Evanston's Central Street Metra station will get a warming shelter, modern signage, and digital bus-schedule displays as part of a $900,000 upgrade funded largely by regional and federal dollars.

The station on the Union Pacific North Line was one of 21 Metra and CTA stations selected for grants through the Regional Transportation Authority's $10 million Access to Transit program, RTA spokesperson Melissa Meyer told Evanston Now. Central Street and Waukegan are the only UP-North stations that received grants, chosen from 34 applications reviewed at an RTA board meeting in June.

Metra will cover 10% of the cost, roughly $90,000. The rest will come from the new regional transit authority replacing the RTA later in 2026 and from federal funds. Meyer said the federal portion has not yet been formally approved but that the RTA expects it to come through.

Commuters waiting on the exposed platform after the depot locks at 1:15 p.m. won't see changes soon. Meyer said Metra should be able to begin design engineering in fall 2027, putting physical construction years away.

Meyer told Evanston Now that once improvements are in place, "waiting for your train should become safer, more comfortable, and more predictable."

Separately, Central Street businesses are already dealing with a city water main project running from Broadway Avenue to Bryant Avenue, just east of the Metra tracks to the North Shore Channel. That work began in late April and is scheduled to wrap up by July 17. Hewn Bakery co-owner Julie Matthei estimated the bakery lost 20–25% of its business during the construction period, while Prestons Florist manager Julie Heinz-Schoenfelder said preorders dropped 25% year over year.

The station depot is open from 5:15 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. daily. After that, riders wait without shelter until the project is complete.