SECANE – Gov. Tom Corbett today joined state, local and transportation officials to detail construction and improvement plans for SEPTA’s Secane train station, which is along SEPTA’s Media/Elwyn line and serves nearly 11,000 riders daily.
The project is one of the benefits that southeastern Pennsylvania will see because of the state’s comprehensive transportation plan, which Corbett signed into law on Nov. 25, 2013.
“Today, we are delivering on our promise and demonstrating that the benefits from transportation investment are happening quickly, impacting safety and putting people to work,” Corbett said. “This station is just one example of long-delayed projects that can finally move forward because of this legislation.”
Over the next two years, SEPTA will invest $21 million in the Secane station. This year, station parking will be expanded from 40 spaces to 100; the entrance will be changed to improve traffic flow; and new signs and lighting will be installed.
Next year, the station, which was built in 1871, will be reconstructed including new high-level platforms and a pedestrian tunnel. Also, all station facilities will be made fully ADA-accessible.
By the end of this summer SEPTA, which provides 340 million rides a year, anticipates that it will award more than $83 million in contracts to improve its system.
Some of the projects that SEPTA expects to start this year include: improvements to the 69th Street terminal, repairs to a bridge carrying the Chestnut Hill West Regional Rail line, and substation improvements along rail lines at Jenkintown and Clifton. The SEPTA commuter rail lines carry 126,000 riders a day, and the transportation plan ensures these lines remain in service.
Roads and bridges in the five-county Philadelphia region will also benefit from the transportation plan, with more than $100 million in additional improvements anticipated to occur this year.
PennDOT also expects to begin many projects this year such as: widening of the Con-Chester Highway in Delaware County, traffic signal and intersection improvements at 20 intersections along Baltimore Pike in Delaware County, and resurfacing and curb ramps on various roads in the region.
“This transportation bill is bringing jobs, increased safety and better transportation services to Pennsylvania,” Corbett said. “There is a lot of work to do in every corner of the state, and we now have the resources to meet these needs.”
For more information on transportation funding, visit www.dot.state.pa.us.