Church station (Philadelphia)

Church station is an elevated rapid transit station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, served by SEPTA's Market-Frankford Line. It is located on Frankford Avenue between Ruan and Church streets in the Frankford neighborhood of Northeast Philadelphia. The station was originally named Ruan–Church station, and it is also served by SEPTA City Bus routes 3 and 5.

Church
Church station westbound platform
Location	4300 North Frankford Avenue, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Coordinates	40.01091°N 75.0887°W / 40.01091; -75.0887
Owned by	City of Philadelphia
Operated by	SEPTA
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	2
Connections	SEPTA City Bus: 3, 5
Construction
Structure type	Elevated
Disabled access	Yes
History
Opened	November 5, 1922[1]
Rebuilt	1997[2]
Electrified	700 volts DC third rail
Previous names	Ruan–Church
Services
Preceding station SEPTA Following station Erie–Torresdale toward 69th Street Market–Frankford Line Arrott toward Frankford
Location
Church Location within Philadelphia

History

Church is part of the Frankford Elevated section of the line, which began service on November 5, 1922 as Ruan–Church station.[1][3][4][5]

Between 1988 and 2003, SEPTA undertook a $493.3 million reconstruction of the 5.5-mile (8.9 km) Frankford Elevated.[5] Church station was completely rebuilt on the site of the original station; the project included new platforms, elevators, windscreens, and overpasses, and the station now meets ADA accessibility requirements.[5] The line had originally been built with track ballast and was replaced with precast sections of deck, allowing the station (and the entire line) to remain open throughout the project.[6]

During the Market–Frankford's rush-hour skip-stop service pattern, Church was only served by "B" trains. This practice was discontinued on February 24, 2020.[7][8]

Church station in the Library of Congress archives

Station layout

There are two staircases at the station, with the main entrance on the west side of Frankford Avenue between Ruan and Church streets. Across the street is an eastbound platform exit-only staircase. South of the station, the tracks turn west to travel along Kensington Avenue.

M	Mezzanine	Connection between platforms
P Platform level	Side platform with fare control
	Westbound	←      Market–Frankford Line toward 69th Street (Erie–Torresdale)
	Eastbound	→      Market–Frankford Line toward Frankford (Arrott Transportation Center) →
	Side platform
G	Street level	Station house, buses

References

1. "Market-Frankford Subway–Elevated Line". SEPTA. Archived from the original on March 28, 2008. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
2. "Frankford Elevated Rapid Rail Line". Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
3. Cox, Harold E. (1967). May, Jack (ed.). The Road from Upper Darby. The Story of the Market Street Subway-Elevated. New York, NY: Electric Railroaders' Association. p. 17. OCLC 54770701.
4. Hepp, John (2013). "Subways and Elevated Lines". Encyclopedia of Greater Philadelphia. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
5. Edward L. Woods, Jr.; Thomas A. Nuxoll (1999). "The Frankford Elevated Reconstruction Project" (PDF). American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
6. American Public Transportation Association (1996). "Success Under Fire--A Discussion of the SEPTA-Frankford Elevated Reconstruction Project (FERP)". National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
7. Ralph, Pat (February 24, 2020). "SEPTA service changes mark end of skip-stop service on Market-Frankford Line". PhillyVoice. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
8. "SEPTA to Improve Market-Frankford Line Service Levels" (Press release). SEPTA. February 13, 2020. Retrieved June 2, 2020.

External links

• Media related to Church (SEPTA station) at Wikimedia Commons
• SEPTA – Church Station
• Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. PA-430-B, "Frankford Elevated, Church Street Station"
• Images at NYCSubway.org
• Station entrance from Google Maps Street View