South Side project will create a strong community focal point and enhance the commuter experience
As work continues on the transformational Garfield Gateway Project, south Green Line stations will see temporary closures.
Over the next two weekends, CTA will install the steel structure needed to support the new canopy over the tracks. In order to facilitate this work, all stations south of 51st Street – Garfield, Cottage Grove, King Drive, Halsted and Ashland/63rd – will be closed during the weekends of Sept. 15-17 and Sept. 22-24. The closures will occur between 2 a.m. Saturday and 4 a.m. Monday.
Green Line trains will operate to/from the 51st Street station. For service south of 51st Street, CTA will operate continuous, free bus shuttle service to the closed stations for the duration of each weekend so that customers can get to their destinations safely and conveniently.
The Garfield Gateway Project, which broke ground in June, will vastly improve the commuting environment. The station’s platform canopies will be extended to provide more shelter for customers, while the installation of public art and new landscaping will make the daily customer experience more pleasant. The project will also upgrade platform accessibility by improving existing elevator and escalator equipment.
The $50 million project will rehabilitate the original Garfield station house built in 1892 on the south side of Garfield Boulevard. The historic stationhouse, which earned City of Chicago landmark status in 2001, will be restored to its original turn-of-the century look, and improved to allow it to serve a public purpose.
In coordination with the Chicago Department of Transportation, the Garfield Gateway project will also include streetscape enhancements next to the station to better integrate existing transportation uses and create a stronger community centerpiece — including improved pedestrian street crossings, eco-friendly paving materials, median landscaping including sustainable native grasses and plants, bike lanes, benches and bike racks at the station.
The Garfield ‘L’ station serves nearly 425,000 riders each year and provides connections with the #55 Garfield bus, serving more than 3 million riders annually with direct connections to the University of Chicago and Midway International Airport.
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