The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) crews have begun critical track and power maintenance, station upgrades and intensive cleaning as part of the 2023 Trolley Tunnel Blitz.
SEPTA Trolley Routes 10, 11, 13, 34, and 36 will not operate in the Center City tunnel from 10 p.m. on July 7 through 5 a.m. on July 24.
Trolley service will begin and end at 40th and Market Streets. Customers can board SEPTA’s Market-Frankford Line at 40th St. Station for travel to Center City. For travel from Center City to University City and southwest Philadelphia, riders can board the Market-Frankford Line at 13th St. and then connect with trolley routes at 40th St. In addition, buses will replace trolleys on Route 13 during the tunnel closure.
Work that will be completed includes:
- Demolish and rebuild the eastbound 22nd St. platform
- Replace worn track curved rail at various locations
- Clean out all pipes, drains and vent wells
- Replace four miles of overhead contact wire
- Maintenance of entire tunnel signal system
- Heavy cleaning and maintenance at all stations including graffiti removal, painting, and lighting
This is the 11th consecutive year SEPTA has held the Trolley Tunnel Blitz, which is scheduled during the summer when ridership is traditionally lower to impact the fewest number of regular customers.
“The blitz gives our crews the opportunity to tackle construction, maintenance and safety improvement work in a concentrated period of time to reduce the number of outages throughout the year,” said SEPTA General Manager and CEO Leslie S. Richards. “It also helps us prepare for Trolley Modernization – SEPTA’s program to transform the nation’s largest trolley network into an accessible, fast and easy-to-use system.”
Trolley Modernization is a core component of SEPTA Forward, the authority’s Strategic Plan, to create a “lifestyle transit network” – a transit system that can be easily used for any type of trip, not just traditional 9-to-5 commutes to work. In February, SEPTA awarded a contract to Alstom Transportation Inc. for the purchase of modern, fully ADA-compliant trolley vehicles to replace the authority’s entire aging fleet of trolleys.
