SEPTA subway–surface trolley lines
Subway–Surface Trolley Lines (Routes 10, 11, 13, 34, 36) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The SEPTA subway–surface trolley lines are a collection of five SEPTA trolley lines that operate on street-level tracks in West Philadelphia and Delaware County, Pennsylvania, and also underneath Market Street in Philadelphia's Center City. The lines, Routes 10, 11, 13, 34, and 36, collectively operate on about 39.6 miles (63.7 km) of route.[1]
SEPTA's Route 15, the Girard Avenue Line, is another streetcar line that is designated green on route maps but is not part of the subway–surface system.
Like
Recently, SEPTA signed a contract with Alstom for 130 new low floor streetcars to be delivered. These cars are scheduled to be delivered from 2027 through 2030.
Route description
Center City
The subway opened for passenger service December 15, 1906.[4]
Starting from their eastern terminus at
All five routes also stop at
Passengers may transfer free of charge to the Market–Frankford Line at 13th, 15th, and 30th Streets, as well as to the Broad Street Line at 15th Street. Connections to the Regional Rail are also available via underground passageways connecting 13th and 15th Street stations to Suburban Station, one of the city's main commuter rail terminals.
University City
After traveling under the
All routes then stop at 33rd Street, near Drexel University. After this stop, Route 10 diverts from the other routes and emerges from the tunnel at the
Points south and west
This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (February 2018) |
The Route 11 line travels along Woodland Avenue in Philadelphia and Main Street in Darby. It crosses a CSX Transportation railroad line at grade, one of very few at-grade crossing between a trolley line and a major freight rail line in the United States. (Another belongs to the TECO streetcar system in Tampa, Florida.)[7][8]
A crash on December 9, 2021, between car 9070 and a CSX freight train resulted in injuries to 7 passengers.[9]
Diversion services
All five trolleys can be diverted onto auxiliary surface tracks west of the 40th Street Portal when tunnels are closed due to maintenance, an accident, or some other obstruction.
Tracks for Route 10 start at Lancaster Avenue (Route 10) and proceed southbound along 40th Street. At
Tracks for the other four routes run northbound along 42nd Street, then turning east onto Spruce Street and then north onto 38th Street (US 13). From here, they travel to Filbert Street, then turn left and cross the 40th Street tracks. When Filbert Street terminates at 41st Street, the tracks turn right, and head north until reaching Lancaster Avenue.[10]
Another set of diversionary trolley tracks begin near the 49th Street Regional Rail station, connecting Chester Avenue to Woodland Avenue (where Routes 11 and 36 separate) by way of 49th Street.
History
The subway–surface lines are remnants of the far more extensive streetcar system that developed in Philadelphia after the arrival of electric trolleys in 1892. Several dozen traction companies were consolidated in 1902 into the Philadelphia Rapid Transit Company. The PRT funneled the West Philadelphia lines into subway tunnels as they approached the city center. After the PRT declared bankruptcy in 1939, it was reopened as the Philadelphia Transportation Company (PTC), which was absorbed into SEPTA in 1968.[11]
In October 2006,
The subway–surface lines operated "Lifeline Service" due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As of April 2020, Route 34 was completely suspended, and the remaining routes bypassed the 36th Street, 33rd Street, 19th Street, and 13th Street stations in the Market Street tunnel. Service on Route 34 resumed on May 17, 2020. Service to the closed stations resumed in June 2020.[12][13]
In 2021, SEPTA proposed rebranding their rail transit service as "SEPTA Metro", to make the system easier to navigate. Under this proposal, the subway–surface lines will be rebranded as the "T" lines with a green color and numeric suffixes for each service. The 10, 34, 13, 11, and 36 would respectively become the T1 Lancaster Avenue, T2 Baltimore Avenue, T3 Chester Avenue, T4 Woodland Avenue, and T5 Elmwood Avenue.[14][15]
-
Proposed new logo for the subway–surface lines under the SEPTA Metro wayfinding project[15]
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Proposed new logo for Route 10 under the SEPTA Metro wayfinding project[15]
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Proposed new logo for Route 34 under the SEPTA Metro wayfinding project[15]
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Proposed new logo for Route 13 under the SEPTA Metro wayfinding project[15]
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Proposed new logo for Route 11 under the SEPTA Metro wayfinding project[15]
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Proposed new logo for Route 36 under the SEPTA Metro wayfinding project[15]
Rolling Stock
Active Fleet
Year Built | Manufacturer | Model | Image | Length | Width | Routes Served | Quantity |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1980–1982 | Kawasaki | K-car | 50 ft (15 m) | 102 in (2.59 m) | 10, 11, 13, 34, 36 | 111
(1 scrapped)[16] |
The entire Subway-Surface network is run using Kawasaki "K-cars". The K-cars were introduced in the early-1980s, replacing the PCC streetcar which had served Philadelphia in one form or another since 1940. While the other American subway-surface systems, the MBTA Green Line and Muni Metro, collaborated with Boeing on the SLRV, Philadelphia was able to avoid that vehicle's misfortune due to the system's delays in deciding on a vehicle and finalizing funding.
No vehicles have been added to the fleet since the 1980s, but the fleet was refurbished by SEPTA staff around 2000.[17] Vehicles include air conditioning, large windows, door-opening sensors for the rear doors, and an automated system to display and announce upcoming stops.
K-Car no. 9000 was painted in a special heritage scheme in March 2024.[18]
Future rolling stock
In 2023, SEPTA awarded Alstom Transportation a $714.2 million contract to furbish 130 new low-floor trolleys,[19] with an option for 30 more. The trolleys will be of Alstom's Citadis family and will be 80 feet in length and fully ADA-compliant, which the current Kawasaki trolleys from the early 1980's are not. The trolleys will be distributed among SEPTA's subway-surface lines and its Route 15 in Philadelphia, and its Routes 101 and 102 in neighboring Delaware County. The first trolley is expected to be delivered from Alstom in the Spring of 2027, with the last trolley to be delivered some time in 2030.
Routes
All routes terminate at
Routes 11 and 34 do not have overnight service.
Route | Length in miles (km)[20] |
Service began | Service ended | Western terminus | Eastern terminus | Main streets of travel | Depot | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
10 | 5.9 (9.5) | c. 1887 | Overbrook: 63rd–Malvern | 40th–Market (Sundays after 10pm) (all other times)
13th–Market |
63rd Street, Lansdowne Avenue, Lancaster Avenue | Callowhill | ||
11 | 6.7 (10.8) | 1858 | Darby Transportation Center | Woodland Avenue | Elmwood
|
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13 | 6.9 (11.1) | Chester Avenue | Elmwood
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Some trips terminate at Yeadon Loop in Yeadon | ||||
30
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1915 | Haddington: 65th & Vine Streets | Haverford Avenue, Vine Street | Callowhill | Rerouted and replaced by bus service | |||
31
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1956 | Overbrook Park: Lansdowne & Haverford Avenues Loop | 63rd Street, Market Street | Callowhill | Replaced by bus service | |||
34 | 4.8 (7.7) | 1890 | Angora: 61st–Baltimore | Baltimore Avenue | Elmwood
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36 | 7.0 (11.3) | 1904 | 80th–Eastwick
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Island Avenue, Elmwood Avenue | Elmwood
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Some trips terminate at 73rd–Elmwood station in Eastwick
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37 | 1955 | Chester: 3rd & Crosby Streets | Industrial Highway, Eastwick Avenue, Woodland Avenue | Woodland | Replaced by bus service | |||
38 | 1955 | Parkside: 48th Street & Parkside Avenue Loop | Parkside Avenue, 40th Street, Baring Street | Callowhill | Replaced by bus service |
See also
- Pennsylvania gauge
- SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes
- West Philadelphia Streetcar Suburb Historic District
References
- ^ a b Smith, Bill W. Jr. (November 2011). "U.S. Urban Rail Transit Lines Opened From 1980" (PDF). SEPTA.org. pp. 1–100. Retrieved November 2, 2013.
- ^ "The history of trolley cars and routes in Philadelphia". SEPTA. June 1, 1974. p. 2. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
An early city ordinance prescribed that all tracks were to have a gauge of 5' 2{{{{{1}}}⁄{{{2}}}|1|4}}".
- ISBN 9780804740142. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
Worst of all, not all city systems were built to the standard American and European gauge of 4'-81⁄2". Pittsburgh and most other Pennsylvania cities used 5'-21⁄2", which became known as the Pennsylvania trolley gauge. Cincinnati used 5'-21⁄2", Philadelphia 5'-21⁄4", Columbus 5'-2", Altoona 5'-3", Louisville and Camden 5'-0", Canton and Pueblo 4'-0", Denver, Tacoma, and Los Angeles 3'-6", Toronto an odd 4'-107⁄8", and Baltimore a vast 5'-41⁄2".
- ISBN 978-0738556925. Retrieved October 17, 2020.
- ^ Saffron, Inga (March 7, 2003). "Subway riders get shortchanged at 30th St. Station". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
- ^ "30th Street Station District draft plan: Reopen SEPTA tunnel by 2020, cap rail yards by 2050". PlanPhilly | 30th Street Station District draft plan: Reopen SEPTA tunnel by 2020, cap rail yards by 2050. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
- ^ Philadelphia Transit; Streetcars;Route 11 (Kavanaugh Transit Systems)
- ^ davidwilson1949 (July 6, 2003). 20030706 26 Main St. Crossing CSXT in Darby (6071320235) (photograph). Retrieved December 31, 2015.
{{cite AV media}}
: External link in
(help)|people=
- ^ "6 People Injured in Accident Involving SEPTA Trolley, CSX Freight Train in Darby". December 9, 2021.
- ^ SEPTA trolley lines map
- ^ "Studio 34's Eponymous Trolley, or, A Short History of Route 34". Retrieved March 11, 2008.
- ^ "Service Information". SEPTA. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
- ^ "SEPTA Transit Network Lifeline Service Schedule" (PDF). SEPTA. April 2020. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
- ^ 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.
- ^ a b c d e f g "Wayfinding Recommendations". SEPTA. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
- ^ "nycsubway.org: SEPTA Subway-Surface Streetcar Lines". www.nycsubway.org. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
- ^ "Philadelphia Trolley Tracks: History of the 1980 Kawasaki trolleys". www.phillytrolley.org. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
- ^ @SEPTA_SOCIAL (March 14, 2024). "SEPTA_SOCIAL on X: "SEPTA has painted Kawasaki LRV No. 9000 into its original historic paint scheme. LRV 9000 entered service on the Route 11 in November 1980. We would like to thank Woodland Shops dedication employees for doing a magnificent job on this car!"". X, formerly known as Twitter. Retrieved March 14, 2024.
- ^ "SEPTA Board Awards Contract for Purchase of New Trolley Fleet | SEPTA". Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. February 23, 2023. Retrieved February 6, 2024.
- ^ "SEPTA - Spring 2012 Route Statistics" (PDF). Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. 2012. Retrieved June 28, 2013.
External links
- SEPTA subway and trolley schedules
- Map of subway–surface lines in West Philadelphia
- Tramway, Light Railway and LRT in Philadelphia (PublicTransit.US)
- Transit Systems in Philadelphia and Southeast Pennsylvania Electric Railway map (Chicago Railfan.net)
- WorldNYCSubway.org – SEPTA Subway–Surface Streetcar Lines
- A Better Subway Surface System