

Winnetka
Winnetka Metra station
General information
Location	754 Elm Street Winnetka, Illinois 60093
Coordinates	42.1052°N 87.7329°W / 42.1052; -87.7329
Owned by	Village of Winnetka
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	2
Connections	Pace Buses Green Bay Bike Trail
Construction
Structure type	Open cut
Accessible	Yes
Other information
Fare zone	D
History
Rebuilt	1940
Passengers
2018	754 (average weekday)[1]  2.3%
Rank	68 out of 236[1]
Services
Preceding station Metra Following station Hubbard Woods toward Kenosha Union Pacific North Indian Hill toward Ogilvie
Former services Preceding station Chicago and North Western Railway Following station Highland Park toward Minneapolis Chicago – Minneapolis via Milwaukee Evanston toward Chicago Hubbard Woods toward Milwaukee Milwaukee Division Indian Hill toward Chicago
Location

Winnetka station is located in a below-grade trench. The platforms are accessible via stairs from Elm and Oak Streets and a passenger bridge. An elevator for accessibility is also located on the passenger bridge. The station consists of two side platforms which serve two tracks. A station house is located at street level; the station house is open from 5:15 A.M. to 1:15 P.M., and tickets are sold on weekdays. Parking is available in a lot adjacent to the station house. The Green Bay Trail, a hiking and bicycle trail, runs east of and parallel to the railroad tracks at Winnetka and can be accessed from the inbound platform.

As of April 25, 2022, Winnetka is served by all 70 trains (35 in each direction) on weekdays, by all 26 trains (13 in each direction) on Saturdays, and by all 18 trains (nine in each direction) on Sundays and holidays. On weekdays, seven outbound trains terminate at Winnetka, and six inbound trains originate from this station.

Winnetka was built at grade level when it served the Chicago and North Western Railway. As an increasing amount of railroad traffic came through Winnetka, the railroad crossings became unsafe, and 29 people had been killed at railroad crossings by 1937 despite safety efforts by the city and the railroad. After two prominent Winnetka women died at the Pine Street crossing on October 20, 1937, Winnetkans demanded that the grade crossings be removed. The city elected to put the tracks in a below-grade trench to avoid dividing the city with an elevated railroad. With the help of funding from the Public Works Administration, the tracks were lowered into a trench by 1943. Winnetka and Hubbard Woods stations were located at street level with access to station platforms by stairs from a pedestrian walkway across the tracks, and Indian Hill became an elevated station.[3]