Philadelphia Subway Station Accessibility Improvements

Approximately $56 million from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act—also known as the bipartisan infrastructure law—has been committed and will help install elevators and lighting, repair platforms, and improve the overall accessibility of subway stations in Philadelphia. Currently, the stations are only accessible via stairs.

Historical context

• “SEPTA is the fifth largest mass transit system in the U.S., and the largest in Pennsylvania.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, April 2020
• “SEPTA is the primary mass transit provider in the Philadelphia region, serving Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties, and the City of Philadelphia. SEPTA’s service territory covers 4 million people across 2,200 square miles.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, April 2020
• “The stations [being updated] were built decades before the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which ensures equal opportunity and access for persons with disabilities.” – NBC10 Philadelphia, March 29, 2023
• “The stations are currently only accessible via stairs, preventing individuals with disabilities that require the use of a mobility device, people with strollers or anyone who is physically unable to use stairs from traveling to and from these destinations.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, December 19, 2022

Project summary

The $56 million bipartisan infrastructure law investment will modernize critical Philadelphia subway stations:

• “The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority will receive $56 million to make its 11th Street subway station on the Market-Frankford Subway Line and the Chinatown, Erie, Fairmount Upper Level, Fairmount Lower Level and Snyder stations on the Broad Street Subway Line fully ADA accessible, allowing safe and convenient travel. Modernization work at the stations, which were built in the early 20th century, will include installing elevators, general station upgrades, ramps, and making path of travel improvements.” – U.S. Department of Transportation, last accessed March 2023
• “The $5,793,063 contract with Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc. will deliver full accessibility to the stations. Improvements will include elevator installation, platform renovation, waterproofing and new signage, lighting and security cameras.” – NBC10 Philadelphia, March 29, 2023
• “The public transit agency said it is committed to making all stations on the Broad Street Line and Market-Frankford Line accessible.” – NBC10 Philadelphia, March 29, 2023

Outcomes, improvements, and practical impact

Funding accelerates construction timelines:

• “Currently, 25 of 28 Market-Frankford Line Stations and 12 of 25 Broad Street Line Stations are fully accessible, and SEPTA’s 12-year Capital Program includes SEPTA’s commitment to make both lines fully accessible by 2034. Following the passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, SEPTA amended its FY 2022 capital budget to initiate design on nine Broad Street Line station accessibility projects to be better positioned for funding opportunities and accelerate construction timelines.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, December 19, 2022

Stations will be made Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant, increasing accessibility:

• “Each station will be retrofitted with elevators to take customers between street level, and station mezzanines and boarding platforms. Additional accessibility enhancements will include the construction of ADA-compliant ramps, curb and sidewalk modifications, the creation of accessible paths of travel, and the reconfiguration of cashier booths to ensure that each station is fully accessible.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, December 19, 2022
• “Navigating the city’s public transit system with limited mobility is not currently easy, residents say. One woman who uses a wheelchair last year crowdfunded a van to get around, calling the alternatives ‘a nightmare’ and noting that at one station with an elevator, buttons were too high for her to reach.” – Billy Penn, September 12, 2022

The stations being modernized are on two heavily used lines and serve Center City, Philadelphia:

• The Market-Frankford Line serves Center City and has the highest ridership of all SEPTA lines, with a daily average ridership per week of 54,716. The Broad Street Line serves Center City and has the second-highest ridership, with a daily average ridership per week of 36,380. – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, last accessed June 2022

In June 2023, the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded $25 million to help modernize SEPTA surface trolley routes and stops:

• “The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded $50 million in grants last week to infrastructure projects in North and Southwest Philadelphia to improve traffic safety and public transit in neighborhoods that have elevated numbers of serious vehicle crashes. One project will receive $25 million to build traffic-calming infrastructure on streets near several North Philadelphia elementary schools, creating slow zones to ‘provide safe corridors for students to walk to school,’ said Chris Puchalsky, director of policy and strategic initiatives for the city’s Office of Transportation, Infrastructure and Sustainability. The second $25 million grant will help pay for a collaborative project of SEPTA, OTIS and the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corp. on about 3.85 miles of Southwest Philadelphia streets. SEPTA will work on its program to modernize the trolley system; the city will build bicycle lanes, narrow vehicle lanes, improve pedestrian crossings and install traffic-calming devices.” – The Philadelphia Inquirer, June 30, 2023

The trolley modernization project will help make the system more accessible:

• “In Southwest Philadelphia, along the route of the 36 trolley, SEPTA will build fixed stops with raised platforms and upgrade switches and track connections as part of its plan to modernize the trolley system. Consolidation of trolley stops to fewer stations will make for faster service and make trolleys better accessible to people with mobility issues, the transit agency says. SEPTA already has ordered a new fleet of trolleys.” – The Philadelphia Inquirer, June 30, 2023

Climate impact

• “Transit is inherently sustainable. Initiatives to improve performance expands this environmental dividend.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, April 2020
• “SEPTA reduces greenhouse emissions by lessening private auto use and congestion, and supporting compact, energy efficient development.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, April 2020
• SEPTA subways emit less than half as many greenhouse gasses per passenger mile as a single-occupancy car. – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, last accessed April 2023

Racial equity and justice impact

• “In the Philadelphia metropolitan statistical area in 2021, 14% of Black workers, 6% of Latinx workers, and 4% of Asian workers – compared to 2% of white workers – took transit to work.” – Equity Dashboard, last accessed June 2023

Economic impact

• “Transit drives the economy. Initiatives that support economic vitality help to leverage the region’s density and productivity.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, last accessed April 2020
• “SEPTA contributes directly to our region’s economy and spurs broader economic growth. Southeastern Pennsylvania, which covers 5% of Pennsylvania’s land area, accounts for 42% of the Commonwealth’s total economic activity. This degree of economic productivity and density is only possible with transit to efficiently connect people throughout the region.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, last accessed April 2023
• “Transit reduces household expenses. In the City of Philadelphia, the average household saves $830 per year, a net financial benefit associated with proximity to high-quality transit.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, last accessed April 2023

Official supporting statements

• U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D-PA): “When public transportation isn’t accessible, seniors and people with disabilities can’t get to work, the grocery store, or their doctor’s appointments. Thanks to my All Stations Accessibility Program (ASAP) in the infrastructure law, SEPTA plans to make six stations on the Broad Street and Market-Frankford Lines fully accessible. … More than 30 years after passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, the infrastructure law is helping to fulfill its promise to build a more accessible world for Philadelphians.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, December 19, 2022
• U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans (D-PA): “Investments in public transportation accessibility are investments in people and communities. … I applaud SEPTA for their commitment to accessibility, and I am pleased that this vital federal funding that I worked to include in the Infrastructure and Jobs Act will make SEPTA more accessible and easier to navigate.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, December 19, 2022
• U.S. Rep. Brendan F. Boyle (D-PA): “With the historic Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, we have made a significant down payment on America’s future mobility and economic competitiveness. … Funding will now be going to critical needs across the entire infrastructure spectrum, and I am proud that we made transit accessibility a priority. The ASAP grant directs funding to where it is needed most, and I am pleased that SEPTA is investing in the stations that serve my constituents.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, December 19, 2022
• U.S. Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA): “In January, I stood with SEPTA officials at Snyder Station to highlight the types of investments that would be possible through the historic Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. I am pleased to see that less than one year later, federal funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is being used to improve accessibility at Snyder and five other stations, giving our transit-dependent communities the accessible and reliable transportation they need to thrive.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, December 19, 2022
• SEPTA General Manager and CEO Leslie Richards: “Station accessibility is a core component of SEPTA Forward, the Authority’s Strategic Plan. We have made significant progress in upgrading our infrastructure, and we will continue to prioritize enhancements across the system to make SEPTA easier to use and more accessible to all.” – NBC10 Philadelphia, March 29, 2023
• SEPTA Board Chairman Pasquale T. Deon Sr.: “Station accessibility is a core part of SEPTA’s capital program. … I am proud of the Board’s commitment to investing in projects that make our stations and vehicles easier to use, and I am extremely grateful to our Congressional delegation for working to create this program to support our long-term accessibility goals.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, December 19, 2022
• Leslie Richards: “The ASAP grant, for the first time, provides dedicated discretionary funding for legacy systems like SEPTA to invest in station accessibility projects, and we are excited to be able to make these improvements for our customers and the communities we serve. … SEPTA stations are gateways to opportunity but only if they are accessible. Thanks to ASAP grant funding, we are closer to reaching our goal of ensuring that all customers can access and benefit from SEPTA service.” – Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, December 19, 2022

Selected clips

• “SEPTA Inks $5.8M Contract to Make 3 Stations Fully ADA Accessible” – NBC10 Philadelphia, March 29, 2023
• “SEPTA awarded $56M to improve access for people with disabilities” – CBS Philadelphia, December 19, 2022