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Your New Blue - O'Hare Branch Rehab


BusHunter

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  • 1 month later...

I got my Panasonic DMC-LF1 camera back from the repair shop. On Tuesday night, 26 April, I was on the Blue Line “L” and opted to make one more stop at the Montrose station. I have used the Montrose station extensively since 1978, due to horrid winter weather causing crush crowds on westbound #77 Belmont such that I could not board one at the Belmont | Kimball station. By riding to Montrose, I could walk over to Cicero Ave. and have a very good chance at being able to board a southbound #54 Cicero bus.
Here are the photographs I took of the station this night. There will undoubtedly be more photographs of it as the renovation continues. Let these be the before images.
2bb129dae430.jpg dc0e847aa3d0.jpg f5275f7a3da5.jpg 3de8bea8c72b.jpg 5bc39357dfb9.jpg 9f4f1bb5a926.jpg 
 

Edited by pudgym29
Increase font size; reposition images.
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Ah, so someone was there after me. Here's what I took today. The green monster is in full effect now. The station has twice the platform room of addison/blue.

montrose platform closure sb only starts today 4-27-16.PNG

montrose information signs 4-27-16.PNG

I came across this sign and said wth before I saw Montrose. I was confused at first, I thought they closed the whole platform. Then I checked the date, so be advised Montrose is closing this weekend. They are hitting the Montrose riders with both barrels!! I thought maybe they waited a week before springing this on Addison. With it being so close to the rideby closure, it's easy to confuse the two different closures.

montrose closure this weekend 4-29.PNG

I'll tell you from experience at Addison, when the station closes, that weekend is when they usually remove the platform top. They will do another closure on that side when they put the new cement usually. Hopefully they budgeted for twice the work cause Montrose is twice as wide.

 

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On April 28, 2016 at 9:47 PM, BusHunter said:

montrose information signs 4-27-16.PNG

I came across this sign and said wth before I saw Montrose. I was confused at first, I thought they closed the whole platform. Then I checked the date, so be advised Montrose is closing this weekend. They are hitting the Montrose riders with both barrels!! I thought maybe they waited a week before springing this on Addison. With it being so close to the rideby closure, it's easy to confuse the two different closures.

 

That caution sign reminds me of a Dance Dance Revolution song called Drop Out! :P xD

image.png

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57 minutes ago, Busjack said:

Depends on whether or not the subject wants to go over the edge.

At Addison it wasn't hard. Irving Pk will be the same way. With some of the wind storms we have and the elevation of that platform we might actually have people blown on the right of way. They need some of these abc7 graphics where they show the cloud and it puckers up and blows!! :P

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  • 3 weeks later...

Here's some shots of the newly opened Nb side at Montrose/Blue 2 days ago. Surprisingly they closed the whole eb side mezzanine and the #78 doesn't even stop there. I wonder why take service from the #78? Are they that worried about people crossing the street mid block?

montrose south entrance closed 5-19-16.PNG

montrose bus stop relocation sign 5-19-16.PNG

montrose entrance closed 5-19-16.PNG

And here are shots of the platform

montrose new platform 5-19-16.PNG

montrose platform length 5-19-16.PNG

montrose platform 5-19-16.PNG

montrose end 5-19-16.PNG

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hey Hey Hey!! I sneaked a peek at the Montrose/Blue line bridge that goes under Montrose and it has been reconcreted to match the new platform. On 6/7 the SB side opens but I don't know if the south side connection does to EB Montrose. The only part of the platform that is granite now is where the fare payment area is. I would think a new CA booth is coming but so far there is nothing there.

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Here's completed pictures of Montrose blue line

Here's the transfer bridge, they did a nice job. This makes me wonder if they'll tackle the ped bridges over Pulaski and irving at Irving/Blue line, the railings look terrible.

montrose blue new rail and platform 6-11-16.PNG

transfer bridge 6-11-16.PNG

montrose transfer bridge 6-11-16.PNG

They cheated though the south station house has not been done. Now the floor looks older. 9_9 At least they painted it. It's nice and fresh.

They still have the eb #78 stop diverted and it's a good thing cause wooh weee when that west wind blows the drop (z)one smells terrible. One could faint waiting for a bus!! xD

montrose south entrance 6-11-16.PNG

montrose south entrance 2 6-11-16.PNG

drop one if you must now at montrose.PNG

At least if you got to go, there it is, but you'll have to hold your breath cause it's ripe in there.

Here's shots of the platform looks nice, wide and modern

montrose new platform 4 6-11-16.PNG

montrose new platform 6-11-16.PNG

montrose new platform 2 6-11-16.PNG

montrose new platform 3 6-11-16.PNG

They even did the fare area looks good. I wonder if they'll get a new Ca booth?

fare area at montrose concreted 6-11-16.PNG

 

 

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On 6/12/2016 at 9:52 PM, BusHunter said:

Now I know what station is getting the "your new blue" treatment next

 

irving pk station closures coming soon.PNG

Today while on my paparazzi mission at Addison/Blue, the PA came on with an audible announcement. "Today 6-14 the Forest Park side of Irving Pk station will be closed to commuters" Now does the sign above say that? 9_9 I know of no signs that say this is happening so I guess I'll have to log on to transitchicago.com to really know if it's true or not.

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5 minutes ago, BusHunter said:

Today while on my paparazzi mission at Addison/Blue, the PA came on with an audible announcement. "Today 6-14 the Forest Park side of Irving Pk station will be closed to commuters" Now does the sign above say that? 9_9 I know of no signs that say this is happening so I guess I'll have to log on to transitchicago.com to really know if it's true or not.

There's nothing on the your new blue page at all. But now under the alerts it says both the Irving pk projects are postponed. What a confusing mess!! 9_9

http://www.transitchicago.com/travel_information/alert_detail.aspx?AlertId=34730

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  • 4 weeks later...

Here's some pictures of the Irving pk blue line bridge closures as well as a look at the platform. Chunks of marble are already torn up on the platform left in chunks and the bridge marble floor has been removed. If you are savvy you'll notice they removed the bridge railing as you can see it in one of the pictures. They'll probably get the same railing Montrose got

irving pk platform from pulaski side blue line 7-9-16.PNG

pulaski bridge closure blue 7-9-16.PNG

from the pulaski side

irving pk blue bridge closure blue line 7-9-16.PNG

From the Irving Pk side

 

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14 minutes ago, BusHunter said:

Chunks of marble are already torn up on the platform left in chunks and the bridge marble floor has been removed

Probably granite. Marble would be destroyed by acid rain and be too slippery to walk on.

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  • 4 weeks later...

They are working on the lighting at Harlem/Higgins blue line in the mezzanine and bus bridge, I believe for 2 or 3 weeks now. I hope it gets more than just light upgrades. The mezzanine at night now lights up a urine yellow. Hopefully no one gets any ideas!! 9_9xD

Irving Pk blue line now has a completely open platform half concreted half not. They have the yellow stripe, between the two, affixed to the platform. Don't want anyone falling. I guess the pulaski and irving pk pedestrian brides are not yet open cause the #80 just zoomed by yesterday. (stops at Keystone now wb) Now those are two stops that are close together. Pulaski far side and Keystone.

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They opened the pedestrian bridges at Irving park blue line and i took some pictures of it and of the half completed platform.

First from the pulaski bridge

 

pulaski side almost finished 8-8.PNG

pulaski bridge 8-8.PNG

pulaski end 8-8.PNG

Here's the platform half and half

pulaski side approach 8-8.PNG

irving pk half done 8-8.PNG

irving park platform approach 8-8.PNG

and from the Irving Pk bridge (basically it looks the same as Pulaski

irving pk bridge entrance 8-8.PNG

irving pk bridge open 8-8.PNG

irving park bridge lead unfinished 8-8.PNG

 

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 2 weeks later...

FYI to everyone, if you don't know they are closing the outbound Harlem/Higgins Blue line stop tomorrow for like 2 weeks. I don't know why, I don't think harlem is getting a platform replacement, but they sure could use a working escalator. The up is out until I believe the 9th. They have been working on the station here and there. The bus canopy has new lighting. I think this is the 2nd time it's been totally replaced in 3 or 4 years. It really stands out at night. Must be halogen. Here's a link to the closure.

http://www.transitchicago.com/travel_information/alert_detail.aspx?AlertId=36441

Maybe they'll finally install the train tracker signs that are still missing on the platform. The bracket has been there working on 5 years!! xD9_9

 

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  • 1 month later...

Well they turned on all the new lighting at harlem higgins blue line last week and man is it bright!! But they still didnt put up the train tracker countdown clocks at the near side entrance on the platform. you still need your binoculars on the platform to see when the trains coming!!! Pity...

9_9xD

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They are also working on the pulaski side at irving pk/ blue. They had a crew out there last night. They are probably trying to concrete the areas with the yellow plywood. Pan up to see my pictures of the yellow plywood floor. Also they have switched the entrance side at addison blue to the east side of the mezz again probably for platform work.

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  • 1 year later...
1 hour ago, Tcmetro said:

CTA has awarded the contract for the renovations of the Grand, Chicago, and Division stations.

https://www.transitchicago.com/cta-awards-contract-for-modernization-of-grand-chicago-and-division-blue-line-stations/

Again, the Blue Line gets only cosmetic improvements, not anything to, say, for instance, make the stations accessible. One can compare the $30 million for these 3 stations to the $50 million for the Damen Green Line station.  

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