CTA Kicks Off Final Leg Of $200M Wilson Station Reconstruction

By Stephen Gossett in News on Mar 9, 2017 8:30PM

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The final leg of the multi-million-dollar upgrade of the Wilson Red Station is officially set to begin.

The reconstruction project—which costs $203 million—is more than three-quarters complete, according to the City of Chicago. The final four remaining old elevated tracks, which date back more than a century, will soon be demolished; and by Monday, all trains passing through the Uptown platform will be new/

“In bringing this historic station into the 21st century, we are also bringing this historic neighborhood the jobs, businesses, and transportation it needs in the 21st century economy,” Mayor Rahm Emanuel said in a statement.

In addition to track updates, the project also includes replacement of two platforms, both nearly a century old. One of the new platforms has already been installed.

“When this project is completed, CTA customers will have a modern, accessible station in the heart of Chicago’s Uptown that will provide better service and also help generate economic development in the historic neighborhood,” said CTA President Dorval R. Carter, Jr in a release. “We are pleased to see the finish line for the new Wilson station and I thank our customers and Uptown neighbors for their patience during this worthwhile project.”

And if today's archive of incredible, vintage CTA photographs wasn't enough, you can also catch of rare glimpse of the Wilson stop's historic interiorhere.