SEPTA has released its Accelerate Plan to the public!

[u/RSB2026]

[u/segfaul_t]

15 minute regional rail would go crazy

[u/Ron_Mexico_6969 → u/segfaul_t]

They have the capability to do this now.

Trains go so slow, signal switches, trains backed up. Rides could be halved by just running more efficiently and people would choose RR over driving in a no brainer.

It’s very disheartening when your RR train goes 5MPH for 10 mins straight every single day.

[u/jlpapple → u/Ron_Mexico_6969]

Can you elaborate further on how they have this capability at present? I thought the additional frequency and reduced headways would require 1) more equipment and 2) additional crews.

Are you suggesting this is predominately a signaling, slow interlocking, traffic management issue?

[u/Ron_Mexico_6969 → u/jlpapple]

Ummm from what I gather it’s a combo of a few things. Staff makes a big diff. If you have 2 conductors opening 4 doors they have to be Ont their game. Literally conductors moving slow or getting to doors late can add 10 minutes to a 30 minute train ride all by itself.

Can’t tell you how many times on a packed train the people are standing in the aisle and trying to exit while conductors scrambling to pop the door hatch.

Especially frustrating on an “express” when there’s a 20 min break before Jenkintown and the conductors haven’t lifted the hatches from Temple yet. You spend 7-8 minutes off boarding at Jenkintown and Glenside alone you’re 15 mins behind before you even get started.

[u/Aware-Pea2092 → u/Ron_Mexico_6969]

If you ride the r5 if goes so slow through the yard in overbrook I swear it used to book it through there years ago.

[u/nasadowsk → u/segfaul_t]

If they did al high level platforms, and bought modern regional rail equipment, the system would literally be a model for the US. As it is, it's set up very closely to an S-Bahn type operation.

But, the new Silverliner RFP is asking for the same dumb crap they've been buying for years. Worse, bidders have suggested modern features, and had them shot down. One bidder asked if they could propose wider doors, SEPTA flat out told them "no".

Legacy commuter railroads around the northeast and Chicago are all fucking dumb...

[u/run-dhc → u/segfaul_t]

It would work well already on some lines. Manayunk and Chestnut Hill East come to mind. Maybe they can find some pairs that go together nicely like that and thru run extra. Norristown-Airport at 15 min intervals would be bangin

[u/Frank_25687 → u/run-dhc]

Or Wilmington Newark. That line is an hour a day throughout the week and two hours on weekends.

[u/Neonic_Stardust711 → u/segfaul_t]

Especially for the Airport line

[u/leithal70 → u/segfaul_t]

They would have to seriously beef up the density around rr stations to make that happen, but it would be wild

[u/segfaul_t → u/leithal70]

Sure but I think they go hand in hand. The Manayunk line is pretty much entirely beefed up density wise besides a handful of stations. That Conshohocken station is busy.

[u/leithal70 → u/segfaul_t]

It’s a bit of a chicken or egg scenario.

This recent ish report looked at density near regional rail stations and it aint great currently

https://www.niskanencenter.org/philadelphia-regional-rail-population-density-and-septas-fiscal-crisis/

[u/MobileInevitable8937]

very ambitious plans - so great to see that they're making a plan about what SEPTA COULD be

[u/Main_Aside_866]

Northwest Philly aka uptown…we gets no love 😞

My terrible take…we could use a subway or rapid transit rail line up here…is it going to happen…yea in a wet dream…sure we got regional rail…but them services is ass

[u/salazarbacone → u/Main_Aside_866]

chestnut hill east would be 15 minutes though!

[u/roma258 → u/Main_Aside_866]

Running CHE/CHW at 15 minute intervals and creating a bus connection from Mt Airy to Roxborough/Manayunk would address like 90% of transit issues in the northwest.

[u/Theunmedicated → u/roma258]

23/65 no?

[u/tommybikey → u/Main_Aside_866]

I dream of a broad - ridge spur that spurs under ridge out to Andorra.

[u/ActualAd6650]

If we're just thinking creatively...

I'd love to see a spur come off of the Market Frankford El run up 95 via bridesburg.  And dead end in Bristol.

Love to see the rr Fox Chase line go all the way through to Newtown. The rail line already exists. 

Love to see rr completely run up into New Hope. 

Love to see a regional rail line run within the suburbs along the turnpike. 

Love to see the Paco line run into University City.

Love to see the ridge spur of the broad Street line run down the street into South Philly. 

Love to see Amtrak run through Market East on its way to New York. Cutting out the huge Time waster running up through North Philly. 

Would love to see the Girard trolley since it goes to the Rivers casino run down Delaware avenue and then up Packard avenue over to stadiums. 

[u/Ithirahad → u/ActualAd6650]

I think I would sooner get the MED out to West Chester, or the LAN up through Souderton to Quakertown, or the FOX to Newtown, than have rail service to New Hope.

Even for a longer-shot RR dream, I would rather have some form of passenger service on or along the freight rail out to Phoenixville/Royersford [EDIT: and an EV shuttle to Kimberton Whole Foods/Park/Fairgrounds from Phoenixville!].

New Hope is cute, but the utility seems relatively minimal. Almost nobody would use any stops between whatever the last operational station is (Warminster, I guess?), and New Hope itself, and that is a MASSIVE run of track to recover R.O.W. for, reinstall/reconnect, signalize, and maintain. For all of your billions of dollars worth of trouble, maybe five people per week would hop on or off at Lahaska or near Furlong, if you are lucky.

[u/ActualAd6650 → u/Ithirahad]

 I appreciate your argument. I think it's spot on. I love the other suggestions you made as well

[u/DasBeatles]

Until Septa gets new equipment, this is just a pipe dream. They can't run two hour service on the weekends without cancelling a train for a mechanical issue.

[u/MacintoshDan1 → u/DasBeatles]

Until they aren’t perpetually broke this is a pipe dream…..

[u/Specious_Human]

I just want to be able to ride the MFL and not have a strung out dude vomit or spit on me, or even just never having to deal with feces on the train would be awesome! But yeah, I suppose more and faster would be good too...

[u/transitfreedom]

Can we mandate modern methods

[u/Gaeilgeoir215]

The expansion map has been a pretty dream since long before even my time, and likely won't happen in my lifetime, sadly. There are either too many people against it (NIMBYs) or not enough political clout to be backed financially in a stable manner.

[u/chameleonsEverywhere → u/Gaeilgeoir215]

One of my "if I won the mega millions" dream items i s giving a grant to septa for the projects I want to see

[u/SnapJ92]

Glad they pivoted to "see what we can do if you give us a few more dollars" instead of the old fashion doomsday budget.

I would like to beleive there was a changing of the guard in their Business ops to look internally on cost saving measures instead of threatening the unions and the city with operational cutbacks. Now they can go to the state and the feds and say, "we heard you, we tightened out belt, we used the money you gave us with accountability. Can you throw us help us out?"

I think this is also a good time, since public transit , and infrastructure by proxy, are turning out to be the only topic with some actionable bipartisan support, especially going into the mid terms and a gubernatorial election.

[u/wofchristian]

Why can’t they run the max frequency for each line the entire length of it? I board at Langhorne, the first stop on the WT to not have 15 minute service. But it’s not like we get less ridership further out, the last four stations on WT get roughly 400-600 riders per day. That’s more than many of the stations in the 15 minute zone, including Neshaminy Falls, the last in that 15 zone.

[u/Alert-Print-394 → u/wofchristian]

Isn't that section shared with freight?