21st CENTURY INFRASTRUCTURE FOR A 21st CENTURY CITY

摘要

The Washington/Wabash Station, located in the heart of Chicago's downtown, transforms the perception of public transportation facilities, and has become a gateway for Millennium Park and many of Chicago's downtown attractions. The design was inspired by the concept that MOVEMENT is at the heart of the transit system, and the "L" is the thread that weaves through Chicago to connect the City's neighborhoods, iconic landmarks, and Lakefront parks. The wave-like canopy weaves through historic Wabash Avenue as a playful, undulating counterpoint to the geometry of the city grid and buildings, and anticipates the soft forms of the park and lake beyond. The architecture of the canopies is simple, elegant and economical, expressing honesty of construction and the art of craft. The skeletal steel and faceted glass structure creates a dynamic play of light alluding to diamond facets and the immediate Jeweler's Row context. From the platform, the canopy is a deliberate contrasting frame that captures views to the historic Wabash facades while confidently expressing our forward progress - telling the story of where we have been, and where we are going - an appropriate expression for a great City that is always moving forward. The design resolves the challenges of constructing in this dense urban environment while maintaining active transit service in one of the nation's most heavily traveled transit corridors. The project included demolition of two existing transit stations, installation of new and modified track super structure, station fare collection areas, two new 425- foot long platforms, and the signature canopies.