SEPTA has cancelled its $185 million contract with China Railway Rolling Stock Corporation (CRRC), a government-owned company, to buy 45 double-decker train cars for Regional Rail lines. The decision came after four years of project delays and more than $50 million already spent, with no cars delivered. The contract, awarded in 2017, faced issues including poor quality work and missed deadlines, despite initial plans for delivery by 2019. The COVID-19 pandemic further delayed the expected completion to 2023. CRRC expressed disappointment over the termination but remains committed to finishing the project. SEPTA, meanwhile, is exploring options to recover the funds spent and has shifted its focus to replacing older rail cars rather than pursuing new double-decker models.
In an incrediable twist, a rail enthurist on Youtube recently caught a shell for SEPTA’s order being transported over to the CRRC facility in Massachusetts.
On 4-20-2024, SEPTA unveiled their New Flyer Fuel Cell bus at a community event in the Nicetown section of Philadelphia. Ten of these buses are expected to be delivered in July of this year. These are the second line of alternative powered buses that SEPTA has purchased. The first were the Proterras which were sidelined back in 2020 due to issues. These ten buses are going to Midvale to be used on their routes thoughout the system.
First of all happy belated New Years – yes this our first post in 2024!
Now let’s get down to it:
Callowhill Receives New Buses: Earlier this month, Callowhill began receiving their allotment of XDE40 (BAE) buses. The first bus of this allotment is 3640. It has been rumored that they will receive up to 3699. These buses will likely replace all of the remaining D40LFs and DE40LFs at Callowhill. In an odd twist, both 8075 and 8083 are the only two remaining diesels still standing.
Spring 2024 Schedule Change: Starting yesterday, bus schedules have been changed systemwide. This is probably the most drastic change yet. Many changes involve service cuts, and it’s been advised to pay attention to these changes. The main reason is that there have recently been a slew of cancellations and unplanned gaps in services. These issues aren’t really new, but SEPTA is taking more of a proactive approach to this.
Multilevel Train Car News: The latest is that two CRRC coaches have arrived at their facility in Springfield, MA. The estimated time of arrival for these first units on SEPTA’s property has been adjusted for later this year.
Earlier this year, The tracking for SEPTA selector and other agencies were merged into one interfacing to provide one interface . The purpose of this tracking is to offer a transit enthurust friendly alternative to the offical trackers or 3rd party trackers out there.
Recently the tracking has been expanded to nclude several other agencies around this area.
These are as follows: New Jersey (limited time only) Delaware (limited time only) Lancaster (RRTA) New York MTA and Beeline Harrisburg (CAT)
SEPTA “BAE” New Flyers finally being used onother routes out of Southern depot. Since their initial runs back in April, thee BAEs were primary used on the 29, 45 and 79 in South Philadelphia. Within the past two weeks, ,the BAEs has been assigned on the other routes which operates out of Southern. Thus far up to 3551 has been delivered and is currently at Germantown depot being accepted. Thus far 27 has been delivered and 23 were spotted tracking in service. It’s unknowned at this point how many new buses that Southern is expected to receive but based off of the D40LFs assigned there, it is a safe bet to assume that at least 70 would be assigned there with the remainder of this batch going to Callowhill and Frontier.
In case you missed it, on Sunday a fatal crash occured on the off-ramp of the I-95 expressway involving a tractor trailor carrying gasoline. As a result of this, the heat became soo intense that the Northbound overpass which carries I-95 collapsed as result and also rendered the Southbound overpass as unusable.
Federal and state officials are working to address the situation. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro has issued a disaster declaration, allowing the state to access federal funds and expedite repairs. Massive chunks of the fallen overpass are being demolished and detours are in place. The demolition is expected to take four or five days, but repairs to the highway could take months.
Late Sunday, SEPTA annouced that they have increased capacity on several of their lines (Fox Chase, Trenton and West Trenton) to try to address this crasis. As a result, a Push Pull set is now assigned onto the Trenton Line (#1723 and #9708). And several more trains were added.
There will be a DART Statewide Bus Service change effective Sunday, May 21, 2023.
There are way too many changes to mentioned but here are the changes summerized:
New Castle County bus routes will undergo schedule adjustments and service changes to enhance punctuality and connections. Several routes on weekdays and weekends will be affected, including Routes 4, 8, 13, 15, 18, 20, 25, 28, 35, 42, 61, 64, and 301. Specific changes include altered trip times, route extensions, rerouting, and discontinuation of certain trips due to low ridership. Additionally, micro-transit service DART Connect – Newark will replace the City of Newark’s UniCity service. Kent and Sussex Counties will also see schedule adjustments on various routes.
-Route 31 will be discontinued and merged into the 13. The route 13 will now go to the serving the Bellefonte Community.
-The Route 47 will be eliminated and combined into Route 37
INTERCOUNTY bus routes will undergo minor schedule adjustments to enhance punctuality, connections, and reliability. Route 301 will experience reduced trips to and from the Dover DMV due to low ridership. Several trip departure times will be modified, including the addition of new stops and the discontinuation of certain stops. Route 302 will have revised routing between North Middletown Park & Ride and the Dover Transit Center, with service to Smyrna. Route 303 will discontinue service to Airpark Plaza, and Route 307 will have reduced service to the South Frederica Park & Ride.
Beach Bus service will start on Monday, May 22, 2023,
Additionally schedule adjustments will be made to Beach Bus routes (201, 203, 204, 206, 208, 215, and 305) to improve performance and reliability. Holiday service will also be available for selected routes.
I have received several emails regarding where to find the documentation on SEPTA Broad Meetings and their agendas. Generally these are kept here on SEPTA’s website – then search for “SEPTA Board Regular Meeting”.
