North
Avenue
Avenue
Woodberry
Mt. Royal/MICA
North Avenue is the first stop northbound after Downtown Baltimore. The station is located in a bit of an open cut just below the grade from existing streets. North Avenue crosses over the tracks just south of the station on a bridge, just south of here the Jones Falls Expressway (I-83) crosses over both North Avenue and the light rail tracks on an even higher viaduct that really cuts through this neighborhood. Just south of the station the Northeast Corridor (right below North Avenue) curves into the Baltimore and Potomac Tunnel a historic tunnel (still in use today) by all trains on the Northeast Corridor built in 1873.
It is a station where trains can directly terminate with three tracks with two island platforms, the middle track having ADA mini-high platforms at both ends, allowing ADA accessibility from trains stopping on this track in either direction. The platforms have a unique layout with the Northbound platform significantly wider (and containing two black canopy structures) compared to the extremely narrow southbound island platform with just a line of lampposts. ADA accessibility is also complex. The middle platform's ADA ramps are at each end of the wider platform. The normal northbound side platforms ADA ramp is accessible via its own little grade-crossing at the northern end of this platform.
The southbound platform doesn't have really a ramp at all, but instead is just a little platform off of the ramping path that leads up to the station's exit through a small 37 space parking lot. This parking lot is connected to platforms in two locations. At the northern end of the parking lot is the main "entrance" where two ramps lead down to each end of the platforms, along with a staircase down to a central pedestrian grade-crossing. At the southern end of the parking lot is a staircase connecting a short sidewalk to the NE corner of McMechen Street and North Avenue.
A final exit is via a short staircase up to no sidewalk along McMechen Street that dead-ends at the main Baltimore Light Rail yard about 800 feet north of the station. The yard also contains a staircase down to a level crossing for Light Rail train operators to be changed on in service trains by opening one door for operators.
The closeness of the station to the Light Rail yard has made the station as of Fall 2024 one of the few to receive new white text on black, under red and orange signs with a pictogram for the light rail. This is unlike the hasty renovations at other stations that feel like they just spraypainted over the older white and blue look with black and kept the old platform signs.
Photos 1-35 taken on August 31, 2024;
