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SEPTA Route 15

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Route 15 Trolley (G)
SEPTA PCC II operating on the Route 15
Overview
StatusLimited service, bus shuttle
LocalePhiladelphia, Pennsylvania
Termini
Stations64 stops
Websitesepta.org/schedules/G1
Service
TypeLight rail
SystemSEPTA Metro
Services
  •  All Stops
Operator(s)SEPTA
Depot(s)Callowhill
Rolling stockSEPTA PCC III
Daily ridership9,032 (ave. weekday, FY 2019)[1]
History
Opened1859; 2005; 2024[2]
Closed1992–2005; 2020–2024
Technical
Line length8.4 miles (13.5 km)[3][4]
Track gauge5 ft 2 1⁄4 in (1,581 mm) Pennsylvania trolley gauge[5][6]
ElectrificationOverhead line, 600 V DC
Route map
Map
Legend
Richmond & Westmoreland
Loop
 Richmond & Allegheny
 60 
Allegheny Avenue
to 35th / Allegheny
I-95.svg I-95
 Richmond & Cambria
Richmond & Somerset
Conrail Port Richmond Branch
 Richmond & Lehigh
Richmond & Huntingdon
Richmond & Cumberland
Richmond & Girard
I-95.svg I-95
 Girard & Aramingo
Girard & Berks
Girard & Palmer
Girard & Columbia
Girard & Frankford
Frankford & Delaware
(Northern Liberties Loop)
 Frankford & Richmond
I-95.svg I-95
Girard & Front
Girard & 2nd
Girard & 3rd
Girard & 4th
 50  to 5th / Ritner
 Girard & 5th
 50 
to Knorr Loop
(Rising Sun / Knorr)
 Girard & 7th
 47 
to Godfrey Loop
(5th / Godfrey)
 Girard & 8th
 47  to 9th / Wolf
 Girard & 11th
 23 
to Bethlehem
Loop
 Girard & 12th
 23  to 10th / Bigler
 Girard & Broad
Girard & 16th
Girard & 17th
Girard & Ridge
Girard & 19th
Girard & 20th
Girard & Corinthian
College & 24th
Poplar & 25th
Poplar & Stillman
Poplar & 26th
Girard & 26th
Girard & 27th
Girard & 28th
Girard & 29th
Girard & 31st
Girard & 33rd
Girard & 34th
Schuylkill River
I-76.svgUS 30.svg I-76 /
US 30
Schuylkill Expressway
Girard & 39th
Girard & 40th
to Subway-
Surface lines
 Girard & 41st
Girard & 42nd
Harrisburg–Philadelphia THO
 Girard & Belmont
Girard & Merion
Lancaster Avenue
to 13th Street (Subway)
 Girard & Lancaster
Lancaster Avenue
to 63rd / Malvern
 Girard & 49th
Girard & 51st
Girard & 52nd
Girard & 54th
Girard & 56th
Girard & 57th
Girard & 59th from Callowhill Depot
Girard & 60th
South to Callowhill Depot
North to Lansdowne Avenue
 Haverford│Girard
(
Haddington
Loop
)
 61st
62nd
Passing Siding
63rd to Felton
 63rd
non-revenue track
to 63rd & Lansdowne
This diagram:

Route 15,[a] currently rebranding as the G,[b] is a streetcar line in the SEPTA Metro network that runs along Girard Avenue through North and West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Service is operated by the City Transit Division of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. As of 2024, it is the only trolley line in Philadelphia that is not part of the subway–surface trolley lines. SEPTA PCC III vehicles are used on the line.

The line was first opened in 1859 as a horse car line operated by the Richmond and Schuylkill River Passenger Railway, and electrified in 1895, with extensions in 1902 and 1903.[8] Service was "bustituted" in 1992, along with Route 23 (Germantown Avenue-11th and 12th Streets) and Route 56 (Torresdale-Erie Avenues). On September 4, 2005, trolley service was restored.

On April 29, 2012, east of Frankford Avenue, the line started being operated by buses due to major reconstruction. West of Frankford Avenue, the line was still run by PCC II cars. 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, 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.[9] As of August 2023, six of the 18 cars were restored but still not enough to resume trolley service.[10] SEPTA expected trolleys would be in service in late 2023.[11] However, that goal was also not met. Trolleys finally returned to service on June 16, 2024.[12][2]

Route

[edit]

The Girard Avenue Line's 8.4 miles (13.5 km)[3][4][13] route runs along Girard Avenue and Richmond Street. The western terminus of Route 15 is at the intersection of Girard Avenue and 63rd Street, and instantly passes by Carroll Park. The next landmark is Cathedral Cemetery, where both Route 15 and Girard Avenue briefly overlap with US 30 (Lancaster Avenue) and the SEPTA Route 10 trolley. The line leaves Lancaster Avenue and resumes its way along Girard Avenue. After crossing over the Philadelphia–Harrisburg line at the intersection with Belmont Avenue, the line passes by the Philadelphia Zoo near Exit 342 on the Schuylkill Expressway before crossing the Schuylkill River over the Girard Avenue Bridge.

After entering Brewerytown, Route 15 loops partially around the south side of Girard College, but rejoins Girard Avenue again, and passes by the former Saint Joseph's Hospital. The first mass transit crossing the line encounters is the Broad Street Line's Girard Station, and two blocks from there crosses the SEPTA Route 23 bus line (which was originally a trolley line that may be restored in the future; however SEPTA has removed all connecting track & overhead wires for Route 23 at this location in 2014 completely ending any connection to the North Philadelphia Trolley Network). Directly east of the SEPTA Main Line overpass at 9th Street, Route 15 passes by the Girard Medical Center. At Front Street Route 15 runs beneath the Market–Frankford Line's Girard Station, and then crosses Frankford Avenue, one of the two streets the line is named after.

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 Rivers Casino which opened in September 2010, and is also a natural turnback point due to high ridership turnover at Front Street and Girard for the Market-Frankford Line. The loop was the temporary eastern terminus of Route 15 until SEPTA finished replacing track on Richmond between Girard Ave and Ann Street between spring and late 2012, due to Interstate 95-related reconstruction along Richmond Street (see section below).[14] With resumption of trolley service on June 16, 2024, this loop was only used for select bus trips.[15]

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

[edit]

The Richmond and Schuylkill River Passenger Railway was chartered by the Pennsylvania General Assembly on March 26, 1859, to operate along Girard Avenue between the Girard Avenue Bridge over the Schuylkill River in Fairmount Park and Norris Street in Richmond, with an extension authorized west over the bridge to Lancaster Avenue.[16] The line opened from Second Street to 31st Street[17] in July 1859.[citation needed] The company was sold at foreclosure and reorganized as the Fairmount Park and Delaware River Passenger Railway on June 14, 1864,[citation needed] and was merged into the Germantown Passenger Railway (Route 23 Germantown Avenue) on February 15, 1866.[18]

Extensions were opened east to Palmer Street in 1866 (looping via Palmer, Beach, and Shackamaxon Streets[19]) and to Norris Street in 1875.[17] The People's Passenger Railway leased the line on October 1, 1881, and leased the Girard Avenue Railway (chartered May 17, 1894) on June 22, 1896,[18] extending the line west to 60th Street in 1900.[17] The Union Traction Company leased the People's Passenger Railway on July 1, 1896, giving it control over almost all the street railways in Philadelphia.[18] Girard Avenue cars were extended west to 63rd Street and east to Allegheny Avenue – the latter extension along the ex-Electric Traction Company Bridesburg Line on Richmond Street – in 1903,[17] and eventually replaced the Bridesburg Line entirely to Bridesburg.[citation needed] In 1992, SEPTA replaced trolley service along Routes 15, 23, and 56 with buses.

PCC cars were first introduced to Route 15 on Sundays (and later on Saturdays as well) in 1948 using postwar cars at Callowhill Depot that would have been otherwise idle on the weekend. They provided all service on the 15 in June 1955 after a cascade of postwar cars from other lines occurred when used PCC cars were purchased from St. Louis and Kansas City, Missouri.[20] Service was cut back to Richmond & Westmoreland on February 24, 1956. PCCs provided all trolley service until SEPTA replaced the trolleys with buses on September 13, 1992. Trolley service returned briefly to Route 15 later in the 1990s using Kawasaki cars from Route 10 temporarily made surplus by water main replacement along the surface portion of Route 10.[citation needed]

2005 trolley restoration

[edit]

The 15 line returned to trolley service on September 4, 2005, after having been served by buses for thirteen years.[21] To prepare for the resumption of trolley service, SEPTA spent a total of $100 million, including rehabilitating the tracks and repairs to the overhead wires. The rolling stock for Route 15 consists of PCC II cars, which are 1947 St. Louis Car-built PCC streetcars that had been completely rebuilt by the Brookville Equipment Company at a cost of $1.3 million per trolley in 2003-2004. The rebuilt trolley includes the addition of air conditioning and regenerative braking, as well as a widened center door with a wheelchair lift for ADA compliance.[22]

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.[23] 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.[24]

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.[25]

Port Richmond reconstruction and I-95

[edit]

Route 15 east of the new Northern Liberties loop is being rebuilt as part of a reconstruction project for Interstate 95. The components of the I-95 project related to Route 15 include reconstruction of Girard Avenue's bridge over Aramingo Avenue, and widening and partial realignment of Richmond Street. All the tracks in these areas will be replaced, except for the Richmond & Cumberland loop which will be removed. Also part of the project is the construction of four separate bridges for Conrail tracks over a realigned Richmond Street to replace the low-clearance nuisance bridge left over from the former Port Richmond Yard. The new bridges, rationalized in width to current Conrail trackage, will provide much greater road clearance by virtue of being relocated away from underneath the I-95 viaduct. Route 15 east of Frankford Avenue to the Frankford and Delaware Avenue station and the SugarHouse Casino will be served by a shuttle bus for the duration of the project, which is expected to last through 2018.[26] On January 21, 2020, SEPTA officials announced that buses would be replacing the streetcars along the whole route for a period of at least 18 months.[27]

2021 SEPTA Metro redesign plans

[edit]
Proposed new logo for the Girard Avenue Line under the SEPTA Metro wayfinding project[28]
Proposed new logo for Route 15 local under the SEPTA Metro wayfinding project[28]

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.[29][28] Following a period of public comment, Route 15's proposed name was simplified to "G Line."[30]

Future rolling stock

[edit]

In 2023, SEPTA awarded Alstom Transportation the contract to furbish 130 new low-floor trams for the existing Subway–Surface lines, along with the Media–Sharon Hill Line, with an option for 30 more. These 30 extra trams, if ordered, would replace the existing PCC-III 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-III 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.[31]

SEPTA does not plan on reconstructing the Route 15 for its Trolley Modernization Program until 2041 at the earliest.[32]

2023-2024 trolley restoration

[edit]

As of July 7, 2023, the I-95 reroute work had been substantially completed, but trolley service not yet restored. WHYY 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.[33] As of August 2023, six of the cars had been restored, and SEPTA had announced a partial restoration of trolley service starting September 10, 2023.[10] However, citing the need for more operator training, the agency has delayed the restoration, though still expected to resume trolley service sometime in late 2023.[11] The restoration has since been pushed back to spring 2024.[34] In June, SEPTA announced eight restored trolleys will resume service alongside buses on June 16, 2024.[12][2]

Stations

[edit]

All stations are in the City of Philadelphia.

Neighborhood Station or stop Connections Notes
Haddington–
Carroll Park line 		63rd & Girard (EB) SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 31
63rd & Haverford (WB) SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 30, 31
62nd & Girard (EB)
62nd & Haverford (WB) SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 30
61st & Girard (EB)
61st & Haverford (WB) SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 30
60th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 30, 46
59th & Girard
57th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: G
56th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: G
54th & Girard
52nd & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 52
Mill Creek–
Cathedral Park line 		51st & Girard
49th & Girard
Girard & Lancaster (EB) SEPTA Metro: Route 10
Merion & Girard
Belmont & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 43
Parkside 42nd & Girard
41st & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 40
40th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 38, 40
39th & Girard
34th & Girard Access to Philadelphia Zoo
Fairmount–
Brewerytown line 		33rd & Girard (WB) SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 32
31st & Girard
29th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 7, 48, 49
28th & Girard
27th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 7
26th & Girard
Poplar & 26th (EB) SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 32
Stillman & Poplar (EB)
25th & Poplar (WB)
Fairmount–
Cecil B. Moore line 		24th & College
Corinthian & Girard
20th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 33
19th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 33
Ridge & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 61
17th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 2
16th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 2
Broad & Girard SEPTA Metro: Broad Street Line (at Girard)
SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 4, 16
West Poplar–
Yorktown line 		12th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 23
11th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 23
Poplar–
Ludlow line 		8th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 47
7th & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 47
5th & Girard
Northern Liberties–
Olde Kensington line 		4th & Girard (WB) SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 57
3rd & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 5, 57
2nd & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 5
Front & Girard SEPTA Metro: Market–Frankford Line (at Girard)
SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 5
Fishtown Frankford & Girard SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 5, 25
Richmond & Frankford SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 25
Frankford & Delaware SEPTA City Transit Division surface routes SEPTA City Bus: 25, 43 Access to The Fillmore

References

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Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Also known as the Girard Avenue Line
  2. ^ Conventions for future line names state they are to be referred to by letter only (i.e. "the G", not "the G line")[7]

Citations

[edit]
  1. ^ "Fiscal Year 2014 Annual Service Plan" (PDF). SEPTA. May 2013. p. 40. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 22, 2013. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
  2. ^ a b c Myers, Michelle (June 16, 2024). "'The Tesla of trolleys': Behold the return of SEPTA's cream-and-green 1947 trolleys". www.inquirer.com. The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
  3. ^ a b "SEPTA - Spring 2012 Route Statistics" (PDF). Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 24, 2013. Retrieved June 28, 2013.
  4. ^ a b "SEPTA - Media Guide" (PDF). Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 17, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2013.
  5. ^ "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' 21⁄4".
  6. ^ Hilton, George W.; Due, John Fitzgerald (January 1, 2000). The Electric Interurban Railways in America. Stanford University Press. ISBN 9780804740142. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  7. ^ "SEPTA Metro: Unification and Reorganization". SEPTA. Retrieved May 18, 2024.
  8. ^ "1974 SEPTA Trolley History Brochure". Philadelphia Trolley Tracks (PhillyTrolleys.org). Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. 1974. Retrieved August 28, 2013.
  9. ^ Sasko, Claire (January 22, 2020). "SEPTA Says the Historic Route 15 Trolleys Will Return Late Next Year". PhiladelphiaMagazine.com. Retrieved April 28, 2023.
  10. ^ a b Sharber, Cory (August 16, 2023). "SEPTA's Route 15 historic trolleys to return Sept. 10". WHYY. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
  11. ^ a b Saunders, Brian (September 7, 2023). "Return of SEPTA's classic trolleys delayed until later this fall". PhillyVoice. Retrieved September 7, 2023.
  12. ^ a b Fitzgerald, Thomas (June 11, 2024). "Restored 1947 trolleys will return to Girard Avenue's Route 15 next week. SEPTA says it's not a rumor this time". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on June 11, 2024. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
  13. ^ "Cash-short SEPTA presses on with capital program". Railway Age. October 1, 2004.
  14. ^ "2012 Route 15 Rail Renewal". Philadelphia Trolley Tracks (PhillyTrolleys.org). Retrieved February 15, 2012.
  15. ^ "Bulletins – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority".
  16. ^ 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)
  17. ^ 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 November 4, 2013. Retrieved November 2, 2013.
  18. ^ a b c American Street Railway Investments, a Supplement to the Street Railway Journal, 1897, p. 198, 200, 204
  19. ^ William B. Atkinson, The Philadelphia Medical Register and Directory, 1875
  20. ^ Schneider, Fred W. III; Carlson, Stephen P. (1983). PCC From Coast to Coast: Interurbans Special 86. Glendale, California: Interurban Press. pp. 144, 152. ISBN 0-916374-57-2.
  21. ^ "Route of the Week - 15". www.iseptaphilly.com. Retrieved July 16, 2017.
  22. ^ "Philadelphia's PCCs Return to Service." Railway Age. Vol. 205, No. 10, p. 30. October 1, 2005.
  23. ^ citypaper.net Archived October 1, 2015, at the Wayback Machine Amy L. Webb (2004). "Communication Breakdown." Philadelphia City Paper. September 30, 2004.
  24. ^ "Changing Skyline: Welcome Back Girard Avenue A Street Reborn" Philadelphia Inquirer January 9, 2004.
  25. ^ Saska, Jim (June 21, 2018). "Overhauling its bus network may be on SEPTA's schedule soon". WHYY.org. Retrieved February 18, 2020.
  26. ^ "SEPTA Route 15 Trolley Detour in Fishtown, Port Richmond". 95revive.com. PennDOT District 6. January 2016. Archived from the original (pdf) on February 26, 2014. Retrieved March 19, 2016.
  27. ^ "SEPTA taking Girard Ave. trolley off the rails; 78 percent of fleet can't pass inspection". January 2020. Retrieved January 23, 2020.
  28. ^ a b c "Wayfinding Recommendations". SEPTA. Archived from the original on September 7, 2021. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  29. ^ 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.
  30. ^ "Design Concept Feedback". planning.septa.org. SEPTA. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
  31. ^ MacDonald, Tom (February 24, 2023). "New SEPTA trolleys will soon replace an aging fleet". WHYY. Retrieved February 12, 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.
  32. ^ "SEPTA Trolley Modernization Program Manager RFP" (PDF). Retrieved April 17, 2024.
  33. ^ Prihar, Asher (July 7, 2023). ""Historic trolleys will return to Girard Avenue service in September, SEPTA says"". WHYY. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
  34. ^ MacDonald, Tom (February 12, 2024). "SEPTA pushes back the return of vintage trolleys". WHYY. Retrieved February 12, 2024.
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