Illinois Medical District - CTA Blue Line

Illinois Medical Center is a station located in the median of the Eisenhower Expressway and has the standard island platform with an uncanny three entrances. The staircase and entrance ramps are all covered by simple white canopies. The stop was the first stop only served by the Harlem brach of the Blue Line before the Pink Line took over operations of the 54th/Cermark branch. The Pink Line still crosses over the eastern edge of the station over the ramp up to the Paulina Street exit. Just beyond this exit, the former connection used by the 54th/Cermark branch of the Blue line and only connection from the Blue Line to the rest of the 'L' curves away from the Pink Line on an elevated guideway with the trestle crossing over Paulina Street in front of that entrance before gradually descending down between the two Blue Line tracks and finally switching onto them shortly before the platforms of the next station, Loomis begin.

The three aforementioned exits from the station: At the eastern end of the platform there is a very gradual ramp (that is nearly the length of an 8 car train, the actual platform) with plexiglass that leads up to Paulina Street. This entrance still has its original grey tiled walled little station house but is now fully unstaffed with two farecard only high entrance/exit turnstiles inside. Continuing west the next entrance is on the east side Ogden Avenue's angled overpass across the expressway. This station house also has grey tiled walls, is fully staffed with turnstiles and leads to a staircase down to the platform, about a car length from its eastern end (and the beginning of the ramp up to Paulina Street). At the western end of the platform is the usual gradual ramp that has been modified to meet ADA wheelchair standards (making the station wheelchair compliant) this leads up to a renovated station house with grey tiled walls, also fully staffed with a bay window customer assistance booth out to the east side of Damen Avenue.
Photos 1 taken on 16 July, 2009, 2-23 on 3 August, 2012

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A freeway view of the station of the central exit

A platform sign with three exits that require arrows

Beneath the central overpass

A column sign

The station's name is so long it requires two lines

Another view of a platform sign

Approaching the exit to Paulina Street

Looking down the ramp from Paulina Street

Continuing up the ramp, the track used by the pink line crosses over the middle of the ramp

Beneath the Paulina Connector used by the Pink Line

Approaching the two high exit turnstiles to Paulina Street

The walls of this headhouse are grey like the two others, one wall in this one is cinderblock with a new room built

The farecards only sign at the Paulina Street entrance

The sign and elevated tracks above

Beneath the elevated structure once used by the 54/Cermark Branch of the Blue Line, today it is the only track connection for the blue line to the rest of the system

A pink line train crosses over the station

The blur of a Pink Line train that continues crossing over the Paulina Street entrance ramp

The tall elevated structure that leads down to the Blue Line from the Pink Line

A side view of the Paulina Street ramp and elevated structures above

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