Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line

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For the Norfolk Southern (formerly Reading Company) line, see Harrisburg Line.
Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line
Amtrak and SEPTA Regional Rail service share operations over the Main Line grade between Philadelphia and Thorndale.
Amtrak and SEPTA Regional Rail service share operations over the Main Line grade between Philadelphia and Thorndale.
Overview
OwnerAmtrak
LocalePennsylvania
TerminiSuburban Station (historic)
30th Street Station (current service)
Harrisburg Transportation Center
Stations31
Service
TypeHigher-speed rail, commuter rail
ServicesKeystone Service, Pennsylvanian, Paoli/Thorndale Line
Operator(s)Amtrak (also SEPTA)
Technical
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Operating speed110 mph (180 km/h)
Route map

Legend
MP
SEPTA Main Line via Center City Connection
0.0
 Suburban Station
SEPTA.svg
Schuylkill River
Northeast Corridor
1.0
 30th Street Station
Amtrak SEPTA.svg
1.9
Zoo Junction
Northeast Corridor
4.0
Cynwyd Line (Valley Junction)
4.1
 Overbrook Yard
5.4
 Overbrook
SEPTA.svg
6.0
 Merion
SEPTA.svg
6.8
 Narberth
SEPTA.svg
7.4
 Wynnewood
SEPTA.svg
8.5
 Ardmore
Keystone Service SEPTA.svg
9.1
 Haverford
SEPTA.svg
10.1
 Bryn Mawr
SEPTA.svg
10.9
 Rosemont
SEPTA.svg
12.0
 Villanova
SEPTA.svg
13.0
 Radnor
SEPTA.svg
13.7
 St. Davids
SEPTA.svg
14.5
 Wayne
SEPTA.svg
15.4
 Strafford
SEPTA.svg
16.4
 Devon
SEPTA.svg
17.5
 Berwyn
SEPTA.svg
18.6
 Daylesford
SEPTA.svg
19.9
 Paoli
Amtrak SEPTA.svg
21.6
 Malvern
SEPTA.svg
Dale Secondary
23.9
 Frazer Yard
25.5
Glen Junction
27.5
 Exton
Amtrak SEPTA.svg
28.3
 Whitford
SEPTA.svg
32.4
 Downingtown
Keystone Service SEPTA.svg
35.5
 Thorndale
SEPTA.svg
38.4
 Coatesville
Keystone Service
44.2
 Parkesburg
Keystone Service
Paradise (planned)
57.0
Leaman Junction (Strasburg Rail Road)
67.0
Holland Junction (New Holland Industrial)
67.9
Conestoga Junction
68.0
 Lancaster
Amtrak
68.1
Cork Junction (Columbia Secondary)
70.0
Lititz Junction (Lititz Secondary)
80.1
 Mount Joy
Keystone Service
86.8
 Elizabethtown
Amtrak
94.5
Roy Junction (Royalton Branch)
94.7
 Middletown
Keystone Service
104.4
State Junction (Harrisburg Line)
104.6
 Harrisburg Transportation Center
Amtrak
Pittsburgh Line
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The Philadelphia to Harrisburg Main Line is a rail line owned and operated by Amtrak in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. This is the only electrified Amtrak line in the United States outside of the main line of the Northeast Corridor. The line runs from Philadelphia, where it meets the Northeast Corridor at Zoo interlocking (milepost 1.9), west to Harrisburg (MP 104.6), where electrification ends. It is part of the longer Keystone Corridor, which continues west to Pittsburgh along the Norfolk Southern Railway's Pittsburgh Line.[1] This section is sometimes referred to as "Keystone East"[2] and is part of Amtrak's Keystone Service.

Philadelphia's Suburban Station was the original start of the line – as well as the headquarters for the Pennsylvania Railroad – and is milepost zero for the line. However, current service patterns dictate that all passenger rail service on the line begins 1 mile (1.6 km) west at 30th Street Station.

History[]

The line runs along the route of the former Pennsylvania Railroad Main Line and passes through the Philadelphia Main Line, the suburban region named for it. The Pennsylvania Railroad had originally electrified this line in the 1930s, but it fell into disuse in the 1980s under Amtrak.[3][4]

Amtrak and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation restored electrical service in October, 2006.[5] This allows speeds up to 110 miles per hour.[6]

The line received about $26 million from the 2009 Federal American Reinvestment and Recovery Act that was used to eliminate the last three grade crossings, which will advance the goal of 125-mph operations, reduce overall trip times, and improve service reliability. The grade crossings were located in Lancaster County and the last was closed in 2014.[7][8][9][10]

In the 2000s, there was discussion of commuter rail from Lancaster to Harrisburg (the Capital Red Rose Corridor), but the proposal has subsequently been abandoned.[11]

Current rail services[]

Amtrak's Keystone Service and Pennsylvanian operate over the entire line. SEPTA Regional Rail Paoli/Thorndale Line trains operate east of Thorndale, with the rights to continue revenue service west to Parkesburg and to run west to Cork Interlocking (just east of Amtrak's Lancaster station) to reverse direction.[1]

Freight trackage rights over the whole line are assigned to the Norfolk Southern Railway. The Canadian Pacific Railway also has rights over a small piece near Harrisburg, from the west end to Roy Interlocking in Royalton, to allow CP trains to get from the end of their Sunbury Line or Allentown to Perryville, Maryland.[1]

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania provides the subsidies for Amtrak for the Keystone Service and Pennsylvanian passenger routes that operate on this line.

Stations[]

Signal bridge (#592) and former grade crossing in Leacock Township, east of Lancaster, Pennsylvania
See also: Keystone Service

All stations are located in Pennsylvania.

Milepost (km) Station Location Current station
opened 		Services Connections
P/T KS PA
0.0 mi (0 km) Suburban Station Philadelphia September 28, 1930 ● SEPTA Regional Rail: all lines
SEPTA City Transit: Broad Street Line (at City Hall), Market–Frankford Line and subway–surface trolley lines (at 15th Street)
SEPTA City Bus: 2, 4, 16, 17, 27, 31, 32, 33, 38, 44, 48, 62
SEPTA Suburban Bus: 124, 125
1.0 mi (1.6 km) 30th Street Station 1933[12] ● ● ● Amtrak: Acela, Cardinal, Carolinian, Crescent, Northeast Regional, Palmetto, Silver Meteor, Silver Star, Vermonter
SEPTA Regional Rail: all lines
NJ Transit Rail: Atlantic City Line
SEPTA City Transit: Market–Frankford Line and subway–surface trolley lines (at 30th Street)
SEPTA City Bus: 9, 12, 21, 30, 31, 42, 44, 49, 62, LUCY
SEPTA Suburban Bus: 124, 125
5.4 mi (8.7 km) Overbrook 1860 ● SEPTA City Bus: 65, G
6.0 mi (9.7 km) Merion Lower Merion 1914 ●
6.8 mi (10.9 km) Narberth Narberth September 11, 1915[13] ● SEPTA City Bus: 44
7.4 mi (11.9 km) Wynnewood Wynnewood 1870[14] ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 105
8.5 mi (13.7 km) Ardmore Ardmore 1870[14] ● ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 103, 105, 106
9.1 mi (14.6 km) Haverford Haverford 1880[14] ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 105, 106
10.1 mi (16.3 km) Bryn Mawr Bryn Mawr 1869[14] ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 105, 106
10.9 mi (17.5 km) Rosemont Rosemont 1871 ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 105, 106
12.0 mi (19.3 km) Villanova Radnor 1890[15] ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 106
13.0 mi (20.9 km) Radnor 1872[16] ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 106
13.7 mi (22.0 km) St. Davids 1890[15] ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 106
14.5 mi (23.3 km) Wayne 1884 ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 106
15.4 mi (24.8 km) Strafford Tredyffrin 1876 ●
16.4 mi (26.4 km) Devon Easttown 1890[17] ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 106
17.5 mi (28.2 km) Berwyn 1884[17] ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 106
18.6 mi (29.9 km) Daylesford Tredyffrin ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 106
19.9 mi (32.0 km) Paoli Paoli 1893[18] ● ● ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 92, 106, 204, 206
21.6 mi (34.8 km) Malvern Malvern 1900 ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 92
27.5 mi (44.3 km) Exton Exton 1981 ● ● ● Eastbound Pennsylvanian only
SEPTA Suburban Bus: 135
WCU Shuttle
28.3 mi (45.5 km) Whitford 1880 ●
32.4 mi (52.1 km) Downingtown Downingtown ● ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 135
35.5 mi (57.1 km) Thorndale Thorndale November 22, 1999[19] ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 135
38.4 mi (61.8 km) Coatesville Coatesville 1868[18] ● SEPTA Suburban Bus: 135
TMACC: Coatesville Link
44.2 mi (71.1 km) Parkesburg Parkesburg 1905[18] ● TMACC: Coatesville Link
68.0 mi (109.4 km) Lancaster Lancaster 1929[18] ● ● Red Rose Transit Authority: 3, 6, 10, 11, 19
80.1 mi (128.9 km) Mount Joy Mount Joy ● Red Rose Transit Authority: 18
86.8 mi (139.7 km) Elizabethtown Elizabethtown 1915 ● ● Red Rose Transit Authority: 18
94.7 mi (152.4 km) Middletown Middletown 1990[18] ● Capital Area Transit: 7
104.6 mi (168.3 km) Harrisburg Transportation Center Harrisburg 1887[18] ● ● Capital Area Transit
rabbittransit
Greyhound Lines, Fullington Trailways

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c Federal Railway Administration, "Appendix A: Ownership, Operating Rights and Agreements" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2006-09-27. (18.0 KiB)
  2. ^ "Frequently-Asked Questions". Plan the Keystone. PennDOT. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  3. ^ Michael, Froio (May 18, 2012). "The Pennsylvania Railroad's Harrisburg Terminal : A Historical Overview". Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  4. ^ Tom, Belden (January 18, 1998). "Orphan Rail Line Scorned No More Penndot And A Startup Company Have Both Made Proposals For Upgrading Amtrak's Keystone Route". Philly.com. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  5. ^ "Amtrak's Northeast Corridor: FY 2010" (PDF). Amtrak. May 2011. p. 5. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  6. ^ "Northeast Corridor State of Good Repair Spend Plan" (PDF). Amtrak. April 15, 2009. p. 7. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  7. ^ "NEC Projects - The Keystone Corridor". Amtrak. Archived from the original on 5 July 2017. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  8. ^ "The Congressional Bicameral High - Speed & Intercity Passenger Rail Caucus" (PDF). Federal Briefing. WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff. August 14, 2012. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  9. ^ http://www.pennlive.com/editorials/index.ssf/2010/03/americas_foray_into_high-speed.html
  10. ^ Harris, Bernard (July 20, 2014). "New PennDOT bridge could mean faster trains on tracks below" (PDF). Plan the Keystone. Lancaster Online. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 December 2015. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  11. ^ "Southcentral PA's Multi-Modal Transportation Efforts". Modern Transit Partnership. Archived from the original on 7 February 2016. Retrieved 7 February 2016.
  12. ^ Teitelman, Edward & Longstreth, Richard W. (1981), Architecture in Philadelphia: A Guide, Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, ISBN 0262700212: 186 
  13. ^ Tatnall, Frank (Fall 2015). "A Century of Catenary". Classic Trains. 16 (3): 26.
  14. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Existing Stations in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
  15. ^ Jump up to: a b Existing Railroad Stations in Delaware County, Pennsylvania Archived October 9, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ Morgan's Corner P&C RR station, 1856 (Existing Railroad Stations in Delaware County, Pennsylvania)
  17. ^ Jump up to: a b Existing Railroad Stations in Chester County, Pennsylvania Archived 2008-12-09 at the Wayback Machine
  18. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f "Building Great American Stations". Amtrak. Retrieved September 21, 2019.
  19. ^ Schogol, Marc (November 21, 1999). "SEPTA extends the R5 line to Thorndale". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 31. Retrieved February 22, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  • "The Electrification of the Pennsylvania Railroad from Broad Street Terminal Philadelphia to Paoli." The Electric Journal. Vol. 12, No. 12 (December 1915). (Pittsburgh, PA: The Electric Journal.) pp. 536–541.
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