Misplaced Pages

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Chestnut Hill West Line" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (August 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

Chestnut Hill West Line
Shelter at the terminal station in Chestnut Hill
Overview
Status	Operating
Termini	Chestnut Hill West Temple University
Stations	10
Website	septa.org
Service
Type	Commuter rail
System	SEPTA Regional Rail
Operator(s)	SEPTA
Rolling stock	Electric Multiple Units
Daily ridership	2,768 (FY 2023)
History
Opened	1884
Technical
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Electrification	Overhead line, 12 kV 25 Hz AC
Operating speed	50 mph (80 km/h) (Chestnut Hill West to North Philadelphia) 50 mph (80 km/h) (North Philadelphia to Zoo Junction)
Route map Show interactive map Legend 11.3 mi 18.2 km Chestnut Hill West 10.7 mi 17.2 km Highland 10.2 mi 16.4 km St. Martins Fort Washington Branch to Fort Hill 9.4 mi 15.1 km Richard Allen Lane 9.8 mi 15.8 km Carpenter 9.1 mi 14.6 km Upsal 7.9 mi 12.7 km Tulpehocken Zone  2  1 7.4 mi 11.9 km Chelten Avenue 6.8 mi 10.9 km Queen Lane Westmoreland (closed) Zone  1  C 4.5 mi 7.2 km North Philadelphia NEC & TRE to Trenton & Boston 0.9 mi 1.4 km 30th Street 0 mi 0 km Suburban 0.5 mi 0.8 km Jefferson 2.1 mi 3.4 km Temple University This diagram: view talk edit Show route diagram map

The Chestnut Hill West Line is a commuter rail line in the SEPTA Regional Rail network. It connects Northwest Philadelphia, including the eponymous neighborhood of Chestnut Hill, West Mount Airy, and Germantown, to Center City.

Route description

The Chestnut Hill West Line branches off from Amtrak's Northeast Corridor at North Philadelphia station and runs entirely within the City of Philadelphia. Its terminal is named Chestnut Hill West to distinguish it from the end of the Chestnut Hill East Line (a competing line of the Reading Company until 1976, when SEPTA assumed operations). Some stations are less than half a mile apart, a characteristic more commonly seen in an urban rapid transit system rather than a commuter rail line. The line runs roughly parallel to the Chestnut Hill East, and the two terminals are rather close. The line is fully grade-separated.

History

The line was originally opened June 11, 1884 by the Philadelphia, Germantown and Chestnut Hill Railroad, and was operated by the Pennsylvania Railroad until 1968. Electrified service began on March 30, 1918. The Penn Central operated it until 1976, turning operations over to Conrail until 1983, when SEPTA took over.

Between 1984–2010 the route was designated R8 Chestnut Hill West as part of SEPTA's diametrical reorganization of its lines. Chestnut Hill West trains operated through the city center to the Fox Chase Line. Plans had called for the line to be paired with West Chester/Elwyn Line and designated R3, but this depended on a never-built Swampoodle Connection from the Chestnut Hill West Line to the Norristown Line; this would have connected it to the former Reading Company side of the Center City Commuter Connection. As of 2022, most weekday Chestnut Hill West Line trains pass through Center City and terminate at Temple University while most weekend trains continue through Center City to the West Trenton Line. While the line runs generally northbound between 30th Street and Chestnut Hill West, it is considered to run timetable south. This anomaly exists because SEPTA considers ex-Reading lines (including the Fox Chase Line) to run timetable north and ex-Pennsylvania lines to run timetable south.

Between June 26, 1987 – December 17, 1989 service terminated at Allen Lane with shuttle buses serving St. Martin's, Highland and Chestnut Hill West because of unsafe conditions on the Cresheim Valley bridge. The original iron bridge dated to 1884 and was replaced with a $7.6 million steel structure financed by the Urban Mass Transportation Administration.

SEPTA activated positive train control on the Chestnut Hill West Line on August 22, 2016.

On April 9, 2020, the line was suspended indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, though North Philadelphia station was still being served by other rail services. In addition to reduced ridership from the COVID-19 pandemic, service on the Chestnut Hill West Line was also suspended due to Amtrak construction along the Northeast Corridor that the line uses for part of its route. Service on the Chestnut Hill West Line resumed on March 8, 2021 on a limited schedule, with service running Monday through Friday. Weekend service was restored on December 19, 2021.

As of 2024, SEPTA has made considerations to discontinue service on the line due to low ridership and systemwide budget cuts.

Stations

The Chestnut Hill West makes the following station stops after leaving 30th Street Station; stations indicated with gray background are closed. The entirety of the route is located within Philadelphia city limits.

Zone	Location	Station	Miles (km) from Center City	Date opened	Connections / notes
C	Mantua	Zoological Garden	1.9 (3.1)	1874	Closed November 24, 1901
	Brewerytown	Engleside	2.8 (4.5)		Closed April 5, 1903
	Strawberry Mansion	Ridge Avenue	3.2 (5.1)		Closed April 5, 1903.
		22nd Street	3.9 (6.3)
1	Glenwood	North Philadelphia	4.5 (7.2)		Amtrak: Keystone Service SEPTA Regional Rail:  Trenton  SEPTA Metro: Broad Street Line SEPTA City Bus: 4, 16
	Nicetown–Tioga	Westmoreland	5.5 (8.9)		Closed October 29, 1994
	Germantown	Queen Lane	6.8 (10.9)		SEPTA City Bus: K
		Chelten Avenue	7.4 (11.9)	June 11, 1884	SEPTA City Bus: 26, J
2		Tulpehocken	7.9 (12.7)	June 11, 1884	SEPTA City Bus: 53, 65
	Mount Airy	Upsal	8.4 (13.5)		SEPTA City Bus: H
		Carpenter	9.0 (14.5)	June 11, 1884
		Richard Allen Lane	9.4 (15.1)
	Chestnut Hill	St. Martins	10.2 (16.4)
		Highland	10.7 (17.2)	June 11, 1884
		Chestnut Hill West	11.3 (18.2)	June 11, 1884	SEPTA Regional Rail:  Chestnut Hill East  (at Chestnut Hill East) SEPTA City Bus: 23, 77, L SEPTA Suburban Bus: 94, 97

Ridership

Yearly ridership on the Chestnut Hill West Line between FY 2013–FY 2019 remained steady around 1.3–1.6 million before collapsing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Notes

1. Data for individual lines is not available for FY 2020.

References

1. ^ SEPTA Data Group. "Route Operating Statistics". Retrieved March 22, 2024.
2. Williams, Gerry (1998). Trains, Trolleys & Transit: A Guide to Philadelphia Area Rail Transit. Piscataway, New Jersey: Railpace Company. p. 95. ISBN 978-0-9621541-7-1.
3. Lustig, David (November 2010). "SEPTA makeover". Trains Magazine. Kalmbach Publishing: 26.
4. Vuchic, Vukan; Kikuchi, Shinya (1984). General Operations Plan for the SEPTA Regional High Speed System. Philadelphia: SEPTA. pp. 2–8.
5. ^ "Chestnut Hill West Line schedule" (PDF). SEPTA. January 7, 2024. Retrieved June 18, 2024.
6. Hollman, Laurie (December 17, 1989). "A Bridge Is Rebuilt With Clout". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on December 30, 2015. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
7. "Positive Train Control Update". SEPTA. May 1, 2017. Retrieved May 17, 2017.
8. ^ "Service Information". SEPTA. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
9. "SEPTA Regional Rail & Rail Transit Lifeline Service" (PDF). SEPTA. 2020. Retrieved April 14, 2020.
10. Madej, Patricia (January 28, 2021). "SEPTA Chestnut Hill West Line will return with 'restricted service' in March". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
11. "Regional Rail Select Schedule Changes – New Timetables Effective Sunday, December 19, 2021". SEPTA. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
12. Robinson, Carla (July 17, 2024). "State budget shorts SEPTA; NW braces for transit cuts". Chestnut Hill Local.
13. Baer, Christopher T. (April 2015). "A General Chronology of the Successors of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company and Their Historical Context: 1901" (PDF). Pennsylvania Railroad Technical Historical Society. Retrieved October 17, 2017.
14. ^ "Discontinuing All Stops of Trains at Paschal, South Street, Engelside and Ridge Avenue". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. April 3, 1903. p. 2. Retrieved October 17, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
15. Rider, Phantom (October 26, 1994). "Eulogy for an R8 Station". The Philadelphia Daily News. p. 8. Retrieved November 4, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
16. ^ "Steam Roads: Opening of Pennsylvania's New Branch Line". The Philadelphia Inquirer. June 11, 1884. p. 2. Retrieved November 10, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.

External links

• SEPTA – Chestnut Hill West Line schedule

v t e  SEPTA (Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority)
Metro	Lines Current  Market–Frankford Line  Broad Street Line  Subway–Surface Trolleys  Route 10  Route 34  Route 13  Route 11  Route 36  Route 15 Trolley  Media–Sharon Hill Line  Norristown High Speed Line Former Trolley routes 6 23 50 53 56 60 Proposed Roosevelt Boulevard Subway Stations Proposed List of stations Major stations 69th Street T.C. Darby T.C. Drexel Station at 30th Street Fern Rock T.C. Frankford T.C. Norristown T.C. Olney T.C. Equipment Proposed Kawasaki Type K LRV SEPTA PCC III B-4 M-4 N-5
Regional Rail	Lines Current      Airport Line      Chestnut Hill East Line      Chestnut Hill West Line      Cynwyd Line      Fox Chase Line      Glenside Combined      Lansdale/​Doylestown Line      Manayunk/​Norristown Line      Media/Wawa Line      Paoli/​Thorndale Line      Trenton Line      Warminster Line      West Trenton Line      Wilmington/​Newark Line Former Bethlehem Line Cynwyd-Ivy Ridge service Elwyn-West Chester service Fox Chase-Newtown service Pottsville Line Thorndale-Parkesburg service Proposed Schuylkill River Passenger Rail Stations Proposed List of current stations List of former stations Major stations 30th Street Suburban Jefferson Temple University Equipment Current Siemens ACS-64 Comet Silverliner Silverliner IV Silverliner V  Former ABB ALP-44 EMD AEM-7 Silverliner Silverliner I Silverliner II Silverliner III
Buses and trolleybuses	Current Trackless trolley routes 59 66 75 City bus routes 6 23 29 35 37 38 53 56 60 79 Suburban bus routes 103 104 Former Trackless trolley routes 29 79
Miscellaneous	1983 Regional Rail strike 25 Hz traction power system Callowhill Depot Center City Commuter Connection SEPTA Key

• Chestnut Hill West Line
• SEPTA Regional Rail
• Pennsylvania Railroad lines
• Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia
• Germantown, Philadelphia
• Mount Airy, Philadelphia
• Railway lines opened in 1884