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Pennsylvania Vintage Trolley Systems |
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| Philadelphia |
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| Route 15- Girard Ave. | |||||||||||||||||||
| Began Operation: September 2005 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Miles of Line: 8.2 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Stations: frequent on-street stops | |||||||||||||||||||
| Org: transit agency | |||||||||||||||||||
| Schedule: daily | |||||||||||||||||||
| photo: Bob Vogel | |||||||||||||||||||
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Philadelphia is among a group of US cities that never
completely eliminated trolley service. Although the system shrank
dramatically in size, some routes were upgraded with new "light
rail" vehicles and continue serving Philadelphia today. We have
included coverage of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority's (SEPTA)
Girard Ave. Light Rail Project because it contains elements of a
Vintage Trolley operation, including the fact that it uses rebuilt
PCC-type trolleys.
Coincident with the retirement of the PCC fleet in 1992, SEPTA converted its Route 15- Girard Ave. to bus service, although the tracks and overhead wire were left in place. Girard Ave. is a long line that crosses the city north of downtown, and strong local pressure was applied to return the trolleys. In late 1997 SEPTA announced plans to reactivate trolleys on Route 15, with service being provided by a rebuilt fleet of PCC-type cars. 1940's-era PCC-type cars remained in service on SEPTA routes until 1992, when the majority were retired. Still in reasonably good condition, most were auctioned off, and a large number were purchased for resale or for use on vintage trolley operations around the country, most notably in San Francisco. Philadelphia retained approximately 50 cars. In November 2001, SEPTA's board authorized a $23 million contract with Brookville Equipment Corp. of Brookville, PA for rebuilding 18 PCC cars at a per unit cost of $1.2 million. The Authority also obtained an option to rebuild a further 8 cars at the same price. Brookville completely rebuilt the car bodies, equipped them with new trucks, added wheelchair lifts at the center doors, installed a new solid state control system, and added air conditioning. Work on the cars was completed in 2004. Like the new Vintage Trolley replica cars being built for New Orleans, the remanufactured SEPTA PCCs are thus a new vehicle in a "classic" package. Service on the rebuilt line did not begin until September of 2005 due to local political situation (see updates below). In addition to the Girard Ave. line, SEPTA also operated a small group of PCC cars on a seasonal "Holiday Trolley" operation, but that operation was discontinued in 2004. |
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