Bryn Athyn (SEPTA station)

Bryn Athyn
SEPTA regional rail

Bryn Athyn station, 2006; trackage will be removed by summer 2014[1]
Location 2586 Fetters Mill Road
Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania 19009
Coordinates 40°07′49″N 75°04′15″W / 40.1302°N 75.0708°WCoordinates: 40°07′49″N 75°04′15″W / 40.1302°N 75.0708°W
Owned by SEPTA
Line(s)
Platforms 1 side platform
Tracks 1
Construction
Parking 20 spaces
History
Opened 1902 (RDG)
Closed January 14, 1983
Electrified no
Services
Preceding station   SEPTA   Following station
(closed 1983)
Fox Chase Line
(closed 1966)
toward Newtown

Bryn Athyn is a derelict station located along SEPTA's Fox Chase/Newtown Line, located on Fetters Mill Road in Bryn Athyn, Pennsylvania, near the Pennypack Creek.

History

Bryn Athyn Station, built in 1902, was a stop on the Reading Railroad's Newtown Line. On December 5, 1921, the stretch of single track between Bryn Athyn and Southampton stations was the site of the Reading Railroad's deadliest accident at that time. Two trains met in a head-on collision, killing 27 and injuring 70.[2] The route 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,[3] due to failing diesel train equipment which SEPTA had no desire to repair.[4]

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.[5] Service in the diesel-only territory north of Fox Chase was cancelled at that time, and Bryn Athyn Station still appears in publicly posted tariffs.[6]

Though rail service was initially replaced with a Fox Chase-Newtown shuttle bus, patronage remained light, and service was later canceled.[4]

Plans call for surviving trackage to be removed by Montgomery County in summer 2014 for construction of the $2 million Pennypack Trail extension.[1][7]

Station building

The building is currently used as a post office and community building. The former station canopy retains SEPTA signage installed in 1984 — one year after train service had ended.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Nussbaum, Paul (March 23, 2014). "Montco plans to convert more of rail line for recreation". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved April 21, 2014.
  2. ↑ "21 Persons Killed in Reading Wreck" (PDF). New York Times. December 6, 1921. Retrieved 2007-11-07.
  3. ↑ Bryn Athyn Station details
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Williams, Gerry (1999). Trains, Trolleys & Transit: A Guide to Philadelphia Area Rail Transit. Railpace Newsmagazine. pp. 97–98.
  5. ↑ Tulsky, Fredric N. (January 29, 1982). "Conrail Staff Must Run Trains: court ruling bars SEPTA takeover". Philadelphia Inquirer. SEPTA must use Conrail workers rather than its own personnel to run trains over the region's 13 commuter lines, a special federal court has ruled in a decision that offers some job assurance for 1,700 Conrail employees next year. The special court, in an opinion issued Wednesday, ruled that SEPTA had acted legally in October when it replaced Conrail workers with its former subway operators on the line.
  6. ↑ "Tariff No. 154 - Supplement No. 37" (PDF). Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. March 6, 2009. pp. 4–7. Retrieved June 28, 2011.
  7. ↑ http://www.septa.org/about/board/agenda-12-10-13.pdf SEPTA Board meeting minutes; December 10, 2013

External links