Washington - Closed since 2006

Washington is an abandoned station on the central portion of the State Street Subway that has one long island platform. The stop was originally the northernmost station stop on the State Street subway's long platform in the loop until stopping locations for trains were changed and an additional stop was made for the northern fare control area (with the middle mezzanine under renovation) on June, 2, 1996. Lake became an official independent station on November 18, 1997. The station was closed again on October 23, 2006 for construction for the Block 37 Project, that was to build a superstation with tracks connecting the Red and Blue lines for Airport Express trains, and the platform was cut into two at an angle for new switches. Following cost overruns the Block 37 superstation was abandoned in June 2008. The transfer tunnel and mezzanine up to Lake Street between Madison and Washington are closed off, partially with a plywood barricade that says Stop! No entry although the long continuous platform reopened in 2010 to passengers allowing them to walk from the Lake to Monroe underground.

At street level there are still two golden entrance structures for a staircase and an escalator on each side of State Street between Washington Street and Madison Street. These closed entrances have been fully sealed with golden fencing covering a dirt patch where stairs once were, and advertising wrapping around the larger full enclosures where the escalators once were.
Photo 1 taken on 1 August, 2011, 2-7 on 6 June, 2018

Looking across State Street to one set of the closed staircases and escalator that once led to the Washington Red Line Station

On the long Red Line platform approaching where trains once stopped for Washington

A plywood barricade around where the staircases/escalators once led up to the Washington - Madison Street mezzanine

The top of a former escalator now wrapped in advertising

The back of a closed staircase

The front of a closed and now sealed Golden Staircase down to the State Street subway

Looking across to the closed staircases/escalators on the opposite side of State Street

A nighttime view up Madison Street to the closed Washington Street Red Line Station entrances