Although it is not a station stop, Amtrak's Hiawatha, Borealis, and the Empire Builder also pass through here.

The station was previously used by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad.

Just southeast of the station platforms is a diamond where the Milwaukee Road Metra routes cross the tracks of the Union Pacific West Line to Ogilvie Transportation Center, then turn to run parallel to them.

This goes on for about a mile before they split, as the West Line tracks continue to Ogilvie.

As of 2018, Western Avenue is the 61st busiest of Metra's 236 non-downtown stations, with an average of 836 weekday boardings.