Western Avenue is the longest continuous street within the city of Chicago at in length. Some sources claim that Western is the longest street in the world, although Yonge Street in Toronto is at least 33 miles (53 km) long, and is considered by some authorities to be long. Western Avenue extends south as a continuous road to the Dixie Highway at Sibley Boulevard (Illinois Route 83) in Dixmoor, giving the road a total length of . However, Western extends intermittently through the far Southland to the Will/Kankakee county border in unincorporated Will Township. Within Chicago's grid street system, Western Avenue is 2400 West.

History

From 1851 to 1869, Western Avenue delineated the western edge of the city of Chicago. Being at the edge of town, it became a picnic spot, and Riverview Park was built at the intersection of Western and Belmont Avenues. The amusement park remained open from 1904 until 1967. The park's property is now home to the Riverview Plaza shopping center, the Belmont District Police Station, and DeVry Institute of Technology. Western Avenue is considered one of the most dangerous roads in Chicago for cyclists, commuting motorists generally drive at high speeds and do not share the road with their cycling counterparts. The majority of Western Avenue does not feature a bike lane.

Rosehill Cemetery is also located on Western Avenue.

Transit

Western Avenue is serviced by many buses and trains. The street is crossed by the Brown Line, Orange Line, Pink Line, two times by the Blue Line, on the O'Hare and Forest Park branches and twice by Metra's commuter lines. There are four CTA buses that run along Western Avenue. The main bus route along Western Avenue is the 49 Western which runs all night long from Berwyn Ave (5300 North) on the North Side to 79th Street on the South Side. The 49B North Western runs from Howard Street (7600 North) at the city's northern border to Leland Avenue (4700 North) where it connects to the Brown Line. The X49 is an express bus route making only certain stops at major streets or train stations. It runs on weekdays all the way from Berwyn Ave to 95th Street which is the location of The Plaza in Evergreen Park. There is also the 49A South Western bus route that runs from 79th Street in Chicago to 135th Street in suburban Blue Island. However this bus route only provides weekday rush hour service as a supplement to the #349 South Western Avenue bus route, which is operated by Pace. This route runs from 79th Street in Chicago to the Pace Transportation Center in suburban Harvey.

South Side Irish Parade

Western Avenue also plays host to one of the largest, most raucous annual events the City of Chicago has to offer, the South Side Irish Parade. Held yearly on the Sunday before St. Patrick's Day, along Western between 103rd and 115th Street in the Beverly and Morgan Park neighborhoods, is the city's largest neighborhood parade, drawing hundreds of thousands of revelers annually.

The parade was canceled after the 2009 event due to unruly crowds afterwards.

For further information, see South Side Irish.

References

1. What is the longest street?

External links

ForgottenChicago.com's Excellent article on an Art Deco Era Streetscape on S. Western Ave.