A Glimpse Back at SEPTA's 'Dark Days'

For anyone (OK, I know there aren't many) who has ever wondered what the argument was back in the '80s for truncating all those SEPTA regional rail lines, I've finally come across a blog post detailing the thinking back then.

The Souderton Train Station, on the old Bethlehem Branch of the Reading Railroad, has been closed since 1981.

This is the era when the R3 Media/Elwyn, R8 Fox Chase, R6 Cynwyd and R6 Norristown lines were shortened. Passenger service was also discontinued on the Bethlehem Branch north of Lansdale. The principal reason given at the time was that SEPTA wished to discontinue operating diesel railcars, which meant abandoning all passenger service on track without overhead catenary wires for electric trains.

When SEPTA Regional Rail Lines Were Shortened

The Media/Elwyn line ran to West Chester until September 1986, The Fox Chase to Newtown until January 1983, the Cynwyd to Ivy Ridge until October 1986, and the Norristown line extended commuter service all the way up the Schuylkill Valley to Reading and beyond until July 1981.

Most of the discontinued service could not be restored today without major capital funding. The line with the best chance of restoration is the route to West Chester; there are currently plans to extend service beyond Elwyn to a new park-and-ride station at Wawa, which will capitalize on the population boom in Chester County and planned redevelopment of the old Franklin Mint property.

Read more about SEPTA's "dark days" of, um, shrinkage in the Crossing the Lines blog.