15th Street station (SEPTA)

15th Street
15th Street SEPTA rapid transit station
Market Frankford platform
Location	15th & Market Streets Philadelphia, PA
Coordinates	39°57′10″N 75°09′56″W / 39.952804°N 75.165489°W / 39.952804; -75.165489Coordinates: 39°57′10″N 75°09′56″W / 39.952804°N 75.165489°W / 39.952804; -75.165489
Owned by	City of Philadelphia (leased to SEPTA)
Line(s)	Market–Frankford Line   Subway–Surface Trolley Lines
Platforms	2 side platform (rapid transit), 2 side platforms (trolleys)
Tracks	4 (2 rapid transit, 2 tram)
Connections	Broad Street Line at City Hall SEPTA Regional Rail (at Suburban Station) SEPTA City Bus: 4, 16, 17, 27, 31, 32, 33, 38, 44, 48, 121
Construction
Structure type	Underground
Disabled access	Yes
History
Opened	1907
Rebuilt	2016-2018
Electrified	700 volts DC(MFL) Overhead lines(SST)
Services
Preceding station   SEPTA   Following station 30th Street toward 69th Street Market–Frankford Line 13th Street toward Frankford 19th Street via 36th Portal or 40th Portal Subway–Surface Trolley Lines 13th–Market Terminus
Location
15th Street Location within Philadelphia

15th Street station is a subway station in Philadelphia. It is served by SEPTA's Market–Frankford Line and all routes of the Subway–Surface trolley lines. A free interchange is available between all of the rapid transit lines here, including the Broad Street Line at City Hall, which is connected to 15th Street by an underground passage. It is the busiest station on the Market-Frankford Line, with 29,905 boardings on an average weekday^[1].

The station is attached by underground pedestrian walkways to SEPTA Regional Rail's Suburban Station, the Broad Street Line's Walnut–Locust Station, the PATCO Speedline's 12–13th & Locust and 15–16th & Locust Stations; as well as the Market–Frankford Line's own 13th Street, 11th Street, and 8th Street Stations. However, no free interchange is available to any of these stations.

Riders to the station will find themselves in the very heart of Center City. City Hall lies across the street from the station, and such attractions as Love Park, the Penn Center area, and the Comcast Center are within immediate walking distance.

The Subway–Surface Lines stop at two individual stations within this complex. Inbound trolleys stop at 15th Street and outbound trolleys at Dilworth Park across the Market–Frankford Line platforms.

Station layout

ADA Reconstruction

Dating back to 1907, 15th Street was an original station along the Market-Frankford Line, and was not designed for ADA accessibility. In 2003, SEPTA rebuilt the station escalators, for which a lawsuit was filed by the Disabled in Action of Pennsylvania, citing that renovating one critical component would require the rest of the station complex (Including City Hall on the BSL) to be renovated, per building code requirements. As such, SEPTA would be required to make the station ADA accessible.^[2] SEPTA and the City of Philadelphia had been proposing a US $100,000,000 refurbishment of City Hall Station,^[3] which included structural repairs, improvements in lighting and ventilation, aesthetic improvements, as well as ADA improvements. However, the project's progression had stalled due to lack of funds.^[4]

In November 2011, the Central Philadelphia Development Corporation awarded construction contracts totaling $50 million for the restoration of Dilworth Park above the station, following the eviction of the Occupy Philly protesters occupying the area; the contract includes the accessibility improvements for the station.^[5] SEPTA awarded construction contracts for the improvements in January 2012.^[6] The project consisted of a restoration of the plaza, creating a "gateway" to the SEPTA transit station and installing elevators connecting to the street and Market-Frankford platforms at 15th. The contract did not include any accessibility for the disabled to the Broad Street Line platforms, which are outside the plaza boundaries. The total cost of the project has risen to $55 million, with most of the money coming from a federal grant, with additional contributions by the City of Philadelphia ($5 million), and non-profit organizations including the William Penn Foundation. The project, originally to have been completed July 2014, had been delayed due to the necessity to deal with stairways, duct banks and pipes construction crews encountered, that did not appear in any blueprints.^[7] The renovated Dilworth Park opened on September 4, 2014.^[8]

In 2013, the passage of PA Act 89 (Transportation Funding Law) has allowed SEPTA to move forward with the $147 million BSL/MFL station renovation.^[9] The reconstruction of 15th began in 2016, and is expected to be complete in 2018, with reconstruction of City Hall station to begin in 2019.^[10][11]

Gallery

• 
  Trolley station sign
• 
  Trolley station
• 
  15th Street station platform stairway to Broad Street Line
• 
  Street-level entrance to 15th Street station
• 
  Stairway to the Subway-Surface Trolleys.
• 
  15th Street station from moving train
• 
  Broad Street Line entrance also shows Market Frankford Line on entrance
• 
  Water fountain in Dilworth Park
• 
  Station head house behind water fountain
• 
  Trolley station sign
• 
  Trolley tunnel
• 
  Mezzanine
• 
  Stairs to JFK Boulevard and 15th Street

References

External links

• SEPTA - 15th Street MFL & Trolley Station
• 15th Street Market Street Subway (WorldNYCSubway.org)
• 15th Street entrance from Google Maps Street View