Ashland station (CTA Green and Pink Lines)

Not to be confused with Ashland/​63rd, also on the Green Line.

Ashland is an 'L' station on the CTA's Green and Pink Lines. It is an elevated station with two side platforms, located in Chicago's Near West Side neighborhood at 1601 West Lake Street. Just to the west of the station, the Pink Line branches off from the Lake Street branch to follow the Paulina Connector to the Douglas branch. The adjacent stations are Damen (Green), which is located about 1⁄2 mile (0.80 km) to the west, Polk (Pink), which is located about 1 mile (1.6 km) to the south, and Morgan station, approximately 3⁄4 mile (1.2 km) to the east.

Ashland   1600W 200N
General information
Location	1601 West Lake Street Chicago, Illinois 60612
Coordinates	41°53′07″N 87°40′01″W
Owned by	Chicago Transit Authority
Line(s)	Lake Branch
Platforms	2 Side platforms
Tracks	2
Construction
Structure type	Elevated
Accessible	Yes
History
Opened	November 6, 1893; 131 years ago (1893-11-06)
Closed	April 4, 1948; 77 years ago (1948-04-04) – February 25, 1951; 74 years ago (1951-02-25)
Rebuilt	1996; 29 years ago (1996)
Passengers
2024	628,077[1]  9.2%
Services
Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station Damen toward Harlem/​Lake Green Line Morgan toward Ashland/​63rd or Cottage Grove Polk toward 54th/​Cermak Pink Line Morgan toward Loop (Clark/Lake)
Former services Preceding station Chicago "L" Following station Lake Street Transfer Closed 1951 toward Forest Park Lake Street Elevated Loomis Closed 1954 toward Loop (Randolph/Wells) or Market Terminal
Track layout Legend Green to Harlem/​Lake Pink to 54th/​Cermak Ashland Ave. Justine St. Pink to The Loop Green to Ashland/​63rd or Cottage Grove
Location

History

Ashland station opened on November 6, 1893, as part of the Lake Street Elevated Railroad's initial route,^[2] and it is one of the oldest standing stations on the 'L'. The station closed on April 4, 1948, along with nine other stations on the Lake Street branch,^[3] but later reopened on February 25, 1951, the same day the Milwaukee-Dearborn subway opened for service.^[4] During the two-year closure of the Green Line from 1994 to 1996, the station was restored and elevators were added to make the station accessible to passengers with disabilities.

Structure and location

Ashland is directly adjacent to Union Park, venue for the Intonation Music Festival and the Pitchfork Music Festival. Prior to the opening of the Damen station in 2024, Ashland was also the closest "L" station to the United Center, the home stadium of the Chicago Bulls NBA team and the Chicago Blackhawks NHL team.

Bus connections

CTA

• 9 Ashland (Owl Service)
• X9 Ashland Express (weekday rush hours only)

See also

• Ashland (CTA Orange Line station)
• Ashland/63rd (CTA station)