| Southampton SEPTA regional rail |
|||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The station depot at Southampton stands on side of the former platform as seen in 2006. |
|||||||||||
| Station statistics | |||||||||||
| Address | Second Street Pike and Knowles Avenue Upper Southampton, Pennsylvania. |
||||||||||
| Lines | |||||||||||
| Levels | 1 | ||||||||||
| Platforms | 1 side platform | ||||||||||
| Tracks | 2 | ||||||||||
| Parking | 15 spaces | ||||||||||
| Other information | |||||||||||
| Opened | 1892 | ||||||||||
| Closed | January 14, 1983 | ||||||||||
| Electrified | No | ||||||||||
| Owned by | SEPTA | ||||||||||
| Formerly | Reading Railroad | ||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||
|
|||||||||||
Southampton is a derelict station located along SEPTA's Fox Chase/Newtown Line located on Second Street Pike (PA-232) near Knowles Avenue in Upper Southampton, Pennsylvania.
Contents |
Built in 1892, Southampton Station was a stop on the Reading Railroad's Newtown Line. It later became a part of SEPTA's Fox Chase Rapid Transit Line. The station, and all of those north of Fox Chase, was closed on January 14, 1983,[1] due to failing diesel train equipment (RDCs) that SEPTA had no desire to rehabilitate.
In addition, a labor dispute began within the SEPTA organization when the transit operator inherited 1,700 displaced employees from Conrail. SEPTA insisted on utilizing transit operators from the Broad Street Subway to operate Fox Chase-Newtown diesel trains, while Conrail requested that railroad motormen run the service. When a federal court ruled that SEPTA had to use Conrail employees in order to offer job assurance, SEPTA cancelled Fox Chase-Newtown trains.[2] Service in the diesel-only territory north of Fox Chase was cancelled at that time, and Southampton Station still appears in publicly posted tariffs.[3]
Although rail service was initially replaced with a Fox Chase-Newtown shuttle bus, patronage remained light. The traveling public never saw a bus service as a suitable replacement for a rail service, and the Fox Chase-Newtown shuttle bus service ended in 1999.
Three months after SEPTA assumed operations, on January 2, 1982, the crossing at Second Street Pike just south of Southampton Station was the site of a fiery crash between a train, a gasoline truck, and a car. Five people were injured and the accident caused flames to rise fifty feet in the air and created a plume of black smoke visible for miles.[4] Photographs from the fire indicate the crossing signal equipment was working properly, with warning lights continuing to warn motorists after the collision occurred.[5] SEPTA general manager David L. Gunn ordered additional safety precautions, but service ceased just over a year after the accident.[6]
In the ensuing years, there has been interest in resuming passenger service by Bucks County officials, including the Upper Southampton Board of Supervisors.[7]
In September 2009, the Southampton-based Pennsylvania Transit Expansion Coalition (PA-TEC) began discussions with township officials along the railway, as well as SEPTA officials, about the realistic possibility of resuming even minimal passenger service to relieve traffic congestion in the region. Plans call for completing the electrification to Newtown, as originally planned in the late 1970s.
PA-TEC's efforts have received bipartisan support by both Bucks and Montgomery County officials, as well as at the state level, despite SEPTA's overall reservations. However, SEPTA has also confirmed they are willing to resume regular commuter service if political support exists in both counties.[8]
Beginning in 2008, SEPTA began an aggressive campaign to convert their derelict commuter lines into rail trails.[9] Though embraced by some townships like Abington, other townships have questioned SEPTA's motives.[9]
The township of Upper Southampton is one of several that pleaded with SEPTA to restore service to the derelict Fox Chase-Newtown corridor since trains ceased operating in 1983.[10] In October 2010, SEPTA told public officials that there was no chance of train service returning, as the Newtown Line Improvement Project was deleted from its from the Fiscal Years 2009-2020. The 2010 Upper Southampton Township Comprehensive Plan Update states that "SEPTA has suggested that the Township make use of the rail right-of-way for a 'Rails-to-Trails' project tailoring an agreement with SEPTA patterned after a similar agreement with Montgomery County (the Pennypack Trail Extension) for the same purpose."[11]
The Southampton Railroad Station Society is currently trying to raise approximately $350,000 to restore the station. As of September 2011, signage has been installed on the side of the station building and light posts have been repainted.[12]
|
|||||||||||||||||