Berwyn is a temporarily closed 'L' station on the CTA's Red Line. It is located at 1121 West Berwyn Avenue in the Edgewater neighborhood of Chicago, Illinois.[2] The adjacent stations are Bryn Mawr, located about 38 mile (0.60 km) to the north, and Argyle, about 13 mile (0.54 km) to the south, both still in service and serving as alternate stations. Four tracks pass through the station, but there is only single island platform in the center of the tracks. The two western tracks are temporarily out of service for construction and trains on both the Red and Purple Lines pass Berwyn on the eastern tracks without stopping. When the station reopens, it will consist of an island platform with Red Line trains stopping on the inner tracks and Purple Line Express trains bypassing the station on the outer tracks. Berwyn is named for the Berwyn station in the community of the same name, which is west of Philadelphia. Many of the roads (and thus CTA stations) in the Edgewater neighborhood are named after stations on the former Pennsylvania Railroad Main Line.[3]

Berwyn
 
5300N
1200W
Chicago 'L' rapid transit station
The original Berwyn station before demolition.
General information
Location1121 West Berwyn Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60640
Coordinates41°58′40″N 87°39′31″W / 41.977833°N 87.658683°W / 41.977833; -87.658683
Owned byChicago Transit Authority
Line(s)North Side Main Line
Platforms1 island platform (temporarily out of service)
Tracks4 (two temporarily out of service)
Construction
Structure typeElevated
Bicycle facilitiesYes
AccessibleStarting 2025
Other information
StatusTemporarily closed
History
Opened1916; 108 years ago (1916)
Rebuilt1921, 2012, 2021–25
Previous namesEdgewater Beach
Passengers
2020406,530[1]Decrease 59.9%
Rank57 out of 143
Services
Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station
Bryn Mawr
toward Howard
Red Line Argyle
     Purple Line does not stop here
Location
Map

History

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The Northwestern Elevated Railroad extended its services north from Wilson to Central Street in Evanston in 1908, but they did not build a station at Berwyn Avenue until the tracks between Wilson and Howard were elevated onto an embankment between 1914 and 1922. This new station was built to a design by architect Charles P. Rawson; the date of opening is not known, but a station may have existed at Berwyn by 1916.[2] At the time of its opening the station was named Edgewater Beach Station; the name was changed to Berwyn in the late 1950s,[4] around about the time that Lake Shore Drive was extended from Foster Avenue to Hollywood Avenue destroying the namesake Edgewater beach.[5]

Red & Purple Modernization Project

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As part of Phase I of the Red & Purple Modernization Project, the station closed for demolition beginning on May 16, 2021 and a newly constructed station will reopen in early 2025. The new station will feature wider platforms, better lighting, and be accessible to passengers with disabilities.[6][7][8][9]

Bus connections

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CTA

  • 92 Foster [10]
  • 146 Inner Lake Shore/Michigan Express[11]

Notes and references

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Notes

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The station is closed for reconstruction and is scheduled to reopen in early 2025.

References

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  1. ^ "Annual Ridership Report – Calendar Year 2020" (PDF). Chicago Transit Authority, Ridership Analysis and Reporting. January 19, 2021. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
  2. ^ a b Garfield, Graham. "Berwyn". Chicago "L".org. Retrieved December 12, 2007.
  3. ^ History of Edgewater street names
  4. ^ See: Garfield, Graham. "Route Maps". Chicago "L".org. Retrieved December 12, 2007.—the 1944 Rand McNally Street Guide refers to the station as Edgewater Beach, CTA system maps from the 1950s refer to the station as Edgewater Beach-Berwyn, by 1965 the CTA system maps just used Berwyn.
  5. ^ "Lake Shore Drive". Encyclopedia of Chicago. Retrieved December 12, 2007.
  6. ^ Ward, Joe (April 20, 2021). "Major Red Line Reconstruction Begins Soon, Starting With Demolition Of 100-Year-Old Stations, Tracks". Block Club Chicago. Retrieved April 20, 2021.
  7. ^ Hernandez, Cindy (January 28, 2021). "CTA unveils new Red Line station designs". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
  8. ^ Long, Zach. "Four CTA Red Line stations are getting a makeover". Time Out Chicago. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
  9. ^ "CTA Red & Purple Modernization: Lawrence to Bryn Mawr Modernization Project". CTA. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
  10. ^ "92 Foster (Bus Route Info)".
  11. ^ "146 Inner Drive/Michigan Express". Chicago Transit Authority. Retrieved July 29, 2010.
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