Belmont station (CTA North Side Main Line)
Belmont is a station on the Chicago Transit Authority's 'L' system, located in the neighborhood of Lakeview at 945 West Belmont Avenue in Chicago, Illinois (directional coordinates 3200 north, 1000 west). It was opened in 1900 as part of the original Northwestern Elevated. Along with residential areas, the neighborhood surrounding Belmont contains many eclectic shops, bars, and restaurants and active nightlife.
The station is one of the more heavily-utilized on the system as a busy transfer point for the Brown Line and Red Line, as well as the Purple Line Express during weekday rush hours. It also serves as a terminal when the Brown Line operates as a truncated shuttle service to and from Kimball late at night and early in the morning.
The current station is located on the south side of Belmont and contains several turnstiles as well as a customer assistant booth. Beyond the turnstiles is a small caged area leading to stairs; the west staircase leads to the southbound platform and the east staircase to the northbound platform. There are no other entrances or exits to the station beyond this location.
Both platforms are elevated on a steel structure and are islands with tracks on either side; Brown and Purple Line trains share the outer tracks while Red Line trains run on the inner tracks. Belmont Avenue runs directly beneath the northern portion of both platforms. There is a bridge connecting the two platforms to allow southbound Brown Line passengers to access northbound Red and Purple Line trains and northbound Red Line customers access to the Brown Line Shuttle, which arrives and departs from the southbound platform. Both platforms are capable of handling eight-car trains on both sides, unlike most other Brown Line stations.
Brown Line Capacity Expansion Project
The Belmont station is slated for major renovation and reconstruction as part of the Brown Line Capacity Expansion Project, which will rehabilitate all Brown Line stations. The original station house will be renovated, but the platforms will be replaced and widened with new canopies added. The station will also become accessible to those with disabilities through the installation of elevators. Because of its importance, the station is scheduled to remain open throughout the entire project unlike other stations which face temporary closures lasting from a few weekends to several months. [1] The staging area and job offices for the project are located just north of the Belmont station.
As of 2006, construction of support systems for the project and demolition of adjacent structures is underway, although this was not without controversy. Several businesses in the area were forcefully evicted so their property could be used for construction, leading to some ill-will towards the CTA amongst area residents.
External links
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