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MetroLink riders enter and exit a train at the Central West End stop in a file photo from 2005. Photo by Andrew Cutraro/Post-Dispatch
Andrew Cutraro
ST. LOUIS — Work is scheduled to begin next week on a $7.5 million project to improve the Central West End MetroLink station, aimed at relieving congestion, and improving safety and visibility.
Washington University School of Medicine and BJC HealthCare are funding the project in partnership with Metro Transit.
The project includes a new monitored entrance at street level from Euclid Avenue on the west end of the station; a wider staircase with a center handrail connecting the Euclid entrance to the platform; moving the elevator, better lighting, expanding the canopy to cover 70% of the platform and safety improvements.
The station is one of five in a project to improve rider safety by controlling access to the platforms, said Jessica Mefford-Miller, Metro Transit executive director, in a news release.
Security guards and others will check fares and monitor riders as they arrive at the platform access points. More than 4,300 riders board trains at the station every weekday, Metro said.
The platform will remain open during construction. However, the elevator at the west end of the station will be closed for demolition beginning Thursday.
Any temporary platform closures or service interruptions will be announced in advance, Metro Transit said.
