Broad Street Line

Broad Street Line
Broad Street Line train at Race–Vine station
Overview
Type	Rapid transit
System	SEPTA
Status	Operational
Locale	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Termini	NRG station (south; formerly "AT&T" and "Pattison") 8th & Market (spur south) Fern Rock Transportation Center (north)
Stations	25
Services	Local    Express    Broad-Ridge Spur    Special
Daily ridership	123,315 (average weekday FY 2015)[1]
Website	www.septa.org/service/bsl/index.html
Operation
Opened	September 1, 1928
Owner	City of Philadelphia
Operator(s)	1928–39: Philadelphia Rapid Transit Co. 1940–68: Philadelphia Transportation Co. 1968–present: SEPTA
Character	Underground and surface
Technical
Line length	12.5 mi (20.1 km)[2]
Number of tracks	4
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification	Third rail (600 volts)
Route map Lansdale/Doylestown, Warminster, West Trenton lines Fern Rock Olney Logan Wyoming Hunting Park Erie Allegheny North Philadelphia Susquehanna–Dauphin Cecil B. Moore Girard Fairmount Broad–Ridge Spur Spring Garden ( Ridge Spur closed ) Race–Vine Chinatown PATCO Speedline Main Line 8th Street Market–Frankford Line Subway–Surface Routes City Hall Walnut–Locust PATCO Speedline Lombard–South Ellsworth–Federal Tasker–Morris Snyder Oregon NRG

The Broad Street Line (BSL)—also known as the Broad Street Subway (BSS), Orange Line, or Broad Line—is a subway line owned by the city of Philadelphia and operated by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA). The line runs primarily north-south from the Fern Rock Transportation Center in North Philadelphia to Pattison Avenue in South Philadelphia; the latter station provides access to the stadiums and arenas for the city's major professional sports teams, about a quarter mile away. It is named for Broad Street, the street under which it runs for almost its entire length. The line, which is entirely underground except for the northern terminus at Fern Rock, has four tracks in a local/express configuration from Fern Rock to Walnut-Locust and two tracks from Lombard-South to the southern terminus at NRG station. It is one of only two rapid transit lines in the SEPTA system overall alongside the Market–Frankford Line.

The line and its trains were leased to SEPTA in 1968^[3] after it assumed operation of the city transit systems from the former Philadelphia Transportation Company (PTC).^[4] Broad Street Line subway cars bear both the SEPTA logo and the seal of the City of Philadelphia to reflect the split ownership-operation arrangement.

History

Service on the northern half of the Broad Street Line, between City Hall and Olney Avenue, opened on September 1, 1928. While the original subway tunnel had been finished to just north of the present-day Lombard-South station, service to the Walnut-Locust station did not begin until 1930; the Lombard-South station entered service in 1932. Service from that point south to Snyder Avenue began on September 18, 1938. Service to a new park-and-ride station built next to the Fern Rock shops began in 1956, and the line was extended further south to Pattison Avenue in 1973 to serve the recently completed Sports Complex.^[5]

Although the Broad Street Line was originally planned in the 1920s to be a 4-track facility for its entire length (Fern Rock portal to Snyder), the tunnel was built with provision for 4 tracks only from the portal to just north of Lombard-South. At the time of opening, the outer 2 tracks were built along this length, whereas the inner 2 express tracks were built only in two sections, from the Fern Rock portal/shops to just south of Olney, and from Girard to their terminus just north of Lombard South. To close the gaps, the two inner express tracks were laid from Erie to Girard in 1959, and again from Olney to Erie in 1991.

From Lombard-South station south to Snyder, the tunnel was constructed differently – only the eastern half of the line was built. The track currently used for southbound trains is actually the northbound express track. The extension to Pattison Station now called NRG Station in 1973 continued this arrangement. Space exists under the western half of Broad Street for the construction of the western half of the tunnel, which would include the remaining 2 tracks and additional island platforms for southbound local and express trains. The resulting infrastructure would match the configuration built in the northern half of the line.

Provisions for flying junctions exist in the tunnels at three locations: north of Olney station, north of Erie station, and between Tasker-Morris and Snyder stations. These were to connect to planned but never built extensions to the north, northeast, northwest and southwest. Tracks were laid in the upper levels of the flying junctions north of Olney and Erie; these have been used over the years to store out-of-service trains and as layover points for express and Ridge Spur trains.

The NRG Station contains a lower level platform, built to accommodate additional trains for large crowds at sporting events. Seldom used in recent years, these tracks are most often used to store rolling stock and work trains. Two of the Broad Street Subway system's stations have been closed: Spring Garden Station (closed in 1991) on the Ridge Avenue Spur Line and Franklin Square Station on the Former Bridge Line now called PATCO HIGH SPEED LINE (closed in 1953 and later opened in 1976 for Bi-Centennial and then closed again in 1979).

The Broad Street Line is one of only two rapid transit lines in the United States outside of New York City to use separate local and express tracks for a significant length, the other being Chicago's North Side Main Line from Armitage north, used by Purple Line express trains.

Operation

Rolling stock

Interior of a Broad St. Line train

The first set of rail cars for the Broad Street subway was the B-1 cars built in 1926–27 by the J.G. Brill Company. The Pressed Steel Car Company supplied an additional set in 1938 collectively known as the B-2's. The JG Brill Company also built and delivered 26 deluxe art-deco streamlined subway cars to the Delaware River Joint Commission in early 1936 for use on its Bridge Line from 8th and Market into Camden, NJ via the Benjamin Franklin Bridge. These cars were designed to be compatible with the other Broad Street cars, and could run in multiple with them. After the Bridge Line became part of the PATCO Lindenwold Hi-Speedline in late 1968, 23 of these former "Bridge Line" cars were sold to the City of Philadelphia in 1969 to be used on the Broad Street Subway, and were designated as the B-3's, until they were retired by early 1984.

The first set has had the second longest lifespan of any subway car in Philadelphia, after that of the Market Street cars built for what ultimately became the Market–Frankford Line. Although the line was a host for the UMTA's State of the Art Car program, real replacements for the Broad Street cars did not come until late 1982, when SEPTA introduced new "B-IV" cars built by Kawasaki, which are currently the only cars operating the line. A small number of B-1, B-2, and B-3 historic cars remain stored in derelict condition within Fern Rock yard. One car was sent to the Trackside Brick Oven Pizzeria.

Operating times and headways

Broad Street Subway train enters Fern Rock Transportation Center station.

A Broad Street Subway express train arrives at City Hall Station.

A local trip along the entire line takes about 35 minutes. Trains run from approximately 5:00 am to 1:00 am, with a timed-transfer at 12:30 am at City Hall station to connect with the Market Frankford Line based on final trains. The Broad Street Owl bus service replaces the subway throughout the night Monday through Friday mornings, stopping at the same locations as the subway trains. The line itself ran 24 hours a day until it was eliminated in 1991; it was reinstated on June 20, 2014 for Friday and Saturday overnights only on a trial basis. It was made permanent on October 8, 2014 due to the line successfully carrying an extra 10,000 riders on the Broad Street Line during the weekend overnight periods. Since 2014, the line runs nonstop from 5:00 a.m. on Friday to 1:00 a.m. on Monday morning.

The local portion of the Broad Street Line carries a headway of eight minutes or less during the daytime all day weekdays, 10–12 minutes all day on weekends and major holidays, and 12 minutes in the evenings. Weekend night service consists of a 20-minute frequency, while owl bus service early weekday mornings utilize a 15-minute frequency. The express portion of the line ranges from seven minutes during peak hours to 12 minutes off-peak, while the Broad Ridge Spur ranges from seven minutes during peak hours to 20 minutes off-peak.

Service	Start Time	End Time
Northbound train	5:02 am	12:55 am
Southbound train	5:00 am	12:41 am
Northbound Night Owl bus	12:20 am	5:36 am
Southbound Night Owl bus	12:09 am	5:35 am
Northbound Broad-Ridge Spur (M-F)	5:45 am	9:15 pm
Southbound Broad-Ridge Spur (M-F)	5:25 am	8:48 pm
Northbound Broad-Ridge Spur (Sat)	6:38 am	9:22 pm
Southbound Broad-Ridge Spur (Sat)	6:15 am	9:02 pm

Broad–Ridge Spur

The 8th & Market subway stop on the Broad-Ridge Spur

A two-track spur of the Broad Street Line, known as the Broad–Ridge Spur, diverges from the main line at Fairmount. Originally known as the Ridge-8th Street Subway, the line follows Ridge Avenue, from which it takes its name, southeastward from the intersection of Broad Street, Ridge and Fairmount Avenues to a two-level junction beneath 8th and Race Streets, where tunnels leading to and from the Benjamin Franklin Bridge to Camden connect to it, then proceeds south under 8th Street. At its southern terminus at 8th and Market streets, passengers may transfer to the Market-Frankford Line and the PATCO Speedline. Ridge Spur service to 8th and Market streets began in 1932; in 1936, the Delaware River Joint Commission (now Delaware River Port Authority, or DRPA) began operating "Bridge Line" service to 8th and Market from Broadway in Camden, New Jersey, with intermediate stops at Camden City Hall and Franklin Square (now abandoned).

The tunnel continues south under 8th Street from Market to Locust, where it turns west and runs under Locust Street to a terminus at 15th–16th Street station; a two-track tail used for layovers extends from 16th to 18th streets. Though this tunnel was also completed in 1932, it did not open for service until 20 years later; Ridge Spur and Bridge Line trains used it until 1969, when a new DRPA subsidiary, the Port Authority Transit Corporation, began operating the Lindenwold High-Speed Line (PATCO Speedline) through the 8th-Locust subway. At that time, a new single-track, side-platform terminal for Broad–Ridge Spur trains was opened on the upper level of 8th and Market station. The track connection between the Broad–Ridge Spur and the 8th–Locust Street subway was removed and a gate seals the tunnel opening; the tracks now end at a bumper block beyond the end of the platform.

The spur was built as part of a planned downtown subway loop that would have continued west from the current terminus at 18th, turned north under 19th Street, turned east under Arch Street, and re-connected to the Broad Street main line at Arch Street; work began on this loop in 1915 but was canceled the following year due to lack of funding.^[13]

Currently the spur operates Mondays through Saturdays from 6 am to 9 pm, running two-car trains on shortened platforms. This is down from five-car trains operated from the line opening through the 1970s, on full-length platforms. In recent years trains operated on a 24-hour schedule, as well as stopping at the Spring Garden Street station during peak hours. Spring Garden Street station was later abandoned for safety reasons and low ridership. Safety concerns also jeopardized the Chinatown station, but community concerns kept it open during peak hours with increased Transit Police Patrols.

Stations

All stations are located in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Stations on the Broad-Ridge Spur are shaded in gold. Special extra service for sports and entertainment events make all express stops between Fern Rock to Walnut–Locust and then continue express to NRG.

Services

     Local      Express      Broad–Ridge Spur      Special

Neighborhood	Station	L	E	R	S	Connections	Notes
Fern Rock	Fern Rock Transportation Center	●	●	●	●	Regional Rail: Warminster, West Trenton, and Lansdale/Doylestown lines City Bus: 4, 28, 57, 70
Logan	Olney Transportation Center	●	●	●	●	City Bus: 6, 8, 16, 18, 22, 26, 55, 80, L Greyhound Lines	Located near La Salle University
	Logan	●				City Bus: 16, J
	Wyoming	●				City Bus: 16, 75
Hunting Park	Hunting Park	●				City Bus: 1, 16, 53, R
	Erie	●	●	●	●	City Bus: 16, 23, 53, 56, H, XH	Serves Temple University Hospital
Glenwood	Allegheny	●				City Bus: 16, 60	Serves Temple University's dentistry school
	North Philadelphia	●		●		Amtrak: Northeast Regional and Keystone Service (at North Philadelphia station) Regional Rail: Trenton and Chestnut Hill West lines (at North Philadelphia station) Regional Rail: Lansdale/Doylestown and Manayunk/Norristown lines (at North Broad station) City Bus: 4, 16, 54
Cecil B. Moore	Susquehanna–Dauphin	●				City Bus: 4, 16, 39	Originally named Dauphin-Susquehanna
	Cecil B. Moore	●				City Bus: 3, 4, 16	Serves Temple University, originally Columbia Avenue
Francisville	Girard	●	●	●	●	Route 15 Trolley City Bus: 4, 16
	Fairmount	●		●		City Bus: 4, 16, 61
Callowhill	Spring Garden						Closed since 1991
Chinatown	Chinatown			●		City Bus: 47, 47m, 61 (all south)	Originally named Vine
Market East	8th & Market			●		Market-Frankford Line PATCO Lindenwold Line City Bus: 17, 33, 38 (west), 44, 47 (south), 47m (south), 61, 62	Originally named Market Street
Chinatown	Spring Garden	●	●		●	City Bus: 4, 16, 43	Serves the Community College of Philadelphia
	Race–Vine	●	●		●	City Bus: 4, 16, 27 NJ Transit Bus	Serves the Pennsylvania Convention Center and Hahnemann University Hospital
Center City	City Hall	●	●		●	Regional Rail (at Suburban Station) Market-Frankford Line (at 15th Street station) Subway-Surface Trolleys: 10, 11, 13, 34, 36 (at 15th Street station) City Bus: 4, 16, 17, 27, 31, 32, 33, 38, 44, 48, 62, 78 Suburban Bus: 124, 125	Located in the Center City Commuter Connection concourse
Washington Square West	Walnut–Locust	●	●		●	PATCO Lindenwold Line (at 15–16th & Locust) City Bus: 4, 9, 12, 21, 27, 32, 42	Serves the Kimmel Center and Academy of Music
	Lombard–South	●				City Bus: 4, 27, 32, 40	Serves University of the Arts, Peirce College, and Graduate Hospital
South Philadelphia	Ellsworth–Federal	●				City Bus: 4, 64	Serves the Italian Market
	Tasker–Morris	●				City Bus: 4, 29
	Snyder	●				City Bus: 4, 37, 79	Serves Methodist Hospital
	Oregon	●				City Bus: 4, 7, 45, 68, G	Serves Marconi Plaza
	NRG	●			●	City Bus: 4, 17	Serves the South Philadelphia Sports Complex, originally named Pattison

References

External links

Route map:

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Broad Street Line.

• Broad Street Line on SEPTA website
• World.nycsubway.org: Philadelphia: SEPTA Broad Street Subway