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Merchandise Mart (CTA)
Encyclopedia
Merchandise Mart is a station
on the Chicago Transit Authority
's 'L' system
, located in the Near North Side
at 350 North Wells Street in Chicago, Illinois (directional coordinates 320 north, 200 west). The original station was opened on December 5, 1930, and rebuilt in 1988. Prior to 1963 the station also served interurban
trains of the North Shore Line
. The primary purpose of the station is to serve the Merchandise Mart
, one of the world's largest commercial buildings, although there are some galleries and restaurants nearby.
The station is elevated above street level, on a steel structure. The turnstile
s and customer assistant booth of the current station are located on the second level of the Merchandise Mart itself. This is the main entrance to the station, although there are two fare-card only, unattended, entrances atop two long stairways accessed directly from Wells Street, just north of Kinzie Avenue. The station is constructed mostly of steel, with wooden platforms covered by a canopy most of their length. There are two side platforms both long enough to support eight-car trains, the longest possible on the CTA system. The southbound platform is just slightly below the level of the station entrance while an enclosed bridge over the tracks connects to the northbound platform on the opposite side. The station is fully accessible, resulting in a complicated elevator
setup. The elevator on the southbound platform can lower from the entrance to the platform, as well as go up to the top of the bridge. Another elevator on the opposite side of the bridge lowers to the northbound platform.
Merchandise Mart primarily serves the Brown Line
but Purple Line Express
trains also stop there during weekday rush hours.
Merchandise Mart is the only Brown Line station not scheduled to receive substantial upgrades through the Brown Line Capacity Expansion Project. Since it is of recent construction, is ADA-compliant, and is already of sufficient length to accommodate eight-car trains, no major modifications are needed.
Metro station
A metro station or subway station is a railway station for a rapid transit system, often known by names such as "metro", "underground" and "subway". It is often underground or elevated. At crossings of metro lines, they are multi-level....
on the Chicago Transit Authority
Chicago Transit Authority
Chicago Transit Authority, also known as CTA, is the operator of mass transit within the City of Chicago, Illinois and some of its surrounding suburbs....
's 'L' system
Chicago 'L'
The L is the rapid transit system serving the city of Chicago and some of its surrounding suburbs. It is operated by the Chicago Transit Authority...
, located in the Near North Side
Near North Side, Chicago
The Near North Side is one of 77 well-defined community areas of Chicago, Illinois, United States. It is located north and east of the Chicago River, just north of the central business district . To its east is Lake Michigan and its northern boundary is the 19th-century city limit of Chicago,...
at 350 North Wells Street in Chicago, Illinois (directional coordinates 320 north, 200 west). The original station was opened on December 5, 1930, and rebuilt in 1988. Prior to 1963 the station also served interurban
Interurban
An interurban, also called a radial railway in parts of Canada, is a type of electric passenger railroad; in short a hybrid between tram and train. Interurbans enjoyed widespread popularity in the first three decades of the twentieth century in North America. Until the early 1920s, most roads were...
trains of the North Shore Line
Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad
The Chicago North Shore and Milwaukee Railroad, often called the North Shore Line, was an interurban railroad line that operated between Chicago, Illinois, and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, until its abandonment in 1963.- Early history :...
. The primary purpose of the station is to serve the Merchandise Mart
Merchandise Mart
When opened in 1930, the Merchandise Mart or the Merch Mart, located in the Near North Side, Chicago, Illinois, was the largest building in the world with of floor space. Previously owned by the Marshall Field family, the Mart centralized Chicago's wholesale goods business by consolidating vendors...
, one of the world's largest commercial buildings, although there are some galleries and restaurants nearby.
The station is elevated above street level, on a steel structure. The turnstile
Turnstile
A turnstile, also called a baffle gate, is a form of gate which allows one person to pass at a time. It can also be made so as to enforce one-way traffic of people, and in addition, it can restrict passage only to people who insert a coin, a ticket, a pass, or similar...
s and customer assistant booth of the current station are located on the second level of the Merchandise Mart itself. This is the main entrance to the station, although there are two fare-card only, unattended, entrances atop two long stairways accessed directly from Wells Street, just north of Kinzie Avenue. The station is constructed mostly of steel, with wooden platforms covered by a canopy most of their length. There are two side platforms both long enough to support eight-car trains, the longest possible on the CTA system. The southbound platform is just slightly below the level of the station entrance while an enclosed bridge over the tracks connects to the northbound platform on the opposite side. The station is fully accessible, resulting in a complicated elevator
Elevator
An elevator is a type of vertical transport equipment that efficiently moves people or goods between floors of a building, vessel or other structures...
setup. The elevator on the southbound platform can lower from the entrance to the platform, as well as go up to the top of the bridge. Another elevator on the opposite side of the bridge lowers to the northbound platform.
Merchandise Mart primarily serves the Brown Line
Brown Line (Chicago Transit Authority)
The Brown Line starts out in northwest Chicago, at the Kimball and Lawrence Avenue terminal in Albany Park, where there is a storage yard and servicing shop for the trains to the east of the passenger station...
but Purple Line Express
Purple Line (Chicago Transit Authority)
The Purple Line of the Chicago Transit Authority is a branch line on the northernmost section of the Chicago 'L' rapid transit network. Normally, it extends south from the Wilmette terminal at Linden Avenue, passing through Evanston to Howard Street, on Chicago's northern city limits...
trains also stop there during weekday rush hours.
Merchandise Mart is the only Brown Line station not scheduled to receive substantial upgrades through the Brown Line Capacity Expansion Project. Since it is of recent construction, is ADA-compliant, and is already of sufficient length to accommodate eight-car trains, no major modifications are needed.
Bus connections
CTA-
#11 Lincoln/Sedgwick -
#125 Water Tower Express