SEPTA "LOST"--The south concourse episode

Inspired by reruns of the ABC show LOST....lets try to spice things up this summer by posting photos of "lost" or "hidden" SEPTA treasures in the region.

Here's my first contribution:

On the Market East concourse, roughly between 11th and 12th Streets, there is a walled off entrance to the "South Concourse".

Does anyone know where the "South Concourse" leads, and when and why it was closed? There is glass paneling near the entrances....kind of a "grand" entrance for something that was eventually closed.

Often wondered that myself. I wonder if that originally connected to Juniper Station when there orignally was a separate fare for riding the trolleys.

You might also notice a suspicious wall at the top of Juniper station if you were to walk from the trolley to the stairs to access the W/B platform for the El. Probably not related, but another mystery.

Does anyone know how access to 11th Street was different pre-Market East? You will notice if you enter the former Reading Terminal from Market Street that painted on the wall is "subway" with an arrow pointing down. Obviously there used to be a enterance there. I believe there is some type of corridor opposite that "South Concourse" sign.

If you want to get LOST, go to Wayne Junction and take the stairs down on the Inbound platform and follow the sign that points you to the platform that says "Trains to New York, Bethlehem, Lansdale and Hatboro". SEPTA is either behind the times, or gearing up for the future prematurely.

mannynews wrote:On the Market East concourse, roughly between 11th and 12th Streets, there is a walled off entrance to the "South Concourse".

I think the stairs in question were just another underpass, closed for security reasons.

Does anyone know where the "South Concourse" leads, and when and why it was closed? There is glass paneling near the entrances....kind of a "grand" entrance for something that was eventually closed.

The South Concourse is still very much open.

The South Concourse is the concourse under the south side of Market Street..............

Clearfield wrote:The South Concourse is the concourse under the south side of Market Street..............

Is it? I thought it referred to the passageways leading under South Broad down to Locust (?).

-asg

Clearfield wrote:The South Concourse is the concourse under the south side of Market Street..............

So does this mean that this is just an outside fare zone underpass?

I found this little gem inside an open doorway while walking from Walnut-Locust to Suburban Station, right past the now exit-only south Broad City Hall Sta gates.



I was in a hurry so I didn't bother to investigate further. What is this???

Jersey_Mike wrote:I found this little gem inside an open doorway while walking from Walnut-Locust to Suburban Station, right past the now exit-only south Broad City Hall Sta gates.

Was it curving off to the east from your route?

-asg

mannynews wrote:Inspired by reruns of the ABC show LOST....lets try to spice things up this summer by posting photos of "lost" or "hidden" SEPTA treasures in the region.

Here's my first contribution:

On the Market East concourse, roughly between 11th and 12th Streets, there is a walled off entrance to the "South Concourse".

Does anyone know where the "South Concourse" leads, and when and why it was closed? There is glass paneling near the entrances....kind of a "grand" entrance for something that was eventually closed.

Actually it was between 12th and 13th St, and that stairway used to lead into 1234 Market St. There was 2 stairways from the North Concourse, an underpass under the MFSE, then a stairway/escalator into 1234 Market. The 1234 Market part was filled in when the building was rehabbed for SEPTA in the early 90's. The area where the stairs/escalator is filled in is where the lunch tables on the concourse level stand today. In addition, the direct entrance into the PSFS building, [and the subway entrance next to the main entrance] were sealed in the early 90's [too many homeless using it as a bathroom].

BTW, that stairway and tunnel complex was built in the early 70's [when 1234 was built], but was NEVER opened.

One of those concourses used to be the tunnel for the MFL before it went directly under city hall. The other tunnel is still in use for Subway Surface, and shared a lane with the MFL. You can still see it today from the trolleys between 15th and Juniper. I believe the old entrance to the subway surface station at 15th was accessed by the now closed stairways at 15th Street which you can still see today on the platforms.

jfrey40535 wrote:Does anyone know how access to 11th Street was different pre-Market East? You will notice if you enter the former Reading Terminal from Market Street that painted on the wall is "subway" with an arrow pointing down. Obviously there used to be a enterance there

Yeah, I just saw that sign today myself......

RE: Picture from Jersey Mike that he saw in the open doorway.

That is an old pedestrian walkway that went to to a trolley station. I was told it was abandoned when the trolley tracks were moved to make way for moving the MFL under City Hall in the 50's. (no one I asked knows why they did that, though I suppose folks on this forum might know)

It was also where the April MFL fire happened, so it's very funky and dirty.


It goes for quite a way, under Dilworth plaza under the MFL towards the Juniper station. There are several bricked up entrances along the way. About 200-300 feet in is the pumps for the champagne fountain at City Hall. If you were to walk further, the walkway slopes down a bit, then slopes upward. The other end is blocked off now. To the right of this blocked off wall, is a hole cut into the wall which enters an old trolley track area.

The track area goes to the left (north, I think) for a while, but then the way is blocked off with a masonry wall. Somewhere in that area is a locked door and locked gate that enters the track area of the trolley line somewhere near Juniper St station.

To the right of the hole in the wall, the track area runs for a while and ends up at an area with an equipment room and a locked exit door. That door would take you to the west bound platform of the MFL.

IIRC, all the doors accessable from that tunnel lock from both sides, so I would caution ANYONE from going in there as it would not be a fun place to be stuck.

That sign was outside the old Horn & Hardarts restaurant that was located where Dunkin Donuts is now, but it was much much larger. It was a stairway that led to the existing North Concourse. The stairs were obliterated by construction later.

Jersey_Mike wrote:I found this little gem inside an open doorway while walking from Walnut-Locust to Suburban Station, right past the now exit-only south Broad City Hall Sta gates.



I was in a hurry so I didn't bother to investigate further. What is this???

Man, where exactly is this? I want to walk arounfd that bend and see whats ahead.

Trackseventeen wrote:

Jersey_Mike wrote:I found this little gem inside an open doorway while walking from Walnut-Locust to Suburban Station, right past the now exit-only south Broad City Hall Sta gates.



I was in a hurry so I didn't bother to investigate further. What is this???

Man, where exactly is this? I want to walk arounfd that bend and see whats ahead.

door near the employee entrance of the ritz carlton. It gets nastier down there and while it is kind of cool, it's very dirty and smelly. Also,the door locks on both sides so you wouldn't want to go in there if someone left it open.

It really isn't septa anymore, the city uses it for access to the pump for the fountain. It's really messed up from the fire now though.