SEPTA Main Line

SEPTA Main Line
A train operating on the SEPTA Main Line arrives at Fern Rock Transportation Center
Overview
Type	Commuter rail line
System	SEPTA
Status	Operating
Termini	Zoo Interlocking Lansdale Station
Stations	20
Website	septa.org
Operation
Operator(s)	SEPTA Regional Rail
Technical
Line length	26.25 miles (42.25 km)
Number of tracks	2–4
Track gauge	4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Electrification	Catenary
Route map Legend Bethlehem Line Doylestown Line 24.35 Lansdale 24.20 Stony Creek Branch 23.50 Pennbrook 22.40 North Wales Fare Zone 4 20.00 Gwynedd Valley 18.80 Penllyn 17.20 Ambler 15.90 Fort Washington 13.80 Oreland 13.00 North Hills 12.10 Warminster Line 11.90 Glenside 10.80 Neshaminy Line 10.70 Jenkintown–Wyncote Fare Zone 3 9.20 Elkins Park 8.40 Melrose Park Fare Zone 2 7.00 Fern Rock Transportation Center 6.20 Fox Chase Line 5.20 Wayne Junction 5.08 Chestnut Hill East Line 3.54 Chestnut Hill West Line 3.50 Norristown Line 3.24 Northeast Corridor (Amtrak) 2.90 North Broad Fare Zone 1 2.10 Temple University 0.50 Jefferson Station 0.00 Suburban Station 0.76 Schuylkill River 0.90 30th Street Station 1.17 West Chester Line 1.90 Harrisburg Line (Amtrak)

The SEPTA Main Line is the section of the SEPTA Regional Rail system from the Zoo Interlocking in West Philadelphia to Lansdale Station in Lansdale, Pennsylvania. The line is 26.25 miles (42.25 km) long, and serves all 13 SEPTA Regional Rail lines.^[1]

Current service

Service on the Main Line segment between Glenside and Center City is given a special combined public timetable known as the Glenside Combined, allowing riders to see the schedules of all trains on the Main Line without having to look at multiple schedules. This is a partial legacy of the former SEPTA route number designations, which had the R1 Glenside designation for trains that turned at the station, paired with the Airport Line. That few trains actually terminated there and instead continued on to stations farther out was a contributing factor to the elimination of the route designators.

As of 2016, most northbound trains on the Main Line continue as Warminster Line, West Trenton Line or Lansdale/Doylestown Line trains. With a handful of exceptions, those that do not terminate at Jenkintown-Wyncote, not Glenside.^[2]

History

The Main Line was mostly built by the North Pennsylvania Railroad. However, the oldest section was part of the Philadelphia, Germantown and Norristown Railroad (PG&N), the first railroad in Philadelphia. The first section of it opened on June 7, 1832, from downtown to Germantown (now on the Chestnut Hill East Line). Later a new alignment was built to Norristown, leaving the old route from North Philadelphia to Germantown as a branch; this is now the Manayunk/Norristown Line. The PG&N south of Wayne Junction, the Ninth Street Branch, is now part of the Main Line.

The North Pennsylvania Railroad (North Penn) opened south of Gwynedd (north of Glenside) on July 2, 1855, and the continuation to Lansdale (including the branch to Doylestown, now the Lansdale/Doylestown Line) opened October 7. The short part of the Main Line from Wayne Junction northeast to north of Newtown Junction was built as a connection to the PG&N at Wayne Junction.

On December 1, 1870, the Philadelphia and Reading Railway (later the Reading Company) leased the PG&N. The North Penn was leased May 1, 1879, placing the future "Reading side" of the SEPTA Main Line under Reading control. Electrification to Glenside, Hatboro, Lansdale, Doylestown and West Trenton was completed on July 26, 1931. In 1976 Conrail took over the Reading, and in 1983 SEPTA gained control of the commuter operations. The Center City Commuter Connection was tied into the former Reading main line on November 12, 1984, completing the SEPTA Main Line as it is defined today.

Other uses

The term "Main Line" is also sometimes used on the SEPTA Regional Rail system to refer to the Paoli/Thorndale Line, which runs along the original main line of the Pennsylvania Railroad.

External links

• "SEPTA - Glenside Combined schedule" (PDF).

References

1. Hanratty, R. J. Jr. (April 6, 2008). "Railroad Division: Timetable No. 4". SEPTA. pp. 49–58. Retrieved February 21, 2011.
2. "Glenside Combined" (PDF). SEPTA. April 10, 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 7, 2016. Retrieved August 21, 2016.