thumb|right|250px|alt=Map depicting the geographic layout of the right rapid transit lines of the Chicago "L" system. All lines except the Yellow Line operate from the central business district (the Loop) in the following directions: north, northwest, west, southwest, and south. Lake Michigan is to the east. The Red Line travels north and south and makes connections with all of the other lines and passes through the Loop. The Brown Line follows a crooked path leading from the northwest to the Loop. It shares a portion of its route with the Red Line but terminates in the Loop. The Purple Line begins somewhat north of the Red Line and connects with it at the Red Line's northern terminus. Below this, the Purple line appears as a dashed route, indicating that service over this portion is only in operation during peak travel periods. The Purple Line then follows the Red Line south until it meets with the Brown Line. After that, it follows the Brown Line route to the Loop and terminates. The Blue Line begins in the far northwest section of the map and its route takes it southwest into the Loop before turning and heading due west from the Loop. The Green Line begins in the western portion of the map just above the straight east-west leg of the Blue Line and heads east into the Loop where it turns and heads south. At its southern end it splits into two short branches: one heads east and the other west. The Pink Line is beneath the east-west leg of the Blue Line and also travels east but then turns north, crosses the east-west leg of the Blue Line, and meets up with the east-west leg of the Green Line. It then follows the Green Line route to the Loop where it terminates. The Orange Line takes a crooked path northeast from the southwest portion of the city into the Loop where it terminates. The Yellow Line (the only line to not pass through the Loop) begins at the northern terminus of the Red Line and heads west. It then turns northwest and continues a short distance before terminating. In the lower left hand corner is a detail of the Loop area. The Loop Elevated is a rectangular section of track which the Brown, Purple, Green, Pink, and Orange Lines operate over. The Red and Blue Lines are depicted as passing beneath the other five lines, indicating that these pass through the area underground. The Brown and Purple enter from the northwest corner from the north. The Pink and western segment of the Green enter from the same corner, but from the west. The Orange and southern portion of the Green enter from the south at the southeastern corner. The Purple, Orange and Pink all make a rectangular circuit of the Loop traveling clockwise. The Brown Line makes the circuit traveling counterclockwise. The Green Line is the only line to traverse the loop without making a circuit. It enters from the west on the northern leg then continues south via the eastern leg.|A current map depicting the eight rapid transit lines of the Chicago "L" system. Map is not drawn to scale.
The Chicago "L" is a rapid transit system that serves the city of Chicago and seven of its surrounding suburbs. The system is operated by the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA). On an average weekday, 759,866 passengers ride the "L", making it the third-busiest rapid transit system in the United States, behind the New York City Subway and the Washington Metro.
The system began as three separate companies, which built lines traveling from Chicago's central business district to the south and the west. The first of these was the Chicago and South Side Rapid Transit Railroad which opened on June 6, 1892. In 1900, the Northwestern Elevated Railroad entered operation, Starting in 1948, the CTA began systematically shutting down many stations and lines that saw little use in order to improve service and reduce costs. Expansion resumed in September 1969, with the opening of a new line in the median of the Dan Ryan Expressway and continued until October 31, 1993, with the opening of the Orange Line.
, the system has 146 stations on eight lines operating on of track. The majority of "L" stations are named for the streets or intersections on which they are located; others are named for neighborhoods, suburbs, destinations, or a combination of these. The newest station is on the Green Line, which opened on August 5, 2024.
Lines
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+ Chicago "L" lines
|-
!scope="col" | Line
!scope="col" | Stations
!scope="col" | Termini
!scope="col" | Weekday ridership<br/>
|-
|scope="row" |
| 33
|
| 66,838
|-
|scope="row" |
| 27
|
| 29,531
|-
|scope="row" |
| 31
|
| 20,219
|-
|scope="row" |
| 16
| The Loop<br />
| 15,129
|-
|scope="row" |
| 22
|
| 9,834
|-
|scope="row" |
| 26
|
| 4,558
|-
|scope="row" |
| 33
|
| 98,148
|-
|scope="row" |
| 3
|
| 1,212
|}
Stations
{|
|- style="vertical-align:top;"
|
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:100%;"
|+ Key for Chicago "L" stations and planned stations
|-
! scope="col" | Symbol
! scope="col" | Meaning
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#FFE6BD" |
| Designated transfer stations within the Chicago "L" system
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#FFFF99"|
|Transfer stations for Metra or South Shore Line
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#8BB381"|
|Transfer stations for Chicago "L", Metra, and South Shore Line
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#ddffdd" |
| Terminal station
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:silver"| <br />
|Transfer stations and terminals
|-
! scope="row" |
| Accessible
|-
! scope="row" |
| Airport connection
|}
|
|
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:100%;"
|+ Key for Metra and South Shore lines
|-
! scope="col" | Symbol
! scope="col" | Line
|-
!
| BNSF Line
|-
!
| Heritage Corridor
|-
!
| Metra Electric District
|-
!
| Milwaukee District North Line
|-
!
| Milwaukee District West Line
|-
!
| North Central Service
|-
!
| Rock Island District
|-
!
| SouthWest Service
|-
!
| Union Pacific North Line
|-
!
| Union Pacific Northwest Line
|-
!
| Union Pacific West Line
|-
!
| South Shore Line
|}
|}
{| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|+ Rapid transit stations on the Chicago "L"
|-
!scope="col" style="width:12em;" class="unsortable"| Station!!scope="col" style="width:11em;" |Lines!!scope="col" class="unsortable"|Transfers/<wbr/>Connections!! scope="col" style="width:10em;" | Location!!scope="col" style="width:10em;" | Opened!!scope="col" | Structure
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Pilsen
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#FFFF99"|
|
|
|Bronzeville
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#ddffdd" |
|
|
|Cicero
|
|At-grade
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Englewood
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Avondale/<wbr/>Irving Park
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#FFE6BD" |
|
|
|Near West Side
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#ddffdd" |
|
|
|West Englewood
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|McKinley Park/<wbr/>Lower West Side
|
|Cutting
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Austin
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Avondale
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Little Village
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|North Lawndale
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Chinatown
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|McCormick Place
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Ukrainian Village
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Magnificent Mile
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Cicero
|
|At-grade
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Gold Coast
|
|Underground
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#8BB381"|
|
|
|West Loop
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|East Garfield Park
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#ddffdd" |
|
|
|Woodlawn
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#FFFF99"|
|
|
|Ravenswood
|
|At-grade
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Lincoln Park
|
|Underground
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#ddffdd" |
|
|
|Forest Park
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Evanston
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Albany Park
|
|At-grade
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Lincoln Park
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Canaryville
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Bridgeport
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#8BB381"|Harold Washington Library<br/><small>State/Van Buren</small>
|
|
|The Loop
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|South Loop
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#FFFF99"|
|
|
|Irving Park
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#FFFF99"|
|
|
|Jefferson Park
|
|Expressway median
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Albany Park
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|North Lawndale
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|East Garfield Park
|
|At-grade
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Woodlawn
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|North Lawndale
|
|At-grade
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#FFE6BD" |
|
|
|The Loop
|
|Underground
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Austin
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#FFFF99"|
|
|
|The Loop
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#ddffdd" |
|
|
|Wilmette
|
|At-grade
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Logan Square
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#ddffdd" |
|
|
|Garfield Ridge
|
|At-grade
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|The Loop
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Touhy Park
|
|Underground
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Evanston
|
|Underground
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Oak Park
|
|At-grade
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Roscoe Village
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#FFFF99"|
|
|
|The Loop
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Near West Side
|/<wbr/>
|Expressway median
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Old Town
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Lake View
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Winchester Hood
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Greektown
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#8BB381" |
|
|
|The Loop
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Lake View
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row"|
|
|
|Bucktown
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Near West Side
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" |
|
|
|Brighton Park/<br />Gage Park/<wbr/>New City
|
|Elevated
|-
! scope="row" style="background-color:#FFE6BD" |
|
|
|Montrose Beach
|
| Elevated
|-
! scope="row" | 111th
|
|
| Roseland
| 2030
| Elevated
|-
! scope="row" | Racine
|
|
| Englewood
| 2029
- Clark/Lake is listed twice because the elevated and subway sections opened as separate stations in 1895