Fullerton (CTA)

Fullerton is an 'L' station on the CTA's Brown and Red Lines. Purple Line express trains also stop at the station during weekday rush hours. It is an elevated station with two island platforms, located in the Lincoln Park neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois. Brown and Purple Line trains share the outer tracks while Red Line trains run on the inner tracks. As well as being an important transfer station, the station serves the Lincoln Park campus of DePaul University.

History

Fullerton Station was opened in 1900 as an express/local stop on the Northwestern Elevated Railroad" [http://www.chicago-l.org/stations/fullerton.html Fullerton.] " Chicago-"L".org (URL accessed October 7 2006).] . In the 1920s, the station's platforms were lengthened to serve eight-car trains, but due to surrounding buildings the platforms were lengthened in different directions; the northbound platform was extended northward, and the southbound platform was extended to the south. In 1949 an additional set of exit stairs was added at Fullerton as well as a convert|15|ft|m tall supervisor's booth on the platform. Off-peak shuttle service on the Ravenswood Line ran from Kimball to Fullerton until 1961, when the shuttles were cut back to their present-day terminus at Belmont.

In 1983 the CTA decided to lease the space beneath Fullerton to a business. The CTA, led by chairman Michael Cardilli, granted the lease to Peter Schivarelli, a friend and former coworker of Cardilli's. Schivarelli built the hot dog stand Demon Dogs in the space. While Schivarelli paid for the construction of the stand, he owed a low rent on the property, and the CTA paid the utility bills for the building. The CTA ended this arrangement in 1998 upon its being made public, and Schivarelli sued the CTA as a result. A trial court ruled in favor of Schivarelli, but the CTA appealed the decision, and it was overturned by an appellate court. Demon Dogs remained open until 2005, when it was removed during the station's reconstruction.

In 1989, Evanston Express trains began stopping at Fullerton due to increased ridership. The original station house was damaged by a fire in December of 1996; the police suspected that the fire was the result of arson. The station house was reopened in February 1997 with only one ticket agent's booth. However, the single booth could not handle the high passenger load at the station, and a new station house was opened next to the original in 1998.

Brown Line Capacity Expansion Project

Fullerton station is undergoing reconstruction as part of the Brown Line Capacity Expansion Project. The new station will have wider platforms and elevators to ensure that it meets ADA accessibility requirements. The new platforms will be able to accommodate 10-car trains, allowing for future expansion of the Red Line [" [http://www.yourcta.com/news/newspostdescs/123139env.pdf Chigago Transit Authority Ravenswood (Brown) Line Expansion Environmental Assessment.] Chicago Transit Authority"] . Because of its importance, the station is scheduled to remain open throughout the entire project unlike other stations which face temporary closures. This will be achieved by the use of a temporary station house that opened on October 8 2006 [" [http://www.transitchicago.com/news/ctaandpress.wu?action=displayarticledetail&articleid=102855 Fullerton Station Entrance to Temporarily Relocate on Sunday.] " CTA press release (URL accessed October 7 2006).] .The renovation project has not been without controversy. The demolition of both the well known "Demon Dogs" hot dog stand and DePaul University's 1929 Gothic-style Hayes-Healy Gymnasium were unsuccessfully contested [" [http://www.adoresixtyfour.com/archive054 Vanishing Chicago: The Gym.] " adoresixtyfour.com (URL accessed October 7 2006).] [Ben Joravsky " [http://www.chicagoreader.com/pdf/051216/051216_works.pdf Oops! They Did It Again.] " Chicago Reader, December 16 2005.] .

ervices

As part of the Red, Brown and Purple Lines, Fullerton is used by passengers travelling between Lincoln Park and the Loop, Ravenswood and neighborhoods on the North Side. Fullerton is served every 7 to 8 minutes by Brown Line trains, every 5 to 8 minutes by Red Line trains on weekdays and every 7 to 10 minutes on weekends, and every 10 to 20 minutes by Purple Line trains during weekday rush periods. While the Brown Line ends service to Fullerton at 1:00 A.M. on weekdays, Red Line trains run 24 hours every day, so the station is open at all times. In 2007, 3,496,676 passengers boarded at Fullerton, a 1% increase from 2006. These figures made Fullerton the 2nd-busiest station on the Brown Line, the 4th-busiest station on the Red Line, and the 2nd-busiest station on the Purple Line.

The fare controls at Fullerton are located in a temporary station house on the south side of Fullerton Avenue (next door to the location where a new station house will be constructed); the original station house was closed for renovation and will be moved across the street and converted to an auxiliary farecard-only entrance. From the station house, staircases lead to the station's two island platforms. The east platform is used by northbound trains, and the west platform is used by southbound trains. Additional exit stairs lead from the platforms to the north side of Fullerton Avenue. Fullerton is not wheelchair accessible, though plans to make the station accessible are included in the Brown Line Capacity Expansion Project.

Bus Connections

CTA Buses
* #11 Lincoln/Sedgwick
* #74 Fullerton

References

External links

* [http://www.transitchicago.com/maps/rail/Fullerton.html Train schedules] at [http://www.transitchicago.com/ CTA official site]