PATCO Speedline

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Port Authority Transit Corporation
PATCO Speedline

Locale	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Camden County, New Jersey
Transit type	Rapid transit
Began operation	June 7, 1936
No. of lines	1
No. of stations	13
Daily ridership	38,000/day
Track gauge	4 ft 8½ in (1435 mm
Operator	Port Authority Transit Corporation

PATCO Speedline

~~Franklin Square~~ (closed)

DELAWARE RIVER

City Hall

Broadway / Walter Rand

Ferry Avenue

Collingswood

Westmont

	Map Legend
		SEPTA Broad Street Line
		SEPTA Market-Frankford Line
		NJ Transit River Line
		NJ Transit Atlantic City Line
		Accessible station

A Philadelphia-bound PATCO train arrives at Woodcrest Station.

PATCO 15-16th & Locust Station exit onto street in Philadelphia.

The PATCO Speedline is a rapid transit system operated by the Port Authority Transit Corporation, which runs between between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Camden County, New Jersey. The Speedline runs underground in Philadelphia, crosses the Delaware River on the Benjamin Franklin Bridge, runs underground in Camden, then runs aboveground in New Jersey until the east end of the line. The Port Authority Transit Corporation and the Speedline are owned and controlled by the Delaware River Port Authority. Speedline operation began on February 15, 1969, with the first trip from Lindenwold, New Jersey, to Center City, Philadelphia. The line transports over 33,000 people daily^[1], and operates 24 hours a day.

[edit] History

The modern-day PATCO Speedline is composed of several disparate rail lines, some dating back to the early 20th century. Ben Franklin Bridge was designed to accommodate rail as well as road traffic; when it opened on July 1, 1926, it had two outboard structures under the main roadway for rail (in addition to two never-used streetcar tracks on the main roadway). Construction of the rail line didn't actually begin until 1932, and the Bridge Line opened on June 7, 1936. Relatively short, it only had four stations: 8th Street and Franklin Square in Philadelphia (the latter now closed) and City Hall and Broadway in Camden (connecting to the Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines at Broadway). Service was soon extended north along the Broad-Ridge Spur and Broad Street Line from 8th Street to Girard station.

In Philadelphia, the tunnel known as the Locust Street Subway was built from 8th Street to 18th Street in 1931, but tracks were not laid. 1936 plans to extend the tunnel west to 49th Street never came to fruition. Trains didn't run through the tunnel until February 10, 1952, as an extension of the Broad-Ridge Spur, which now ends at PATCO's 8th and Market station. The last train ran from this line onto the Broad Street Line on August 23, 1968, and the line was reconfigured as a rerouting of the Bridge Line^[2]. This section is still owned by SEPTA, and is leased by PATCO.^[3]

The rest of the line from Camden to Lindenwold opened on February 15, 1969 along former Pennsylvania-Reading Seashore Lines trackage. Woodcrest Station was added later, in 1980, between the existing Haddonfield and Ashland stations. In 2005, PATCO officials started talks of building a spur from the main PATCO line that would serve Gloucester County and end in Glassboro on the grounds of Rowan University (formerly Glassboro State College).^[4]

[edit] Trains and cars

[edit] Rolling Stock

PATCO operates 121 cars, of two different types which were acquired in three separate orders. The first two sets were the original cars, and they arrived in 1968. Cars numbered 101-125 are single cars, and cars numbered 201-250 are paired cars that cannot be detached from their partner car. These sets were designed and manufactured by Budd. The third set, delivered in 1980, and numbered 251-296, are sets of paired cars also. These were manufactured by Vickers Canada under a license from Budd.[1]

[edit] Operation

Each train requires only one operator. 100-series cars have consoles at each end, since they can technically be operated alone. This permits either end to be the front. Cars in the 200- series have one console per car, since they are paired with one other. The operator's seat is surrounded by a 2 foot high plastic barrier, with a curtain pulled around during operation. The operator controls from the console at the front car of the train. This permits any car to be the front car of the train. The train operator controls the speed, makes the station announcements, and opens/closes doors. When not in use, a lockable cover sits over the console.

[edit] Cabin

Half of the seats in each car face the direction of travel, and half face backward. There are no side facing seats. Each bench, which is made of a foam filled plastic cover, can seat two people. Passengers enter and exit through two doors on each side of the car, and there is standing room in these areas.

[edit] Route identification

One of the six possible routes is displayed on a florescent lit piece of glass in the car. There are six routes, cut through a dark tinted piece of glass. The light behind the correct one identifies the train route. There are also rolling signs on the car ends and sides displaying this same route. There are also rolling signs on the car ends and sides displaying this same route. The routes are as follows:

Lindenwold Local
Lindenwold Express
Philadelphia Local
Philadelphia Express
Woodcrest Local
Ferry Avenue Local

[edit] Power

All PATCO trains are electrically powered. Power comes from a third rail that usually runs on top of one of the rails. There are no overhead wires. Each car has its own motor. This adds extra reliability because if the motor in one car should fail, the train can continue operation.

[edit] Fare collection

[edit] Magnetic system

Since 1969, PATCO used a magnetic ticket as the sole means of collecting fares. The plastic tickets were purchased through vending machines in the stations. These machines required coins, so bill changers were placed in stations. Each vending machine was capable of selling two types of tickets, which the rider selected by pushing a button after inserting the correct fare. Several machines were needed in each station, since different types of one-way and two-way tickets needed to be sold. After the ticket was purchased, it was inserted through a turnstile gate. To exit the station, it was inserted again, and if it had rides remaining, returned to the rider. A ticket with no rides was re encoded by the system and returned to use in the vending machine. Tickets could also be purchased in ten-trip passes, but these were obtained through mail or in office.

At its inception, this system was state-of-the-art, but it quickly became obsolete. Often, tickets were damaged by magnetic sources such as cell phones and PDAs that did not exist at the creation of the system. If something went wrong with a ticket, the best help that could be provided was through a call for help phone because most stations had no attendants.

[edit] Freedom system

In July 2006, PATCO announced that it would start the transition from a magnetic ticket fare system to an electronic smart card system. Magnetic tickets are still sold, for the occasional riders, however they too are now in an upgraded paper form. The new computer vending machines allow more advanced purchasing options. Each unit is fully functioning, and riders can purchase Freedom Cards (the term used for the smart card), add balance to Freedom cards, and also purchase the one-way or two-way paper magnetic tickets to any destination. Payment can now be in the form of coins, bills, credit cards, or debit cards. PATCO also says that balances can be reloaded on the internet.

The system is now being used by the general public at all Philadelphia stations, plus the Woodcrest station, following a testing period by PATCO employees and some frequent commuters. In most of the remaining New Jersey stations, the new equipment has been installed, but is currently not operational. The old system still remains in use alongside the new system in all stations, so riders that need to use a station without the new system can use the magnetic system. This has created confusion for some riders because they may have purchased one of the new tickets at an upgraded station, only to find out that the new ticket cannot be used when they arrive at their destination because the destination station has not yet been upgraded.

Also, to replace the call for help phone, there are now exit fare machines located inside of the fare gates, so that if a rider has purchased the wrong fare, they may pay the remaining fare to exit.

The system is being put into effect in an attempt to gain ridership which has fallen sharply since its peak in 1990^{[citation needed]}. The system was built in Tulsa, Oklahoma by Cubic Transportation Inc.^[1]

[edit] Connections to other transit systems

[edit] New Jersey Transit connections

New Jersey Transit buses connect to most PATCO stations in New Jersey. The New Jersey Transit Atlantic City Line also stops at Lindenwold Station, and the River Line connects at Broadway Station (Walter Rand Transportation Center).

[edit] SEPTA connections

The SEPTA (Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority) Market-Frankford Line connects to PATCO at the 8th & Market Station, which is two blocks away from SEPTA Market East Station, where all of SEPTA's regional trains stop.

SEPTA's Broad Street Line connects to PATCO at the Walnut-Locust station via a short underground walkway to PATCO's 12th-13th & Locust, and 15-16th & Locust stations.

[edit] Amtrak connections

The stations of the PATCO Speedline are a few miles from making connections with inter-city Amtrak trains at 30th Street Station. To make the connection to 30th Street Station, one must transfer at the 8th Street and Market Station to the SEPTA Market-Frankford Line, and then travel four stations west to 30th Street Station. Alternatively, one can ride to 30th Street via the New Jersey Transit Atlantic City Line from the Lindenwold Station.

[edit] Union representation

PATCO train operators are represented by Teamsters Local 676.

[edit] Station list

Map of the PATCO Speedline system

State	Municipality	Station	Notes
PA	Philadelphia	15-16th & Locust	End of the line and short walk to SEPTA Broad Street Line
		12-13th & Locust	short walk to SEPTA Broad Street Line
		9-10th & Locust
		8th & Market	transfer to SEPTA Market-Frankford Line and Broad-Ridge Spur
		Franklin Square	closed since 1979
NJ	Camden	City Hall
		Broadway (Walter Rand Transportation Center)	transfer to New Jersey Transit River Line
		Ferry Avenue
	Collingswood	Collingswood
	Haddon Township	Westmont
	Haddonfield	Haddonfield	The only station east of Camden to be located below street level (in an open cut).
	Cherry Hill Township	Woodcrest	parking lot very close to interchange (Exit 31) with I-295
	Voorhees Township	Ashland	Original terminal
	Lindenwold	Lindenwold	transfer to New Jersey Transit Atlantic City Line

[edit] See also

List of rapid transit systems

[edit] References

^ ^a ^b "Card makes change for PATCO riders" by Eileen Stilwell, Courier-Post, July 11, 2006, retrieved July 11, 2006
^ SEPTA Broad Street Subway, accessed July 9, 2006
^ http://www.drpa.org/publish/library/DRPA-04-125.pdf
^ http://www.drpa.org/patco/history.html

[edit] External links

[edit] Sources

U.S. Urban Rail Transit Lines Opened From 1980 (PDF)

v • d • e Currently operating heavy rail rapid transit systems in the United States
MBTA Blue, Orange, and Red Lines \| MTA New York City Subway and Staten Island Railway \| PATH \| SEPTA Market-Frankford and Broad Street Lines \| PATCO Speedline \| Baltimore Metro Subway \| Washington Metro \| MARTA \| Miami Metrorail \| Tren Urbano \| RTA Rapid Transit Red Line \| Chicago 'L' \| BART \| LACMTA Purple and Red Lines

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