In 1981 I heard a trolley driver say “They say these new trolleys are so smooth. I say run them for for thirty years and we’ll see how smooth they are.” They stayed smooth.
The Kawasaki trolleys have been amazing. I'm suspicious the new Alstom trolley's won't be as durable, It's very hard to match Japanese reliability, utility, and durability.
Lived off Baltimore Ave. at 45th St. for about five years. From 45th and Baltimore if you missed a 34 you walked a block down to Chester and waited for the 13. Loved living in that neighborhood. Watching this vid, seeing the street cars still operating and the ice cream truck in the background... that slice of West Philly is really a place where time sort of stood still. Now I take the NHSL and the El into work. Recommend taking the NHSL. Don't recommend the El haha.
@𝙍𝙍𝙃𝙂 Great report. I noted that you initially said "down town" and later changed it to Center City. That is the more correct term used in Philly. Re blood pressure, you sounded just a bit stressed out. Perhaps the long day, standing all day or most of it, meeting certain time tables, and dehydration in the heat can cause all that. I have the same problem so I know from personal experience that this can increase your blood pressure. Please stay in the shade, stay seated, drink plenty of water, have a good sandwich, and stay as relaxed as possible. No bad words! Kudos to you for keeping it _kosher_ as they say in Brooklyn. Did you get to chat with some of the locals? I bet your NYC/LI accent stood out among those Philly jawns. Look forward to your next report. Keep up the good work.
I love SEPTA's trolleys so much. Philadelphia is lucky to be one of the few cities with intact trolley lines. great way to get around town. Can't wait to see the new rolling stock deploy
I hope the new rolling stock will look a lot like the old PCCs. Am old enough to remember them - they had a lot of character and added to the environs.
@@merccadoosis8847 Ditto here, but current plans are for modern low-floor articulateds with open gangways. However there may be some restored PCCs running on Route 15. Seriously, if New Orleans can have replica Perley-Thomas (?) cars in regular revenue service why can't some company build new PCCs that meet modern standards?
Thanks for the footage of the Subway-Surface trolleys and the nice architecture along their routes. Aloos the delightful airiness of Jefferston Station, much nicer than the dark & drab Suburban. You should do a video showing the 101 trolley all the way out to Media; it has some nice scenery and is quite fast in spots.
@@3985uprr Also the 102 to Sharon Hill and the NHSL from Upper Darby to Norristown. Not a exactly a train, not exactly a trolley, not exactly an interurban, but a completely unique operation - the former Philadelphia and Western line.
Nice to see you giving the Subway-Surface cars some love. Now I have to be paying attention during my morning commutes on the 34 trolley. I think I'd just have to listen out for someone fuming about GE and their garbage train sets from the 70s.
Oh yeah don’t worry, I agree with you here. They have a good share of performance issues and sound odd when traveling over 50-60 mph in my opinion. Horn sucks too. It will be a holiday for SEPTA fans when the IVs are retired
@@s.s.99 Those cars were always around for decades but they were never loved by me. There was always something better like the push pulls, SV2’s, SV3’s, and of course The Fabulous SV5’s
Actually Philly once had a huge network with routes over most of the city and extending as far as Chester and Willow Grove. Admittedly some lines were weak, but the decline turned into free fall when NCL took over in the 1950s. They left a pro-bus mindset that continued as late as the 1990s which destroyed the 23, 47, 50, and 56 among others. Except for Girard Ave. the surviving lines are all part of the subway-surface system, presumably because NCL couldn't figure out how to run buses in the tunnels.
When I seen your trolley cars the Illinois Terminal railroad I work for Kool and punch up Illinois Terminal videos the show you their streetcar lines that went all through st. Louis Edwardsville Illinois Granite City this was all back in the forties there's some pretty cool videos
28:54 That double Keystone set on 653 was a result of Portal Bridge issues that plagued the day. All Keystones except 642, and 653 were cancelled that day so the long train was probably either to balance equipment for the next day or to accommodate cancelled customers
I've put off Philadelphia railfanning for too long. The trolleys are especially intriguing, the sights and sounds. I'm surprised that the cars still have trolley poles and not pantographs. SEPTA commuter trains are often very short, compared to LIRR and MNR, but credit the city/state for building the tunnel connecting the former Pennsylvania and Reading systems. Thanks!
This is a great video! I am wondering if I can use some of the clips in this video for a video I am making about SEPTA? I will give credit in the video.
Suburban Station was built by the PRR back in the 1930s to replace the above grade Broad Street Station. 30th became their new inter-city station and Suburban was for commuter trains terminating in Philly. Back then it was a stub-end station. The old elevated viaduct that serviced Broad Street Station was removed, the new track was placed underground, and the resulting strip of land was built over in the 50s with new office buildings along JFK Blvd. Jefferson Station was formerly called Market East and was built to replace the old Reading Terminal above it. Like Broad Street Station it was serviced by an elevated viaduct and was a stub end station. In the 1970s when the Reading and then Penn Central were going bankrupt the city decided to connect to the two systems for through traffic between Suburban Station and the Reading system so trains could continue through from one side to the other. They built a tunnel and Market East was placed under Reading Terminal as a replacement. They renamed it Jefferson Station a few years ago because its next to Jefferson Hospital who I guess bought naming rights.
@@JJRol. I think you're right. It is located in the Penn Center set of buildings. Several websites refer to both names, including the U.S. E.P.A.: "Suburban Station (also known as Penn Center Station)"
@@charlesbaran1106 FWIW I worked in Philly for years and never heard it called "Penn Center Station", always Suburban. I never saw any official schedules that specifically called it Penn Center Station. However b/c it serves the P. C. office complex, people would sometimes append "Penn Center" when talking about the station..
I know for sure that the 56-trolley line won't be coming back anytime soon. SEPTA has taken down the Catnary. lines along Torresdale Avenue to Erie all the down to the end at 23rd and Vanan go. It all operated by Bus, but still considered a Trolley line. I wasn't really a fan of the Silverliner 4s too. The older READING MUs were nicer looking and the center facing seats. The other seats you change direction, especially if you want to talk face to face with family members or friend.
Nor will the 47, 50, or any part of the 23. SEPTA bustituted those lines 30+ years ago and lists them as "temporarily suspended" only to satisfy people who want to hold them to their promises to restore service (some day. maybe.).
Does silver line of force ain't too bad but I think they can use an update just like some of the old SEPTA Vehicles that's here that can use an update to
Built by the Bombardier company. It took me years to find out, but it has nothing to do with Lancasters and B-17s, it's the real name of the founder (!)
Very good footage and train-related commentary…but this so-called Retired Railfan Horn Guy almost turns the enjoyment by making comments about his physical health situations. He needs to keep those comments to himself…sincerely said.
@@3985uprr The video is great. I'm sure my doctor is watching this that I sent him. He'd especially be interested and very curious about your blood pressure readings.
Wow
Nice catches of the Trolleys at 40th st Portal
Tim I love all your videos especially the LIRR ones!!!!
Philly has a variety of rails.....Amtrak trains, Septa trains, trolleys, subways and elevated trains. Thanks Tim😀💚
In 1981 I heard a trolley driver say “They say these new trolleys are so smooth. I say run them for for thirty years and we’ll see how smooth they are.” They stayed smooth.
The Kawasaki trolleys have been amazing. I'm suspicious the new Alstom trolley's won't be as durable, It's very hard to match Japanese reliability, utility, and durability.
Lived off Baltimore Ave. at 45th St. for about five years. From 45th and Baltimore if you missed a 34 you walked a block down to Chester and waited for the 13. Loved living in that neighborhood. Watching this vid, seeing the street cars still operating and the ice cream truck in the background... that slice of West Philly is really a place where time sort of stood still. Now I take the NHSL and the El into work. Recommend taking the NHSL. Don't recommend the El haha.
I was really impressed with that area around 40th and Woodland/Baltimore avenues. I felt quite safe there.
Great video, love the trolleys. Keep track of the BP. Thanks
I think I know how to control it.
Hey now you’re in my neck of the woods! Hope to meet you one day!!
Another great video it's so cool you hanging out at the station and seeing the Morning Mist very nice
@𝙍𝙍𝙃𝙂
Great report. I noted that you initially said "down town" and later changed it to Center City. That is the more correct term used in Philly.
Re blood pressure, you sounded just a bit stressed out. Perhaps the long day, standing all day or most of it, meeting certain time tables, and dehydration in the heat can cause all that. I have the same problem so I know from personal experience that this can increase your blood pressure. Please stay in the shade, stay seated, drink plenty of water, have a good sandwich, and stay as relaxed as possible.
No bad words! Kudos to you for keeping it _kosher_ as they say in Brooklyn.
Did you get to chat with some of the locals? I bet your NYC/LI accent stood out among those Philly jawns.
Look forward to your next report. Keep up the good work.
I love SEPTA's trolleys so much. Philadelphia is lucky to be one of the few cities with intact trolley lines. great way to get around town. Can't wait to see the new rolling stock deploy
I hope the new rolling stock will look a lot like the old PCCs. Am old enough to remember them - they had a lot of character and added to the environs.
@@merccadoosis8847 Ditto here, but current plans are for modern low-floor articulateds with open gangways. However there may be some restored PCCs running on Route 15.
Seriously, if New Orleans can have replica Perley-Thomas (?) cars in regular revenue service why can't some company build new PCCs that meet modern standards?
@@Poisson4147
Excellent post.
Thanks for the footage of the Subway-Surface trolleys and the nice architecture along their routes. Aloos the delightful airiness of Jefferston Station, much nicer than the dark & drab Suburban. You should do a video showing the 101 trolley all the way out to Media; it has some nice scenery and is quite fast in spots.
On my bucket list
@@3985uprr Also the 102 to Sharon Hill and the NHSL from Upper Darby to Norristown. Not a exactly a train, not exactly a trolley, not exactly an interurban, but a completely unique operation - the former Philadelphia and Western line.
Nice to see you giving the Subway-Surface cars some love. Now I have to be paying attention during my morning commutes on the 34 trolley. I think I'd just have to listen out for someone fuming about GE and their garbage train sets from the 70s.
Chances are that’s me but I think I have a lot of company regarding that opinion
Oh yeah don’t worry, I agree with you here. They have a good share of performance issues and sound odd when traveling over 50-60 mph in my opinion. Horn sucks too.
It will be a holiday for SEPTA fans when the IVs are retired
@@s.s.99 Those cars were always around for decades but they were never loved by me. There was always something better like the push pulls, SV2’s, SV3’s, and of course The Fabulous SV5’s
Great trains in the US. I saw Boston's street cars, beautiful. Greetings from Colombia.
Enjoyed the trolley segment! Very surprised at how many were in service!
Actually Philly once had a huge network with routes over most of the city and extending as far as Chester and Willow Grove. Admittedly some lines were weak, but the decline turned into free fall when NCL took over in the 1950s. They left a pro-bus mindset that continued as late as the 1990s which destroyed the 23, 47, 50, and 56 among others.
Except for Girard Ave. the surviving lines are all part of the subway-surface system, presumably because NCL couldn't figure out how to run buses in the tunnels.
Hello from Mississauga 😊
🇨🇦🇨🇦
When I seen your trolley cars the Illinois Terminal railroad I work for Kool and punch up Illinois Terminal videos the show you their streetcar lines that went all through st. Louis Edwardsville Illinois Granite City this was all back in the forties there's some pretty cool videos
Even when u are going fast in the tunnel these trolleys are smooth i love them
28:30 9! Cars?!!!
28:54 That double Keystone set on 653 was a result of Portal Bridge issues that plagued the day. All Keystones except 642, and 653 were cancelled that day so the long train was probably either to balance equipment for the next day or to accommodate cancelled customers
I've put off Philadelphia railfanning for too long. The trolleys are especially intriguing, the sights and sounds. I'm surprised that the cars still have trolley poles and not pantographs. SEPTA commuter trains are often very short, compared to LIRR and MNR, but credit the city/state for building the tunnel connecting the former Pennsylvania and Reading systems. Thanks!
I always seen to miss when you come to Philly,and surrounding areas. I drive the 111 bus to Wawa Station every day. They did a helluva job on that one
Aww. I used to live at 46th and Chester and used to catch the 13, EL & Rt. 47 to work. Keep going, old friend. 😂
24:00 or a bit after. From a distance I thought that was an Acela Express!
Have you ever rode or watched a PATCO train going over the Ben Franklin Bridge?
This is a great video! I am wondering if I can use some of the clips in this video for a video I am making about SEPTA? I will give credit in the video.
You can I would like to see the video I just got back from Boston I figured maybe you would use some footage from there
I shudder thinking how many unnecessary demolitions must've occured around Philly...canopied streetcar routes do look marvelous there too
Jefferson and Suburban Station remind me so much of an NYC subway station. I wonder what the history behind those stations is.
Suburban Station was built by the PRR back in the 1930s to replace the above grade Broad Street Station. 30th became their new inter-city station and Suburban was for commuter trains terminating in Philly. Back then it was a stub-end station. The old elevated viaduct that serviced Broad Street Station was removed, the new track was placed underground, and the resulting strip of land was built over in the 50s with new office buildings along JFK Blvd.
Jefferson Station was formerly called Market East and was built to replace the old Reading Terminal above it. Like Broad Street Station it was serviced by an elevated viaduct and was a stub end station. In the 1970s when the Reading and then Penn Central were going bankrupt the city decided to connect to the two systems for through traffic between Suburban Station and the Reading system so trains could continue through from one side to the other. They built a tunnel and Market East was placed under Reading Terminal as a replacement. They renamed it Jefferson Station a few years ago because its next to Jefferson Hospital who I guess bought naming rights.
@@averyzucco220 wasn't Suburban called Penn Center?
@@JJRol. I think you're right. It is located in the Penn Center set of buildings. Several websites refer to both names, including the U.S. E.P.A.: "Suburban Station (also known as Penn Center Station)"
@@charlesbaran1106 FWIW I worked in Philly for years and never heard it called "Penn Center Station", always Suburban. I never saw any official schedules that specifically called it Penn Center Station.
However b/c it serves the P. C. office complex, people would sometimes append "Penn Center" when talking about the station..
OK, Mr. Fish, thanks for clarifying. I've only been a visitor to Philadelphia. @@Poisson4147
💗🤍💚 Tom from Hungary
I know for sure that the 56-trolley line won't be coming back anytime soon. SEPTA has taken down the Catnary. lines along Torresdale Avenue to Erie all the down to the end at 23rd and Vanan go. It all operated by Bus, but still considered a Trolley line. I wasn't really a fan of the Silverliner 4s too. The older READING MUs were nicer looking and the center facing seats. The other seats you change direction, especially if you want to talk face to face with family members or friend.
Nor will the 47, 50, or any part of the 23. SEPTA bustituted those lines 30+ years ago and lists them as "temporarily suspended" only to satisfy people who want to hold them to their promises to restore service (some day. maybe.).
Just some FYI but the University of the Sciences Philadelphia no longer exists as they were taken over by St. Joseph's university
I was just reading the sign on the building
😊
I think seeing the Silverliner IVs are making you stressed out.
No way. That’s not possible.
Does silver line of force ain't too bad but I think they can use an update just like some of the old SEPTA Vehicles that's here that can use an update to
Push-Pull aka Bombers
Built by the Bombardier company. It took me years to find out, but it has nothing to do with Lancasters and B-17s, it's the real name of the founder (!)
2nd
First
Can I send you some allergy medicine? It might help 😅
Very good footage and train-related commentary…but this so-called Retired Railfan Horn Guy almost turns the enjoyment by making comments about his physical health situations. He needs to keep those comments to himself…sincerely said.
It was done with humor if you can figure out why I had these ailments all of a sudden. 😀😀. I am healthy otherwise.
@theolliss2724: My Doctor will see this video and he'll be interested in this guy's health equally as well as the video.
@@albertcarello619 😂😂😂😂😂. If I was as bad as I sounded, this video would be nonexistent!!
@@3985uprr The video is great. I'm sure my doctor is watching this that I sent him. He'd especially be interested and very curious about your blood pressure readings.
@@albertcarello619 only when I see certain types of trains