Philadelphia Transportation Thread

[hammersklavier]

Originally Posted by Nexis4Jersey

surely that 308 billion was a typo...I remember they had brought costs down to 100 billion...308 billion is the cost of all the backlogged projects in every state... Surely they meant that...

Well, when there's nothing left to burn, why not just set money on fire?

[Nexis4Jersey]

Originally Posted by hammersklavier

Well, when there's nothing left to burn, why not just set money on fire?

I wasn't aware of the 6 tracking....the NEC just needs an addition track in some areas...

I do think a LI Tunnel plan would be worthwhile...and I do not buy these inflated costs...since abandoned ROW would be used along much of alt 2 and 3...along with Interstate ROW and through Rural areas... The New Platforms at NYPenn are not needed... Nor are the Tunnels under boston... It appears that Alt 2 & 3 where just made to be inflated so we have a reason not to build anything.. Half of the stuff in 3 is unnecessary and alt 2 has a lot of pork aswell...

[EastSideHBG]

Wayne Junction station's makeover unveiled

http://www.philly.com/philly/busines..._unveiled.html

[summersm343]

Article on BSL extension to the Navy Yard

Plans for a 1.5 mile extension of the Broad Street Line to the Philadelphia Navy Yard appear to be moving forward -- incrementally, at least.

Officials from the state, local and federal government -- as well as politically powerful labor leaders -- will appear Monday to tout a new study on the economic impact of the project, along with figures to outline an anticipated boost to SEPTA’s ridership numbers that it would bring.

With a price tag passing $370 million, extending the Broad Street Line would be a heavy lift. State and federal dollars would likely pay for some of the project, but local sources may have to account for up to 50 percent of the funding.

That spending would not occur in a vacuum. SEPTA has said that many other projects, including a backlog of maintenance on the existing system are competing with the extension for its money.

And it’s further unclear if extending the line will take all of those cars off the street. Many employees don’t commute from Center City, but from South Jersey and the Philadelphia suburbs.

And there’s another blue-sky project in the works -- an elevated rail over the Roosevelt Boulevard to serve what Phillymag says is the booming lower Northeast and it’s waves of new immigrants.

http://www.metro.us/philadelphia/ren...B7FzhouZQ0D2c/

[summersm343]

Bipartisan group of politicians renew call for Broad Street Line extension to Navy Yard

http://planphilly.com/articles/2015/...n-to-navy-yard

[skyscraper]

Originally Posted by summersm343

Article on BSL extension to the Navy Yard



http://www.metro.us/philadelphia/ren...B7FzhouZQ0D2c/

They bring up the Roosevelt Boulevard Line again, this time in the form of an elevated line. Is this a new proposal? Last I heard it was proposed to be primarily a subway line with just a few elevated stations.

[summersm343]

Broad Street Line could be extended to Navy Yard, reports say

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/201...vy_yard_r.html

[summersm343]

Franklin Square Station reopening advances as DRPA board approves 2016 capital budget

Johnny Doc’s dream of reopening the PATCO station underneath Franklin Square took another step towards reality today, as the DRPA Board approved the 2016 capital budget, which sets aside $28.3 million over five years for the project.

The IBEW 98 business manager and Delaware River Port Authority (DRPA) board member has consistently advocated for reopening the station, which was abandoned in 1979 due to low ridership.

The budget allocates $500,000 this coming year to hire a design firm to draft up blueprints for the shuttered station’s rehab.

http://planphilly.com/articles/2015/...capital-budget

[Kidphilly]

Originally Posted by hammersklavier

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/local...nsit_hubs.html
DRPA is betting that it can make TOD in Camden around Walter Rand.

And not spending the money to extend the line to Rittenhouse. Again.

I know this is an old post but just found this thread, how much of the loucust street subway is dug to Rittenhouse, while i like the idea if it nly went three more blocks would have to be cheap to feasable

also does the arch street subway come at all close to the BSL spur or the patco line

anyone know

[EastSideHBG]

So long, 23 - the busiest and latest bus route
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/busines...H7BvH38YjLm.99

[Nexis4Jersey]

Here we see PA's Finest Rail Phototogs in there natural habitat :lol:

• Video Link

[EastSideHBG]

Philly's driving bottlenecks aren't going anywhere

Jason Laughlin, Staff Writer
POSTED: SUNDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2015, 8:54 AM

I took some time off before Thanksgiving, so I’m still playing catchup with a few things. One is an American Highway Users and AAA report that used real time GPS data to look at the 50 worst bottlenecks in the country. Two of them were in our area. Can you guess which road? Both, not surprisingly, involve the Schuylkill Expressway, where dreams of getting to work on time go to die.

Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/i...3JAy96rSMlT.99

[EastSideHBG]

To improve on-time rates, SEPTA makes Regional Rail changes
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/busines...m86AXhHi7hR.99

[Jonboy1983]

Originally Posted by EastSideHBG

To improve on-time rates, SEPTA makes Regional Rail changes
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/busines...m86AXhHi7hR.99

Maybe SEPTA should consider acquiring double-deck cars for their busier routes given the higher pax loads. If they're trying to achieve higher on-time performance, that should be considered. Adding more trains would be counterproductive, and they even stated that more pax leads to increased delays. Why not up the capacity with bigger cars rather than more cars or adding more trains?

[Jayfar]

Originally Posted by Jonboy1983

Maybe SEPTA should consider acquiring double-deck cars for their busier routes given the higher pax loads.

The planning for the bi-level cars acquisition is already well under way.

http://planphilly.com/articles/2015/...onal-rail-cars

SEPTA regional rail riders should start seeing bi-level coaches, like those used by NJ Transit and Boston's MBTA, on the area’s busier lines sometime in 2018.

[snip]

There will be some work required before regional rail will be ready for the bi-level coaches. But the infrastructure upgrades and fixes are largely minor. SEPTA recently completed a study that confirmed that its tunnels and overpasses were tall enough for the bi-level cars. “Other agencies had to deal with dropping track down and drainage issues,” Knueppel explained. “Luckily for us, we can fix it up in the air, because the clearance issues are not that significant.” SEPTA will be able to raise some catenary wires up to make room.

[EastSideHBG]

Route to the Future

http://www.philly.com/philly/busines...tial_Caps.html

[summersm343]

Capping 30th Street Station rail yard part of transformation plan

Image of the plan:
http://mobile.philly.com/beta?wss=/p...s&id=362117641

Pedestrian bridges linking Center City and West Philadelphia, and a partially capped rail yard at 30th Street Station are part of the latest proposal to overhaul 175 acres between Walnut and Spring Garden streets.

The draft, which factored in public input that called for homes and offices at the site, is set to be unveiled Wednesday during an open house at 30th Street Station, according to an Inquirer report.

Other elements include a new commercial district north of the station, anchored by a transit terminal for intercity bus operators such as Megabus and expanded railways that could support high-speed service.

The public favored capping the rail yard, although engineering issues means 10 fewer acres will be covered than preferred, and exposed areas will have parks and pedestrian bridges to link the two sections of the city, Philly.com said.

The draft also calls for an underground interchange between 30th Street Station and the Market-Frankford Line, as well as an aboveground right-of-way for new public transit routes through the proposed development. No decision has been made on what form that would take.

Amtrak, Drexel University, SEPTA and Brandywine Realty Trust, among others, contributed to the impending release, which is the latest results of a $5.25 million planning study.

http://www.bizjournals.com/philadelp...xel-septa.html
http://mobile.philly.com/beta?wss=/p...s&id=362117641

[Sgalla04]

Originally Posted by summersm343

Capping 30th Street Station rail yard part of transformation plan

Any insights from the "unveiling" and meeting on Wed? I went to the website but everything seems to be old information that had been released prior to the meeting.

[wanderer34]

Originally Posted by EastSideHBG

So long, 23 - the busiest and latest bus route
Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/busines...H7BvH38YjLm.99

This is actually a huge mistake on SEPTA's part of cutting off the 23 to South Phila and creating another route. While other transportation agencies are consolidating their surface routes (for example, the NYCTA had the former B40 and the B78 bus routes consolidated into the B47 via Ralph Ave from Kings Plaza to Broadway).

And what if trolleys were to come back on that route like the 15 did a few years back??? Splintering the 23 to make two bus routes is a very inefficient way of running the route (just like how SEPTA is inefficient), which is one of the busiest in the city. I was hoping the 23 came back in the form of a trolley from South Philly to Chestnut Hill, but like the ACC and the Mandeville, it's a project that's not likely to happen in the near future!!!

[PhilliesPhan]

While riding on the trolley and the front car of the MFL yesterday from 30th to 15th Street, I had an idea on how a MFL station in Market West could be created with a possibly minimal relocation of utilities and drainage.

For anyone not familiar with the stretch of tunnel from 30th to 15th Street: after the El (or trolley) pulls out, there is a steep incline. This incline progresses until, presumably, the tunnel is under the Schuylkill. After this point, both the MFL and trolley lines ascend.

Another thing to consider is that the trolley line is below the grade of the MFL. This is especially apparent under 15th Street, where the trolleys circle around the foundation of City Hall, under the MFL, and over the BSL. Because the trolley line descends down the incline and passes under the MFL, why not create a new tunnel from the lowest point of the tunnel to 13th and Market? With the aforementioned solution, concrete could be poured on top of the new tunnel, creating a pad for a new bi-level 19th Street Station, with the upper portion for the MFL and the lower portion for the trolleys.

People familiar with engineering: could something like this be possible? I imagine that a solution like this would entail a minimal relocation of utilities and drainage. The only concern might come with the structural support columns of the tunnel.

EDIT: I probably should have posted this in the Transportation forum. Feel free to move that is post if this is the case.