The 69th Street Transportation Center is a
SEPTA
The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly 4 million people in five c ...
terminal in the Terminal Square section of
Upper Darby, Pennsylvania
Upper Darby Township, often shortened to Upper Darby, is a home rule township in Delaware County, Pennsylvania. The township borders Philadelphia, the nation's sixth most populous city as of 2020 with 1.6 million residents.
As of the 2020 ce ...
, just west of the city limits of
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
. The terminal serves the
Market–Frankford Line
The Market–Frankford Line (MFL) (also called the Market–Frankford Subway–Elevated Line (MFSE), the Market–Frankford El (MFE), the El (), or the Blue Line) is one of three rapid transit lines in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; it and the Broad ...
,
Norristown High Speed Line
The Norristown High Speed Line (NHSL), also called the Purple Line, the P&W, or Route 100,) is a interurban light rapid transit line operated by SEPTA, running between the 69th Street Transportation Center in Upper Darby and the Norristown Tr ...
, and the
Media–Sharon Hill Line
SEPTA Routes 101 and 102, also known as the Media–Sharon Hill Line, are light rail lines operated by the Suburban Transit Division of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, serving portions of Delaware County. The routes' e ...
trolleys, and multiple bus routes. It is located at the end of 69th Street, a major retail corridor in Upper Darby, across
Market Street Market Street may refer to:
*Market Street, Cambridge, England
*Market Street, Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia
* Market Street, George Town, Penang, Malaysia
*Market Street, Manchester, England
*Market Street, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
...
(
Route 3) from the
Tower Theater. Until 2011, the station was primarily known as 69th Street Terminal.
69th Street is the second busiest transfer point in the SEPTA system (after
15th Street/
City Hall station) serving 35,000 passengers every weekday.
It is also the only SEPTA facility to serve both City Transit and Suburban Transit routes.
[
]
History
69th Street is one of the original Market Street Elevated stations built by the Philadelphia Rapid Transit Company
The Philadelphia Transportation Company (PTC) was the main public transit operator in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from 1940 to 1968. A private company, PTC was the successor to the Philadelphia Rapid Transit Company (PRT), in operation since 19 ...
; the line opened for service on March 4, 1907 between here and stations. Shortly after on May 22 of the same year, the Philadelphia and Western Railroad
The Philadelphia and Western Railroad was a high-speed, third rail-equipped, commuter-hauling interurban electric railroad operating in the western suburbs of the U.S. city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is now SEPTA's Norristown High Speed ...
opened the first segment of what is now the Norristown High-Speed Line, running from 69th Street to a farm on Sugarton Road in Strafford. By 1931, the P&W was operating Bullet electric multiple units between 69th Street and Norristown Transportation Center
Norristown Transportation Center is a two-level multimodal public transportation regional hub located in Norristown, Pennsylvania, USA, operated by SEPTA. It opened in 1989 to replace the older Norristown High Speed Line (Route 100) terminus ...
.
The Great Hall station house, which opened in 1907 with the Market Street Elevated, was a catalyst for nearby development in Upper Darby, considered to be one of the earliest examples of transit-oriented development
In urban planning, transit-oriented development (TOD) is a type of urban development that maximizes the amount of residential, business and leisure space within walking distance of public transport. It promotes a symbiotic relationship between ...
.[
The ]Media–Sharon Hill Line
SEPTA Routes 101 and 102, also known as the Media–Sharon Hill Line, are light rail lines operated by the Suburban Transit Division of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, serving portions of Delaware County. The routes' e ...
(routes 101 and 102) opened slightly earlier, having begun service to Sharon Hill in March 1906 and to Media in March 1913. The lines were operated by the Philadelphia and West Chester Traction Company
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
.
In 1954, the Media, Sharon Hill, and Norristown lines were purchased by the Philadelphia Suburban Transportation Company
SEPTA Routes 101 and 102, also known as the Media–Sharon Hill Line, are light rail lines operated by the Suburban Transit Division of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, serving portions of Delaware County. The routes' e ...
(PSTC), also known as Red Arrow Lines
SEPTA Routes 101 and 102, also known as the Media–Sharon Hill Line, are light rail lines operated by the Suburban Transit Division of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, serving portions of Delaware County. The routes' e ...
. PSTC merged into SEPTA in 1970, unifying all services in the station under a single operator for the first time on January 29.
![PST Brilliner 5 at 69th Street Terminal in 1968](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/PST_Brilliner_5_at_69th_Street_Terminal_in_1968.jpg)
Modernization
On February 2, 2016, SEPTA opened a brand-new West Terminal at the station, serving multiple bus routes and the 101 and 102 trolley lines. The $19.6 million project brought new tracks and pavement, new platforms and ramps to the terminal building, as well as a green roof and eco-friendly LED lighting.
A train crash occurred here on August 23, 1986, injuring 44 and killing 1. Early on August 22, 2017, an inbound Norristown Line train crashed into an unoccupied train at the terminal, with a preliminary report of 33 injuries from the impact.
Plans for a new parking garage, which would bring 318 additional parking spaces to the station, were announced in October 2018. The garage would be located above the South Terminal bus berths, is expected to cost $37 million, and will break ground in summer 2020. A 2019 report suggested removing the bridge across Market Street in favor of a traffic-calmed intersection with crosswalks.[ Both measures would prepare the terminal for an increase in traffic following the proposed Norristown Line King of Prussia Spur.
]
Market–Frankford Line platforms
69th Street is the Market–Frankford Line
The Market–Frankford Line (MFL) (also called the Market–Frankford Subway–Elevated Line (MFSE), the Market–Frankford El (MFE), the El (), or the Blue Line) is one of three rapid transit lines in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; it and the Broad ...
's western terminus. East of here, the route travels thorough West
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...
and Center City Philadelphia
Center City includes the central business district and central neighborhoods of Philadelphia. It comprises the area that made up the City of Philadelphia prior to the Act of Consolidation, 1854, which extended the city borders to be coterminous wi ...
along Market Street, and then continues northeast
The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each se ...
to Frankford Transportation Center
Frankford Transportation Center (also known as Frankford Terminal and Bridge-Pratt station) is a transportation terminal in Frankford, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It was once known as the Bridge Street terminal before a complete re ...
. The station is one of two ground-level stations of the Market––Frankford Line, and one of two SEPTA rapid transit stations outside the Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
city limits.
The station's three tracks and two platforms are located at the center of the terminal, sandwiched between the station building and the Norristown High Speed Line terminal. The northbound platform handles all alighting passengers while the southbound platform handles departing passengers. West of the station, a two-track balloon loop
A balloon loop, turning loop, or reversing loop ( North American Terminology) allows a rail vehicle or train to reverse direction without having to shunt or stop. Balloon loops can be useful for passenger trains and unit freight trains.
Bal ...
allows terminating trains to turn around and depart the station. There is also a large storage yard and a maintenance facility shared with the Media–Sharon Hill Line
SEPTA Routes 101 and 102, also known as the Media–Sharon Hill Line, are light rail lines operated by the Suburban Transit Division of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, serving portions of Delaware County. The routes' e ...
. Two MFL trains collided after one derails on the balloon track seriously injuring the operator.
Norristown High Speed Line platforms
SEPTA's Norristown High Speed Line
The Norristown High Speed Line (NHSL), also called the Purple Line, the P&W, or Route 100,) is a interurban light rapid transit line operated by SEPTA, running between the 69th Street Transportation Center in Upper Darby and the Norristown Tr ...
(formerly Route 100) originates at 69th Street, continuing west and north to serve the communities of Haverford and Radnor before terminating at Norristown Transportation Center
Norristown Transportation Center is a two-level multimodal public transportation regional hub located in Norristown, Pennsylvania, USA, operated by SEPTA. It opened in 1989 to replace the older Norristown High Speed Line (Route 100) terminus ...
in Norristown Norristown may mean:
* Norristown, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Norristown, Georgia, an unincorporated community
* Norristown, Indiana, an unincorporated community
* Norristown, Pennsylvania
Norristown is a municipality with home ...
. Unlike the Market–Frankford terminal, the Norristown Line tracks terminate at bumper blocks adjacent to the station, meaning that all platforms and tracks can handle both the boarding and alighting of passengers.
Bus and trolley routes
Surface transit lines at 69th Street are split into three distinct areas of the terminal. The largest of these areas is known as the West Terminal. It is located on a slightly elevated embankment west of the station house and adjacent to the intersection of Market Street Market Street may refer to:
*Market Street, Cambridge, England
*Market Street, Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia
* Market Street, George Town, Penang, Malaysia
*Market Street, Manchester, England
*Market Street, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
...
and Victory Avenue. This area contains bus berths for routes , as well as two berths for the 101 and 102 trolleys. The two trolley routes run southwest out of the station into the median of Terminal Square, and then via a separate right-of-way
Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another.
A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...
until diverging at . All bus routes at this terminal are operated by SEPTA's Suburban Division and operate west out of the station on West Chester Pike
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...
, State Road, or Garrett Road.
The station's South Terminal is adjacent to Market Street just east of 69th Street, also south of the terminal building. This area is located adjacent to the station's taxi stand
A taxicab stand (also called taxi rank, cab stand, taxi stand, cab rank, or hack stand) is a queue area on a street or on private property where taxicabs line up to wait for passengers.
Operation
Stands are normally located at high-traffic loc ...
and has berths for routes .[ Routes 21 and 68 are part of SEPTA's City Transit Division, while the remaining three are Suburban Division and former Red Arrow routes. These routes operate east into ]West Philadelphia
West Philadelphia, nicknamed West Philly, is a section of the city of Philadelphia. Alhough there are no officially defined boundaries, it is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Avenue to the nort ...
on Market Street Market Street may refer to:
*Market Street, Cambridge, England
*Market Street, Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia
* Market Street, George Town, Penang, Malaysia
*Market Street, Manchester, England
*Market Street, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
...
or south on 69th Street towards East Lansdowne.
Finally, the station's North Terminal handles the remaining six routes: .[ It is located north of the station building and heavy rail platforms, adjacent to the Market–Frankford/Media–Sharon Hill maintenance facility building and SEPTA Victory District garage. These buses depart the station via a private access road to Cardington Road and proceed north through Cobbs Creek Park before turning east towards West Philadelphia or west towards ]Lower Merion Township
Lower Merion Township is a township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. It is part of the Philadelphia Main Line. The township's name originates with the county of Merioneth in north Wales. Merioneth is an English-language transcription of the ...
.
Station layout
The station building also houses SEPTA sales offices, stores, and eateries. There is also a 182-space park and ride
A park and ride, also known as incentive parking or a commuter lot, is a parking lot with public transport connections that allows commuters and other people heading to city centres to leave their vehicles and transfer to a bus, rail system ( ...
lot east of the station building on Market Street. Norristown and Market–Frankford platforms are accessed via a mezzanine over the tracks that leads from the station house, while the Route 101/102 trolleys board on a loop at the western bus terminal. There are two tracks on the north side of the loop, but trolleys only use the outer track; the inner track, which is also paved with asphalt, is used for bus berths.
References
External links
*
69th Street Transportation Center
* Views from Google Maps Street View
*
Main entrance
*
West Terminal
*
South Terminal
*
North Terminal access road
* Images from NYCSubway.org:
Market-Frankford-El
MFL 69th Street Yard
Norristown High-Speed Line
Media-Sharon Hill Line
{{Authority control
SEPTA Market-Frankford Line stations
SEPTA Norristown High Speed Line stations
SEPTA Media–Sharon Hill Line stations
SEPTA stations and terminals
Railway stations in the United States opened in 1907
1907 establishments in Pennsylvania
Railway stations in Delaware County, Pennsylvania
SEPTA Rapid Transit stations located above ground