Quakertown Extension

[CComMack]

Plan a trip to center city from newtown and back. factor in time for meeting & lunch & walking.

Not worth it.

1 Washington Ave, Newtown, PA to 1234 Market St, Philadelphia, PA, via Route 130 and the West Trenton Line: 1h33m.

1 Washington Ave, Newtown, PA to Doylestown Station, Doylestown, PA, the trip you claim to make all the time, via Route 130, the West Trenton Line, and the Lansdale/Doylestown Line: 2h17m+.

Doylestown Station to 1234 Market St, via the Lansdale/Doylestown Line: 1h17m.

(All trip times via Google Transit.)

You're free to set your own priorities however you like, but please don't ask us to do your caring for you. That is not going to fly.

Also, "lunch"? CAC meetings are at 5:45 in the evening. Which if you had looked into it like you implied you had, you would know.

[Suburban Station]

This is why i've been tooting the "SEPTA needs to be replaced" horn for about 2 years solid now.

RRD managed by DOT, bus, trolley, trolley bus, subway in the city get separated from buses that serve outside the city, make that part of the DOT system. Put all funding at the state level and remove the ridiculous political bafoonery that "regional" operating agency has incited.

PennRail, PennBus, CityTransit Bus, CityTransit Rail.

SEPTA was a patch to begin with to figure out how to keep the trains running in light of the freight railroads getting out of the passenger business. Time to update with a permanent solution.

if we're going that route, Penndot should contract out the rail operations rather than having its own employees. Initially they could contract with SEPTA to run the service in which case SEPTA would be the contract operator but PennDOT would be the owner of the infrastructure. Decisions about expansion would be made by PennDOT (eliminating any silly concerns over county lines). RFP's would be put out periodically to ensure competitive oeprating costs.

[ChrisinAbington]

Plan a trip to center city from newtown and back. factor in time for meeting & lunch & walking.
Not worth it.

Geez, I'll loan you a few bucks for a taxi to the W. Trenton Line, if it ends the "woe is me" tales..

[Push&Pull Master]

This is why i've been tooting the "SEPTA needs to be replaced" horn for about 2 years solid now.

RRD managed by DOT, bus, trolley, trolley bus, subway in the city get separated from buses that serve outside the city, make that part of the DOT system. Put all funding at the state level and remove the ridiculous political bafoonery that "regional" operating agency has incited.

PennRail, PennBus, CityTransit Bus, CityTransit Rail.

SEPTA was a patch to begin with to figure out how to keep the trains running in light of the freight railroads getting out of the passenger business. Time to update with a permanent solution.

I honestly feel that SEPTA has done a good job considering how little funding they get every year. Right now, they have 1 project that's shovel ready and another that is currently in the EIS phase so you can't say they don't try. Also, a statewide agency could mean less transit funding for the Delaware Valley because budget money would be spread across the state.

[SCB2525]

Seriously, please don't turn this into another tangent fest. I intend for this thread to be specific to anything having to do with the Bethlehem Branch.

[25Hz]

Seriously, please don't turn this into another tangent fest. I intend for this thread to be specific to anything having to do with the Bethlehem Branch.

How do you see a line looking like in service realistically, stations, yards, etc?

[SCB2525]

I'll be perfectly honest and say I'm not familiar enough with the Montco section to say much about it. A station right at 309 makes plenty of sense but I still think a "cut back" extension should run to the former Perkasie station site.

The outbound platform would be used. KASIE would be reactivated to full remote interlock. Two additional crossovers would be installed south of the station site and the whole thing would be somewhat similar to PARK, WARM and STREET except that the southernmost would be a universal so as to allow freight to run through on the inbound side in both directions. This set up will provide sufficient layover space for the service likely to be seen on the line.

[25Hz]

Not a lot of space there for a platform, i guess the ADA ramp will have to be the sole access on this side?

http://prntscr.com/3o2vt8" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

On the other side by the parking area there is space for a switchback ramp and stairs.

Have the grade crossing smoothed out with a concrete section to complete ADA compliance?

[SCB2525]

The platform does not have to be gigantic. I would basically duplicate Colmar's design (which I happen to think is the perfect all-around station design) with the exception of perhaps raising the existing historic shelter to high-level. I'm not sure what you mean about the grade crossing. Besides being shabby, it appears to already be ADA compliant, complete with tactile pad at the landing ramp. The grade crossing would likely need to be completely redone in conjunction with the project anyway and should pose little issue.

[SCB2525]

In light of the apparent fact that EPRY stages many cars on the inbound track near Telford, some thought would have to be given to where this would be moved to.

[jrevans]

A quick web search only found this article from 2015:

https://www.thereporteronline.com/news/ ... a7c72.html

“Although the SEPTA Bethlehem Branch has been inactive as a passenger rail service for over 30 years, planning studies have been conducted over the past five years to explore the viability of returning service to as far as Pennridge, Bucks County, south of Quakertown,” said SEPTA in a statement Wednesday.

Any updates out there?

[LNE655]

It's simple. No wire, no chance.

[jrevans]

It's simple. No wire, no chance.

Obviously, but they were planning to wire it.

I was just curious if there any new updates from SEPTA themselves, as they previously had it in their long range plans.

With some more searching, I found the long range planning document here: https://septa.org/strategic-plan/pdf/FY ... rogram.pdf
which does mention the extension to Pennridge on page 6 and 74.

Here's the blurb from page 74, under "APPENDIX B: LONG-TERM PLANNING EFFORTS"

Quakertown Branch Rail Restoration – Alternatives Analysis
Lead Agencies: Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC), Montgomery and Bucks County Planning Commissions
The Alternatives Analysis (AA) study investigated the feasibility of restoring passenger rail service linking Bucks County and North Penn communities with Center City Philadelphia, via Lansdale. The AA examined transit options that would mitigate highway congestion in the Route 309 corridor. This effort was managed by DVRPC, and coordinated with Bucks and Montgomery County Planning Commissions, the TMA of Bucks County and SEPTA. The preliminary findings of that study reflected an approach to restoring service in the Route 309 corridor by recommending electrification of the SEPTA-owned branch line to a terminus point at Pennridge in West Rockhill Township, with some degree of phasing. This project was placed on hold in 2012 pending the FTA finalization of new evaluation criteria for federal transit projects under MAP-21. DVRPC released updated ridership estimates in December 2015 as part of its FY15 Work Program.

Sure looks like nothing is being done, as we all expected.

With all of the extra cash that I'm paying to drive the turnpike these days, I'd like to see some SEPTA benefit that I can utilize!

[LNE655]

Planning to wire it?? Never heard that!!!

[zebrasepta]

I don't know who removed the tracks but they did remove portions of the tracks North of Lansdale so it's mostly 1 track now.
Pretty sure the line won't get restored any point north of Lansdale.