63rd Street station (Metra)

"63rd Street station (Illinois)" redirects here. For the CTA stations, see Ashland/63rd (CTA station) and 63rd (CTA station).

63rd Street station is a commuter rail station within the city of Chicago that serves the Metra Electric Line north to Millennium Station and south to University Park, Blue Island, and the Chicago neighborhood of South Chicago and the South Shore Line to Gary and South Bend, Indiana. Most South Shore Line trains do not stop at this station, except for one inbound train during the AM rush and two outbound trains during the PM rush on weekdays. As of 2018, the station is the 169th busiest of Metra's 236 non-downtown stations, with an average of 167 weekday boardings.

63rd Street
63rd Street station in November 2016.
General information
Location	63rd Street & Dorchester Street Woodlawn, Chicago, Illinois
Coordinates	41.779785°N 87.590539°W / 41.779785; -87.590539
Owned by	Metra
Line(s)	University Park Sub District
Platforms	2 island platforms
Tracks	4
Connections	CTA Bus
Construction
Accessible	No
Other information
Fare zone	2 (Metra and South Shore)
History
Opened	1903
Electrified	Overhead line, 1,500 V DC
Previous names	Woodlawn Park 63rd Street (Woodlawn)
Passengers
2018	167 (average weekday)  44.1% (Metra)
Rank	169 out of 236
Services
Preceding station Metra Following station 75th Street (Grand Crossing) toward University Park or Blue Island Metra Electric Main Line & Blue Island Branch 59th Street/University of Chicago toward Millennium Station Stony Island toward South Chicago Metra Electric South Chicago Branch Preceding station NICTD Following station Hegewisch toward South Bend Airport South Shore Line 55th–56th–57th Street toward Millennium Station
Future services Preceding station NICTD Following station Hegewisch toward Munster/Dyer Main Street Monon Corridor peak hours 55th–56th–57th Street toward Millennium Station
Former services Preceding station NICTD Following station 55th–56th–57th Street toward Millennium Station South Shore Line Kensington/115th Street toward South Bend Airport Preceding station Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad Following station 53rd Street toward Randolph Street South Shore Line Kensington/115th Street toward South Bend Preceding station Illinois Central Railroad Following station Kensington toward New Orleans Main Line 53rd Street toward Chicago 67th Street toward Richton, 91st Street or Blue Island Electric Suburban 59th Street toward Randolph Street Preceding station New York Central Railroad Following station Kensington toward Detroit Michigan Central Railroad Main Line Chicago Terminus Kensington toward Cincinnati Chicago – Cincinnati Preceding station Chesapeake and Ohio Railway Following station Hammond toward Cincinnati Chicago, Cincinnati & Louisville Railroad 1907-1911 1925-1933 Chicago Terminus
Track layout ME north to Millennium Jackson Park branch (demolished 1982) 63rd St. 64th St. 65th St. ME south to University Park, Blue Island, or South Chicago south to South Bend Airport
Location

History

The station, originally named Woodlawn, was built by the Illinois Central Railroad (ICRR) in 1903, and served both ICRR commuter trains and long-distance passenger trains until the railroad relinquished its passenger train service to Amtrak in 1971. A large combination station and office building for the Illinois Central was built in 1917, and demolished in the 1980s. The station had another island platform between the two non-electrified tracks on the eastern side to serve Illinois Central and some New York Central long-distance trains. It is now removed, but evidence still remains.

Named trains making stops at Woodlawn:

• Illinois Central:
  • City of New Orleans (to New Orleans)
  • Green Diamond (to St. Louis)
  • Louisiane (to New Orleans)
  • Panama Limited (to New Orleans)
  • Seminole (to Jacksonville, Florida)
• New York Central:
  • Cincinnati Special (to Cincinnati)
  • James Whitcomb Riley (to Cincinnati)

Recent years

This also serves as a stop for Mount Carmel High School students, which is directly across from the station. The station was originally used as a local and express station until the schedules were shifted in 1975 to make 55th–56th–57th Street station the express station.

This is the last stop on the main line for trains of the South Chicago branch, which splits off south of the station. Prior to 1982, the Jackson Park branch of the South Side 'L' crossed the Metra Electric tracks on a bridge just north of this station. Trains stopped at nearby Dorchester station.

Bus connections

CTA

• 63 63rd (Owl Service)

External links

• Media related to 63rd Street station (Metra) at Wikimedia Commons
• Metra – Stations – 63rd Street
• South Shore Line - Stations Archived 2017-08-21 at the Wayback Machine