Metra Metropolitan Rail

My trip started 6 in the morning, and honestly, there isn’t anything like a strong smell of urine to wake a person right up! And that is where a star gets knocked off. (Might as well get the negative out of the way!)
With all that said, I like this station. Why? Because of location, location, location. It’s right in the heart of Downtown Evanston. Even as early as 6 am, the area is decently lit and has enough traffic movement going around to make this area a tad bit less scary. There is also enough covered areas and an enclosed area if one wants to avoid harsh weather.
And you have the luxury of the CTA purple line next door!

This review is specific to the line I took when I did this check-​in, which is the Metra UP-​N line.
The Metra Union Pacific North line is da bomb. I don’t take this line at a regular basis, instead take the line going to I live in the NorthWest burbs. This one is the line that goes to Evanston passing hipster neighborhoods like Ravenswood and Rogers Park. It’s like the CTA, except 50-​times cleaner and less scary. Living in the burbs for the last 6-​years, I missed the different crowds when traveling public transportation. So I was refreshed to see a Metra train full of yuppies, suits, and beautiful women.
Oh how I miss the city

A lot of inside bench seating in an old and worn station. A small coffeeshop, «The Daily Grind», operates in an adjoining room. I’ve found the ticket agent to be friendly and helpful, but be advised he closes the ticket office from 10:45 to 11 AM most mornings in order to be on the platform to hand off the morning receipts to the conductor in the first car, so you can’t buy a ticket easily for the 11 AM train. I don’t believe this station has a restroom. Outside on the platform, there is little to no seating for waiting passengers, except to perch on the edge of the concrete pillar supports. This station is well located in downtown Evanston, with lots of restaurants, coffee shops, a great bakery (Bennison’s), a movie theatre and other attractions just steps away from the tracks. It’s also a terrific place to transfer between Metra and the CTA’s Purple Line, though you can also do that at Main Street further south.

Metra Rocks. Clean fast trains, although not always on time.
Location, Location, Location. This station is in a good area to hop off and explore a little bit of Evanston, or hop off here and get on the CTA (purple line) just a few steps away that takes you to Howard, where you can get on several other lines to the city.
Station itself is meh. No real seating trackside, and the station seems to be closed, ALOT.

There are no chairs on the south bound side of the tracks and the ticket office is only open from 5.15 am — 1 pm week days. The man who staffs the office is impolite and almost helpful. His favorite phrase is «no refund.» You may buy weekend passes but only for a specific weekend. Customer service was stricken from the Metra manual years ago.

I love this Metra Stop. It’s super easy for me to to take the Union Pacific Line to Kenosha when ever I want to go back home. Plus, it’s not in a sketchy part of town, so I can feel safe when I am a solo traveler! Woo!