Brown Line (CTA)

Brown Line
A Brown Line train in the Kimball terminal.
Overview
Status	Operational
Locale	Chicago, Illinois, USA
Termini	Kimball Loop
Stations	28
Service
Type	Rapid transit
System	Chicago 'L'
Operator(s)	Chicago Transit Authority
Rolling stock	3200-Series
History
Opened	May 18, 1907
Technical
Line length	11.4 mi (18.3 km)
Character	Elevated and Street Level
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Minimum radius	90 feet (27 m)
Route map Template:CTA Brown Line

The Brown Line of the Chicago 'L' rapid transit system, is an 11.4-mile (18.3 km) route with 19 stations between Albany Park on the north and downtown Chicago. It runs completely above ground and is almost entirely grade-separated. It is CTA's third busiest rail line, with average weekday ridership at 98,307 as of October 2009. The Brown Line runs completely within the city limits of Chicago, Illinois.

The Brown Line operates to the Loop weekdays and Saturdays from about 5am to 12:30am and on Sundays from 7am to midnight. The Brown Line Shuttle service, running only between the northern terminus Kimball and Belmont, runs from about 4am to 5am and about 12:30am to 2:30 am on weekdays and Saturdays, and about 5am to 6am and about midnight to 1am on Sundays. At Belmont, southbound riders can transfer to the 24-hour Red Line.

Before CTA lines were color-coded in 1993, the Brown Line was known as the Ravenswood Route; specifically, the series of stations from Belmont to Kimball were called the Ravenswood branch. Accordingly, the Kimball-Belmont shuttle service was called the Ravenswood Shuttle. Some Chicago transit riders and historians still refer to the line by those names.

Operation

A Brown Line train crosses the north branch of the Chicago River

The Brown Line starts out in northwest Chicago, at the Kimball and Lawrence Avenue terminal (3400 W. - 4800 N.) in Albany Park, where there is a storage yard and servicing shop for the trains to the east of the passenger station. From there, trains operate over street level tracks between Leland and Eastwood Avenues to Rockwell Avenue, then ramp up to the elevated structure for the rest of the trip.

Oddly, the trains on the street-level section are powered by third rail rather than overhead catenary (the technology used by most other U.S. electric-powered at-grade rail systems), a decision that exposes wayward pedestrians to the risk of electrocution. A fatal accident in 1977 involving a severely intoxicated Korean immigrant who attempted to urinate on the third rail at the Kedzie station eventually resulted in a famous Illinois Supreme Court decision in 1992 affirming a verdict of $1.5 million against CTA.

Northward view from the Adams/Wabash station at night

After the Damen station, the route turns south, about one-half block parallel and west of Metra's Union Pacific North railroad line and Ravenswood Avenue to a point south of the Addison station. Here the route turns east again and runs parallel to Roscoe Street past Sheffield Avenue where it once again turns south at Clark Junction to join the four-track North Side elevated line in Lakeview. From just north of Belmont station south to Armitage, Brown and Red Line trains operate side-by-side, with Purple Line Express trains sharing the tracks during weekday rush periods. Brown and Purple Line trains run on the outermost tracks serving five stops, while Red Line trains run on the innermost tracks making only two stops.

A brown line train at Madison/Wabash station in the Chicago Loop

South of the Armitage station, Brown and Purple Line trains continue southward towards the Chicago Loop on elevated track which zigzags its way through the neighborhoods of Lincoln Park and Near North Side before stopping at Chicago and Franklin. Running over Franklin, then Wells Street, a stop is made at the Merchandise Mart before crossing the Chicago River on the upper lever of the Wells Street Bridge before joining the Loop Elevated at Lake Street. Operating counterclockwise, Brown Line trains extend around the Loop over the Outer track via Wells-Van Buren-Wabash-Lake, serving all Loop stations, before the return trip back north to the Albany Park terminal.

Operating fleet

Currently, the Brown Line's rolling stock consists of Morrison-Knudsen-built 3200-Series rail cars, delivered from 1992 through 1994.

Beginning March 30, 2008, the Brown Line began running eight cars on trains during rush periods, since all of the re-opened or renovated stations have been rebuilt to accommodate eight-car trains. Prior to this, although ridership certainly warranted eight-car trains on the Ravenswood–Brown Line during rush periods, most stations on the line couldn't berth longer than six-car trains. Six cars are standard on the Brown Line during midday. Early morning, late evening, and weekend service is generally provided by four-car trains, although this may vary due to special events.

History

The Ravenswood branch was opened on May 18, 1907 by the former Northwestern Elevated Railroad between the Loop and Western and Leland Avenues in Lincoln Square. The route was completed to the Kimball/Lawrence terminal on December 14, 1907. The Ravenswood Line remains basically unchanged since its early days, aside from a few cosmetic upgrades to its stations and elevated structures. The Kimball/Lawrence terminal was completely remodeled and a new bridge over the North Branch of the Chicago River was completed in the 1970s. The Western and Merchandise Mart stations were rebuilt in the 1980s. Prior to the start of the Brown Line Capacity Expansion Project these two stations, along with the Kimball/Lawrence terminal were the only ADA accessible stations on the Brown Line outside of the Loop.

Brown Line Capacity Expansion Project

The new Rockwell Station opened on August 16, 2006

On February 20, 2006 the CTA formally broke ground on the Brown Line Capacity Expansion Project in order to repair its aging infrastructure and increase passenger capacity at Brown Line stations. The primary features of the project include:

• Reconstruction of stations and trackage and make each station ADA compliant
• Lengthening of platforms to accommodate eight-car trains
• Modernization of right-of-way between Kimball and Rockwell Avenue
• Upgrade of traction power equipment and train control systems
• Installation of a new fiber optic communication network.

Only one station--Merchandise Mart is not being touched at all because of its 1988 reconstruction and its existing ability to accommodate 8-car trains. Another two stations, Kimball and Western only received small platform extensions and little other work. The other 16 stations are largely or completely being rebuilt.

The first two stations to be rebuilt—Kedzie and Rockwell—reopened on August 16, 2006. Following the dedication of the new Wellington station on July 30, 2009, all of the Brown Line stations that were temporarily closed for renovation are now open. The project is now completed.

Station listing

Brown Line (Ravenswood branch)
Station	Location	Points of interest & Notes
Kimball	4755 N. Kimball Avenue	North Park University, Northeastern Illinois University, Northside College Prep, Albany Park Library
Kedzie	4648 N. Kedzie Avenue	Swedish Covenant Hospital
Francisco	4648 N. Francisco Avenue
Rockwell	4648 N. Rockwell Street	Rockwell Street Neighborhood Shops
Western	4648 N. Western Avenue	Lincoln Square, Chicago, Sulzer Regional Library, Old Town School of Folk Music
Damen	4645 N. Damen Avenue	Transfer to Metra trains at Ravenswood.
Ravenswood		Closed on August 1, 1949
Montrose	1817 W. Montrose Avenue	Margie's Candies
Irving Park	1816 W. Irving Park Road
Addison	1818 W. Addison Street
Paulina	3410 N. Lincoln Avenue	Roscoe Village
Southport	3411 N. Southport Avenue	Music Box Theatre
Brown Line (North Side Main Line)
Station	Location	Points of interest & Notes
Belmont	945 W. Belmont Avenue	Lakeview, Briar Street Theater Boystown, The Vic Theatre Transfer station for Red and Purple Lines
Wellington	945 W. Wellington Avenue	Illinois Masonic Medical Center
Diversey	943 W. Diversey Avenue	Lincoln Park, Elks National Memorial Headquarters Building
Wrightwood		Closed August 1, 1949
Fullerton	943 W. Fullerton Avenue	Lincoln Park, DePaul University, Children's Memorial Hospital, St. Josaphat Roman Catholic Church, Biograph Theater Transfer station for Red and Purple Lines
Webster		Closed August 1, 1949
Armitage	944 W. Armitage Avenue	Goose Island Brewery, Lincoln Park Zoo
Willow	Willow Street and Sheffield Avenue	Closed in early 1940s
Halsted		Closed August 1, 1949
Larrabee	Larrabee Street, Ogden Avenue and North Avenue	Closed August 1, 1949
Sedgwick	1536 N. Sedgwick Street	The Second City, Piper's Alley, Old Town, Chicago History Museum, North Avenue Beach
Schiller		Closed August 1, 1949
Division		Closed August 1, 1949
Oak	Oak Street and Orleans Street	Closed July 31, 1949
Chicago	301 W. Chicago Avenue	Moody Bible Institute, Cabrini-Green, River North Gallery District
Grand	Grand Avenue and Franklin Street	Closed September 20, 1970
Kinzie	Kinzie Street and Wells Street	Closed 1921; replaced by Grand
Merchandise Mart	350 N. Wells Street	Merchandise Mart Transfer station for Purple Line
Brown Line (Loop)
Station	Location	Points of interest & Notes
Randolph/Wells	150 N. Wells St.	Closed 1995; replaced by Washington/Wells
Washington/Wells	100 N. Wells Street	Chicago City Hall, Civic Opera House, Chicago Mercantile Exchange, Ogilvie Transportation Center Transfer station for Orange and Pink Lines
Madison/Wells	1 N. Wells St.	Closed January 30, 1994; replaced by Washington/Wells
Quincy	220 S. Wells Street	Willis Tower, Union Station Transfer station for Metra and Amtrak trains
LaSalle/Van Buren	121 W. Van Buren Street	Chicago Board of Trade, Chicago Board Options Exchange Transfer station for Metra trains LaSalle Street Station
Dearborn/Van Buren	Dearborn Street and Van Buren Street	Closed 1949
Library-State/Van Buren	1 W. Van Buren Street	Harold Washington Library Center, DePaul University , Robert Morris University, John Marshall Law School, Chicago Bar Association and The Auditorium Building of Roosevelt University Transfer station for Purple, Orange, and Pink Lines and Red and Blue Lines via Jackson
State/Van Buren	400 S. State St.	Closed September 2, 1973
Adams/Wabash	201 S. Wabash Avenue	Grant Park, Petrillo Music Shell, Buckingham Fountain, Art Institute of Chicago, Orchestra Hall, DePaul University Transfer station for Orange and Green Lines
Madison/Wabash	2 N. Wabash Avenue	Jewelers Row
Randolph/Wabash	151 N. Wabash Avenue	Marshall Field's, Chicago Cultural Center, Millennium Park Transfer station for Metra trains and South Shore Line
State/Lake	200 N. State Street	Chicago Theatre, Gene Siskel Film Center Transfer station for Red Line
Clark/Lake	100 W. Lake Street, Chicago	James R. Thompson Center, Richard J. Daley Center Transfer station for Green, Orange Pink, Purple (weekday rush hour periods only), and Blue Lines

At Clark/Lake, Brown Line trains head back to Merchandise Mart, then make all stops in reverse to Kimball.

See also

• Chicago 'L'
• List of stations on the 'L'

External links

• About the Brown Line at Countdown to a New Brown - official CTA site
• Brown Line at Chicago-'L'.org
• Train schedules at CTA official site