40th Street Portal
40th Street Portal 30 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Construction | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Structure type | At grade | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Accessible | No | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
History | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Opened | 1955 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Services | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Location | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 40th Street Portal, also known as simply 40th Street station, is a
The station is located above ground at the entrance to the tunnel in a plaza between Woodland Avenue and
History
The portal station was opened October 15, 1955 eastbound and westbound opened November 6, 1955[1] by the Philadelphia Transportation Company (PTC) as part of a larger project to move portions of the elevated Market Street Line and surface trolleys underground.[2]
The original project to bury the elevated tracks between 23rd to 46th streets was announced by the PTC's predecessor, the
When constructed, the 40th Street Portal layout formed a “T” shape (seen in the picture above) with 40th Street crossing directly in front of the mouth of the portal. This configuration lacked the ability to turn trolleys around for emergencies and schedule adjustments and created a danger for motorists who would often mistake the traffic light at the trolley portal mouth as Woodland Avenue and would sometimes turn into the subway tunnel causing delays. So in 1983, the configuration was revised and turnaround loop was constructed and 40th Street was removed from crossing directly in front.[3]
However, service to the vicinity of 40th Street, Woodland Avenue, and Baltimore Avenue has existed long before then. Routes 11, 13, and 36 operated from their current outer termini of Darby and Eastwick to Front Street in Center City beginning December 15, 1906.[1][4][5][6]
Trolley Portal Gardens
In 2012, the
-
New landscaping at the station in 2019
-
Walkway and pollinator garden in 2022
References
- ^ ISBN 978-0-7385-5692-5– via Google Books.
- ^ Puckett, John L. and Mark Frazier Lloyd. Becoming Penn: The Pragmatic American University, 1950–2000, p. 35, at Google Books, accessed May 31, 2020.
- ^ a b John L. Puckett. "Putting the Market Street Elevated Underground". West Philadelphia Collaborative History. University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ ISEPTAPHILLY Blog. "Route of the Week – 11". SEPTA. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ ISEPTAPHILLY Blog. "Route of the Week – 13". SEPTA. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ ISEPTAPHILLY Blog. "Route of the Week – 36". SEPTA. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
- ^ "40th Street Trolley Portal upgrade update". PlanPhilly | 40th Street Trolley Portal upgrade update. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
- ^ "Construction begins this week at future 40th Street Trolley Portal Gardens". Curbed Philly. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
- ^ "40th Street Trolley Portal Gardens". University City District. November 12, 2014. Retrieved May 11, 2018.
- ^ "Philly Office Retail".
- ^ Briggs, Ryan (August 5, 2021). "West Philly's Trolley Portal Garden is clear-cut — but officials say plants will return in Sept". WHYY. Retrieved August 6, 2021.