Caption: State Senator Mike Simmons attends ribbon cutting ceremony at Ravenswood Metra Station. 

CHICAGO – After a long awaited major reconstruction, State Senator Mike Simmons attends the opening dedication of the new inbound side of Ravenswood Station on the Union Pacific North Line on Tuesday, bringing the reconstruction project to completion.

"I am thrilled to see the new Ravenswood Metra Station officially open today right here in the Lincoln Square/Ravenswood community where I grew up and have many fond memories,” said Simmons (D-Chicago), who serves on the Senate Transportation Committee. “The new facilities — including warming shelters, longer platforms and ramps — are the kind of investments we need in our transportation facilities to increase ridership and restore the health of our regional transit.”

The new platform was the final part of the Ravenswood Metra Station project, a project part of an even larger $167 million plan to replace aging bridges along the UP North Line on the North Side of Chicago. The station was rebuilt in stages in order to keep two tracks open for service during construction. Funded with a combination of federal, state and local capital sources, the station is now fully compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, has new shelters on both platforms, longer platforms and is designed to improve loading times, which will result in more timely and efficient train service.

“I am happy to see the investments we have been calling for to increase ridership in our transit systems come to fulfillment. From the ADA compliance to the additional platform space, this is a major win for transit equity, ” said Simmons. “Thank you Metra, Alderman Matt Martin and all the stakeholders who worked so hard to get us to this point."

Watch State Senator Mike Simmons' full remarks in the video below.

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