SEPTA Route 15
Route 15 Girard Avenue Trolley | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Electrification | Overhead line, 600 V DC | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Route 15, the Girard Avenue Line, is a trolley line operated by the
The line was first opened in 1859 as a
On April 29, 2012, the east of Frankford Ave the line started being operated by buses due to major reconstruction; west of Frankford is still run by PCC II. Trolleys terminated at Frankford and Delaware Avenues (Northern Liberties Loop) while buses terminated at Girard Station under the Market-Frankford Line. As of January 2020[update], the full line is being substituted by a bus bridge to allow for rolling stock maintenance, track repairs, and a nearby highway expansion. Trolley service was originally anticipated to return in late 2021.[7] As of August 2023, six of the 18 cars have been restored,[8] and SEPTA initially expected that trolleys will be in service in the fall of 2023.[9] However, as of February 12, 2024, the trolleys are now expected to return in the spring of 2024.[10]
Route
The Girard Avenue Line's 8.4 miles (13.5 km)
After entering Brewerytown, Route 15 loops partially around the south side of
In 2011, SEPTA completed a new loop for Route 15 at the intersection of Frankford and Delaware Avenues, reached via new trackage down Frankford from Girard. On April 29, 2012, SEPTA began using this loop. This loop is across from the
Girard Avenue ends at Exit 23 on I-95, so Route 15 moves beneath the highway onto Richmond Street, parallel to I-95 until it crosses over the street from the north side to the south side before Exit 25, the interchange with Allegheny Avenue, where it connects to the SEPTA Route 60 bus, another former trolley line. The road runs along the Richmond Playground before Route 15's eastern terminus at the Westmoreland Loop, on the southwest corner of the intersection of Richmond Street and Westmoreland Street.
In addition to the Frankford and Delaware loop, two other short-turn loops exist: at 41st & Parkside, just west of the Philadelphia Zoo, and at 26th & Girard (a bidirectional "in-line" cutback utilizing 26th and Poplar Streets and Girard and College Avenues). No scheduled runs use these loops. Another such loop, located at Richmond Street & Cumberland Avenues, was frequently used when Richmond Street was blocked by trucks which failed to heed warning signs and flashing lights for a low bridge underneath the former Reading Port Richmond Yard of Conrail Shared Assets Operations. This loop has since been removed. Cars returning to Callowhill Depot turn off Girard at 60th Street.
History
The Richmond and Schuylkill River Passenger Railway was chartered by the
Extensions were opened east to Palmer Street in 1866 (looping via Palmer, Beach, and Shackamaxon Streets
2005 trolley restoration
The 15 line returned to trolley service on September 4, 2005 after having been served by buses for thirteen years.
The restoration of trolley service was delayed because of a long fight with local residents on 59th Street, which the trolleys needed to travel down in order to access the Callowhill Depot, over parking on the street.[20] During the reconstruction of the line the surrounding neighborhoods, through grassroots coalitions, worked to improve the Girard Avenue streetscape through beautification and marketing projects. Since service returned in 2005, the 15 line has spurred various development projects as well as renewed investment along the corridor.[21]
In 2018 a comprehensive analysis of SEPTA's surface operations called for abandonment of trolley operations citing the rail car's inability to get around double-parked cars and other obstacles.[22]
Port Richmond reconstruction and I-95
Route 15 east of the new Northern Liberties loop is being rebuilt as part of a reconstruction project for
2021 SEPTA Metro redesign plans
In 2021, SEPTA proposed rebranding their rail transit service as "SEPTA Metro" to make the system easier to navigate. Under this proposal, services along the Girard Avenue Line will be rebranded as the "G" lines with a yellow color, each receiving a numeric suffix. Local service would become the G1 Girard Avenue Local.[26][25] Following a period of public comment, Route 15's proposed name was simplified to "G Line."[27]
Future rolling stock
In 2023, SEPTA awarded Alstom Transportation the contract to furbish 130 new low-floor trams for the existing Subway-Surface lines, along with the two suburban interurban routes, with an option for 30 more. These 30 extra trams, if ordered, would replace the existing PCC-II trolleys on Route 15. The trolleys would be of Alstom's Citadis family and would be 80 feet in length and low-floor (and therefore fully ADA-compliant). While the existing PCC-II trolleys are ADA-compliant as a result of their wheelchair lift, this lift is cumbersome and presents a significant source of delays across the line during regular operation. The first trolley is expected to be delivered from Alstom in the Spring of 2027, with the last trolley from the base order to be delivered some time in 2030.[28]
SEPTA does not plan on reconstructing the Route 15 for its Trolley Modernization Program until 2041 at the earliest.[29]
2023-2024 trolley restoration
As of July 7, 2023 the I-95 reroute work had been substantially completed, but trolley service not yet restored. The Billy Penn at WHYY Newsletter reported that SEPTA officials had stated that several of the now twice refurbished PCC-II cars were in testing on the route and "at least" eight would be ready by "the end of the summer [2023]." [...] "The plan is to use trolleys and buses to serve Route 15, which allows us to deploy the restored trolleys while maintaining frequency on the route,” a SEPTA spokesperson told Billy Penn.[30] As of August 2023, six of the cars has been restored, and SEPTA had announced a partial restoration of trolley service starting September 10, 2023.[8] However, citing the need for more operator training, the agency has delayed the restoration, though still expected to resume trolley service sometime in the fall of 2023.[9] However, the restoration has since been pushed back to spring 2024.[10]
Stations
All stations are in the
Neighborhood | Station or stop | Connections | Notes |
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Haddington– Carroll Park line |
63rd & Girard (EB) | 31
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63rd & Haverford (WB) | 31
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62nd & Girard (EB) | |||
62nd & Haverford (WB) | 30
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61st & Girard (EB) | |||
61st & Haverford (WB) | 30
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60th & Girard | 46
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59th & Girard | |||
57th & Girard | G
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56th & Girard | G
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54th & Girard | |||
52nd & Girard | 52
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Mill Creek– Cathedral Park line |
51st & Girard | ||
49th & Girard | |||
Girard & Lancaster (EB) | SEPTA Trolleys: 10
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Merion & Girard | |||
Belmont & Girard | 43
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Parkside | 42nd & Girard | ||
41st & Girard | 40
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40th & Girard | 40
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39th & Girard | |||
34th & Girard | Access to Philadelphia Zoo | ||
Fairmount– Brewerytown line |
33rd & Girard (WB) | 32
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31st & Girard | |||
29th & Girard | 49
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28th & Girard | |||
27th & Girard | 7
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26th & Girard | |||
Poplar & 26th (EB) | 32
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Stillman & Poplar (EB) | |||
25th & Poplar (WB) | |||
Fairmount– Cecil B. Moore line |
24th & College | ||
Corinthian & Girard | |||
20th & Girard | 33
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19th & Girard | 33
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Ridge & Girard | 61
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17th & Girard | 2
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16th & Girard | 2
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Broad & Girard | 16
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Yorktown line
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12th & Girard | SEPTA City Bus: 23 | |
11th & Girard | SEPTA City Bus: 23 | ||
Ludlow line
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8th & Girard | 47
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7th & Girard | 47
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5th & Girard | |||
Olde Kensington line
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4th & Girard (WB) | 57
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3rd & Girard | 57
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2nd & Girard | 5
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Front & Girard | 5
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Fishtown | Frankford & Girard | 25
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Richmond & Frankford | 25
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Frankford & Delaware | 43
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Access to The Fillmore |
References
- ^ "Fiscal Year 2014 Annual Service Plan" (PDF). SEPTA. May 2013. p. 40. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-09-22. Retrieved 2014-06-19.
- ^ a b "SEPTA - Spring 2012 Route Statistics" (PDF). Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-05-24. Retrieved 2013-06-28.
- ^ a b "SEPTA - Media Guide" (PDF). Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-04-17. Retrieved 2013-07-17.
- ^ "The history of trolley cars and routes in Philadelphia". SEPTA. June 1, 1974. p. 2. Retrieved 2014-06-11.
An early city ordinance prescribed that all tracks were to have a gauge of 5' 21⁄4"
. - ISBN 9780804740142. Retrieved 2014-06-10.
- ^ "1974 SEPTA Trolley History Brochure". Philadelphia Trolley Tracks (PhillyTrolleys.org). Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. 1974. Retrieved 2013-08-28.
- ^ Sasko, Claire (22 January 2020). "SEPTA Says the Historic Route 15 Trolleys Will Return Late Next Year". PhiladelphiaMagazine.com. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
- ^ a b Sharber, Cory (16 August 2023). "SEPTA's Route 15 historic trolleys to return Sept. 10". WHYY. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
- ^ a b Saunders, Brian (7 September 2023). "Return of SEPTA's classic trolleys delayed until later this fall". PhillyVoice. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
- ^ a b MacDonald, Tom (February 12, 2024). "SEPTA pushes back the return of vintage trolleys". WHYY. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ "Cash-short SEPTA presses on with capital program". Railway Age. October 1, 2004.
- ^ "2012 Route 15 Rail Renewal". Philadelphia Trolley Tracks (PhillyTrolleys.org). Retrieved 2012-02-15.
- ^ Public Laws 241 and 242 of 1859 and 1862 of 1861, reprinted in Law Department of the City of Philadelphia, A Digest of Laws Relating to the City of Pennsylvania, 1865, pp. 111–113 (appendix)
- ^ a b c d Demery Jr., Leroy W. (November 2011). "U.S. Urban Rail Transit Lines Opened From 1980" (PDF). publictransit.us. pp. 37–40. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-11-04. Retrieved 2013-11-02.
- ^ a b c American Street Railway Investments, a Supplement to the Street Railway Journal, 1897, p. 198, 200, 204
- ^ William B. Atkinson, The Philadelphia Medical Register and Directory, 1875
- ISBN 0-916374-57-2.
- ^ "Route of the Week - 15". www.iseptaphilly.com. Retrieved 2017-07-16.
- ^ "Philadelphia's PCCs Return to Service." Railway Age. Vol. 205, No. 10, p. 30. October 1, 2005.
- ^ citypaper.net Archived 2015-10-01 at the Wayback Machine Amy L. Webb (2004). "Communication Breakdown." Philadelphia City Paper. September 30, 2004.
- ^ "Changing Skyline: Welcome Back Girard Avenue A Street Reborn" Philadelphia Inquirer January 9, 2004.
- ^ Saska, Jim (21 June 2018). "Overhauling its bus network may be on SEPTA's schedule soon". WHYY.org. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
- ^ "SEPTA Route 15 Trolley Detour in Fishtown, Port Richmond". 95revive.com. PennDOT District 6. January 2016. Archived from the original (pdf) on 2014-02-26. Retrieved 2016-03-19.
- ^ "SEPTA taking Girard Ave. trolley off the rails; 78 percent of fleet can't pass inspection". January 2020. Retrieved 2020-01-23.
- ^ a b c "Wayfinding Recommendations". SEPTA. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
- ^ Vitarelli, Alicia; Staff (September 7, 2021). "SEPTA Metro? Transit agency mulling big changes including new name, map, and signage". Philadelphia, PA: WPVI-TV. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
- ^ "Design Concept Feedback". planning.septa.org. SEPTA. Retrieved 2023-03-19.
- ^ MacDonald, Tom (24 February 2023). "New SEPTA trolleys will soon replace an aging fleet". WHYY. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
SEPTA will also refurbish its PCC trolley fleet in order to help keep service running on some lines before the new vehicles come to town.
- ^ "SEPTA Trolley Modernization Program Manager RFP" (PDF). Retrieved 17 April 2024.
- ^ Prihar, Asher (2023-07-07). ""Historic trolleys will return to Girard Avenue service in September, SEPTA says"". Billy Penn at WHYY. Retrieved 2023-07-21.
External links
- "schedule" (PDF). (84.7 KB) and "maps" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-01-07. Retrieved 2010-10-31. (23.7 KB)
- Photos of SEPTA Route 15 trolleys