I lived in Philly all my life & I appreciate our "Transit Lore" As a guy in my mid 40s I never knew the original name before SEPTA was "PRT". I also find fascinating that Roosevelt Boulevard had train tunnels that leads to Center City (Downtown). I know about the abandoned underground stations when you ride the "Ridge-Spur" express. But this video is good history.....thanks for the upload.....♦️♣️❤🖤♠️♦️♣️❤🖤♠️
The names of the system kept changing due to bankruptcies; PRT (Phila Rapid Transit) became PTC (Phila Transportation Corp) became SEPTA (Southeast PA Transportation Authority) which, unlike the companies that ran the lines prior to the ...um...1960's (?) is a quasi-governmental agency. When SEPTA was formed it absorbed the PTC and the Red Arrow Lines (which ran public transit west of the city). When the Penn Central and Reading Railroads went bust the long distance lines were formed into Amtrak and the local lines were absorbed by SEPTA giving us the infamous "Paoli Local." This resulted in an agency which runs the Broad St Subway, the El, buses, trolleys, trackless trolleys, and trains. I hear they'll be adding roller skates soon!
@@joelressner9651 Wow, everything you mentioned gave me phila transit history simple & clear. Here's a thought I was scrolling thru the comments today & there was dialog about the "Ghost Tunnels".on Ben Franklin Bridge. Which you can clearly see it when you travel.on the PATCO. Well one person mentioned in the upcoming 2023, I read Philly planning to revitalizing the "Ghost Tunnels" that will link the Ben Franklin to the Frankford - Market EL. Also Philly planning to add another Transit company rivaling SEPTA. Which I find great...another transit company would make suburban & the city access more vast, cuts driving & gas cost, keep SEPTA on there toes opposing them to strike every 2 to 3 years over contract disputes. Ultimately better for the environment. If New Yourk City & Los Angeles can have multiple bus lines. So why can't we ? ❤♥️♠️♣️♦️🖤❤♥️♠️
@@Notorious_G.O.D_76 Contracts are a legacy problem for SEPTA because former PTC-line employees have a separate contract from former Red Arrow line employees. (OK -- I'm not sure if this is still true. Anyone know?) The 2nd Ave subway in NYC demonstrates the enormous cost of drilling a new subway in an inhabited area, There used to be train lines along the river. An extension of the El from Bridge/Pratt to the river could be build and those lines could be incorporated into the system. Note: you cannot get to heaven on the Frankford El.
It’s well understood that the NYC subway system was absolutely pivotal to its growth. And, they’re literally iconic. There’s people around the world who daydream of riding those grimey pieces of image. I wouldn’t be surprised if Philly could have at least 4m population if not more than NYC if they just didn’t sell out to GM and Ford so quickly. However that lower population, in a still large population, also makes it uniquely viable to become a national hotbed for bike infrastructure and electric public transit if cards are played right.
As a New Yorker who grew up there during the Mad Men era, you are absolutely right. Of the 5 boroughs of NYC with Staten Island across the Lower New York Bay you can travel to all other boroughs by subway without traffic jams. In the 1960s the fastest way to Radio City Music Hall was by subway by the F Queens Boulevard express via the 6th Avenue subway to the 47th Street Radio City Music Hall station. The fare was 15 cents for subway and bus separately. In Old NYC in Old America.
@@luislaplume8261 Among the many places I've lived is Toronto, which has an excellent public transit system. Their advertising slogan was on the order of "we can get you there", And, they could! The subway, trolley, and bus routes enabled me to go anywhere in the city. SEPTA, on the other hand, seems to miss the mark on connectivity, especially with regional rail in the suburbs. If you got off the train at Exton, a major area in Chester County, you were stuck there even though a bus went right by it. The bus now stops at the train station increasing the connectivity of the system. It would benefit Philly greatly if SEPTA execs were assigned two neighborhoods at random and tried to get from A to B. If they can't get within walking distance on SEPTA only, then it's time for a re-think of the system.
@@joelressner9651 Most executives in Transit Agencies are political hacks who know next to nothing about moving people. For example the Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigeig aka Pete Butt Plug, who was the Mayor of South Bend and was good for nothing in that small city. The best services in my old hometown of NYC were done by private businesses that had their executives have a hands on policy of riding with the public and motorman an conductors of elevated trains, subway trains and trolleys. The private companies were the IRT, BMT, of NYC until 1940 when the NYC government bought them .
There is an abandoned station at 6th and Vine, right at the foot of the Ben Franklin Bridge. The suspension bridge connects Philly to Camden, NJ and was completed in 1925; as shown on your maps, a subway/surface (PATCO) line crosses the bridge . However, by the time the bridge and train line was completed, the automobile had become much more ubiquitous, and the 6th and Vine station was abandoned. The rest of the line PATCO line uses half of the center city loop that was actually built: from 8th street through 16th and Spruce.
I believe there is a ghost station inside the BF bridge itself. It was supposed to connect with the Frankford El. When you ride the El when it passes under the bridge you can see the doors that are the entrance to the station.
Such a damn shame that public transit in this country is considered unimportant, and when they are forced to consider it, they insist on using dirty diesel buses instead of clean electric streetcars and trolley buses.
@@JohnCap523 I'll never understand this. If YOU want buses GO where they have buses. Then we don't have to make more buses and build infrastructure no one will use. Be the change.
I've lived here for 45 years and the only abandoned station I've seen is on the 8th and Market train, but I have heard of the Roosevelt Blvd addition never knew the actual station was there. Great video!
@@joelressner9651 I had no idea about the Passyunk Spur train that was proposed, as I frequently visit the Tasker-Morris area since I go to a gun range that's not too far from there.
Great video, my father who worked in the city his whole life (died of old age in the 70s) use to tell me about the old empty subway systems under the city.
Can you do video about trolley parks in Philadelphia, particularly Willow Grove Park? Willow Grove Park was open from 1896-1976 and was built by the People's Traction Company who built a line out there. The park continued to operate well after trolley service ended in 1958. It closed after the 1976 season and was demolished to make room for the Willow Grove Park Mall which opened in 1982.
It would be neat to see more about these lines. They would extend as far as even doylestown and there is still a small section of rail at Edison ferlong and 611. It’s also interesting that those lines that headed up from the city to the willow grove park shaped some of the roads we use today like along jenkintown , Tyson and edge hill rds
@@noxirs7059 Back when trolleys and interurban lines were the more prevalent in the U.S certain street car lines built parks in far flung communities to encourage ridership on the lines on the weekends especially. These parks often had a few rides, games and other amusements. Willow Grove Park was one such park. it's earliest signature feature was the fountain which was lit up with colored electric lights (the base of the fountain is still visible in the lake). Over the years more rides and attractions were added. There was a band shell that for years was visited by famous band leader John Phillip Sousa who performed at the park from 1901 to 1926. Their also was a bike track for brief time that held the national bike racing championship in either 1898 or 1899. One of the most distinguishing feature was The Matterhorn. A large rollercoaster that went in and around a plaster mountain that stood out like Cinderella's Castle in the Disney Park. My Great Uncle Arthur Scolari came to Willow Grove Park in 1940 to partake in the Horseshoe Pitching Championship of North America, which he won at the age of 15 . Sadly by the 1960s most people were going to corporate theme parks such as Disneyland and Six Flags, thanks in part to commercial airliners, the interstate system, and the popularity of the car, the park declined before closing for good after the 1975 season. It was left abandoned for a few years till it was cleared for the mall and shopping center that was built on the site in 1982. There was the largest bowling alley in the world. 116 lanes and four restaurants that outlasted the park but to was replaced by the shopping center, as it wasn't doing well, most likely due the lanes being warped due to the high water table. For a more in-depth history check out this link. th-cam.com/video/FIYtP-J-4ws/w-d-xo.html
@@andrewscolari5724 Bill Cosby had a piece about going to Willow Grove Park, featuring the wooden roller coaster "eaten by termites" and his brother Roland getting sick on it. Absolutely brilliant stuff. I personally rode on that coaster. The whole structure shook, terrorizing the riders. I went later, when it was Six Gun Territory, and the place was really run down with many rides broken by that point. Willow Grove Park was one of many terminal parks built by trolley companies to get riders onto their trolleys on the weekends.
i remember going to Woodside Park on my 8th grade trip from St. Veronica's School in 1951. We took a trolley to a point where we boarded an open sided trolley. We crossed the Schuykill River via the Strawberry Mansion Bridge. I recall sitting on the end of the bench and noting there was only air between me and the river far below! If you drive over the bridge now you can see the support structure extending from the North (I think) side of the bridge.This is where the tracks were located. They are gone now. I was always amazed there were no accidents. Woodside Park was demolished and houses built there..............
I worked in city hall In the basement and sub basement and there’s like random small doors that lead to secret tunnels and abandon rail lines. Philadelphia city hall is amazing. They have jail cells in the basement so much cool history
Very interesting stuff. As a former resident who grew up in Philly and always loved the rail systems as my main source of traveling through many of the areas you mentioned ,this story is a gem. Thank you!😊
My great uncle Norman worked for the PTC on trolley cars at there barn repairing them. My Grandpa worked for Harbisons Dairy as a Milk Man, he used a horse. Going up and down North Philadelphia during the 20’s to the 50’s.
Thanks for the information. Half of these subway lines I never heard of. Septa/City definitely should open up the subway on Roosevelt Blvd. That area is so busy, such a distance, and would move faster since 1/3 of the traffic is underground.
There are many train stations in the suburbs that connected to Philadelphia and they shut them down. It would help so many ppl if they were still open and prob bring some money into the city. I live in north philly and this city has so many issues and I feel like there's so many things they could do but they just sleep on it all.
there are stations that should be shut down and stay shut down. Chester transportation center comes to mind. when you get off as bus/trolley and have to have full riot gear, military grade pepper spray a full automatic weapon to hold the panhandlers,junkies and drug dealers at bay yea its time to put that station down
Very interesting video! For a transit enthusiast like me Philadelphia is an especially fascinating city. I noticed an error though at 7:22; the Market St. elevated is illustrated by a recent clip of Vancouver, Canada's elevated metro!
Let me start off by saying that this was a wonderfully prepared video segment on something that has fascinated me in all my years living in Philadelphia. So thank you so much. The extension of the Broad Street Line to be connected to Adams Ave & Roosevelt Blvd in fact actually still does exist and was not demolished in 1994 when the massive Sears facility on the boulevard was brought down. Above ground at the intersection of Adam and Roosevelt right in the middle median still sit the exhaust ventilation ducks for the ghost station and there are also metal ventilation ports along Adam’s Ave where the previous Sears above ground parking garage was located, but underneath it existed access pathways to the uncompleted station that got sealed off. In addition an underground pathway was built connecting pedestrians on either side of the boulevard from being able to access the station and safely get across the frantic 12 lanes. Proof of the walkway physically still exists but was cemented shut about 20 years ago. Fascinating stuff and a forgotten history of underground Philadelphia.
That Roosevelt blvd trail is really such ASHAME, literally SUCH A SHAME BECAUSE SOOOOOOO many people from the northeast could have took that line and the people who go to the mall wouldn’t have to consider that buses now, take FOREVER getting out and back just to go to the Franklin mills mall,none the less taking TWO buses just to get out there. That was literally a waste of digging. The other train trails sounded outdated for what they were now, but the bridge is such a shame. They should take it and turn it into a hiking trail instead. So much infrastructure left untouched and rotting for no reason which could be utilized to profit septa if they would PUT their heads the fuck together. If modernization wanted to expand, and Philadelphia wanted to attract more tourist, they would try to figure out a way to reach people at a further distance that can make it accessible by utilizing the trails dug already and work around it to make it for modern day use. But meanwhile they just spent 2.6 billion dollars on septa to redecorate the train stations and put new cars in. 🥹🥹🥹this is what I pay taxes for. Oh n these CRATER POTHOLES!
I enjoyed your video. I have lived in Philadelphia for over 50 years now, I can tell you that a tunnel under the Art Museum which was to lead to Henry Avenue was built as was the one under Sears on the Roosevelt Boulevard but I couldn't see how far down it went 40 years ago. A friend of mine has worked in the Arch Street tunnel to do inspections more recently.
i enjoy the video but as a philly girl... pretty please ask someone local how to pronounce any names you dont know? please? skool-kill or skoo-kill river, also the expressway that runs next to it .
Also it should be noted that the Subway-Surface Trolley Tunnel was only section of the Darby Elevated ever built. That's why the Market St Subway is 4 tracks from 30th St to 15th Street. Originally the Elevated was suppose to branch off the MFL El at 32nd St and Market but of course it was never built. The current Subway-Surface Tunnel from 30th St to 40th St Portal was a later addition to the subway when University City buried both the El and Trolleys running through their campus. This is why the El and Trolleys seem to rise up in the middle of nowhere in West Philadelphia. Had the Darby El been built, I'm sure it too would've been buried following a similar route to today's Subway-Surface Lines with less sharp curves for bigger subway cars.
I know there is a Trolley portal that goes underground at 36th street between Market and Ludlow but I thought the Trolley and Market-Franford line starts running side by side from 32nd street to the other side of City Hall (called 13th street station though technically it’s under Juniper Street)?
@@drippinglass Yes. Prior to the mid-1950s it came up at 24th St. and ran above ground, looping around 30th St. Station. The tunnel was extended under the river to about 40th St. where it now comes up. There are some cool videos available.
Roosevelt Blvd Subway is now gaining traction to actually being funded for construction due to the I95 highway collapse last month emphasizing the need for additional transit alternatives for the area. I think with the right planning, in the future we could even see more Subway/EL/Trolley lines being built in the city
say it with me sk-yull-kill i don't blame you for the mispronunciation, I just had to point it out lmao I love watching people that aren't from philly try to say our words
Having grown up in NYC I never appreciate the Subway. Once I moved to the Philly burbs I was surprised at the diversity of the SEPTA system. The use of regional rail, surface light rail and Subway-El lines is now appreciated. SEPTA needs to extend the Broad St line into the NE neighborhood.
As a Philly native, I can tell you that isn't really necessary. The Fern Rock transportation center has several buses at the station that will take you straight into the Northeast in no time. Especially since Fern Rock is already close to the Northeast. Not to mention, you also have the Frankford Line
Former mayor,Frank Rizzo, decided that he liked a 1.8 mile commuter tunnel OVER a 12mile Roosevelt Blvd subway extension 100% paid for by the U.S. government. Go figure. That is what you get when Philadelphia residents elected a high school educated ex-cop. This is ALL fact and VERY sad.
Very interesting, but it would have been helpful to have more maps showing where each section is within the city as you introduce it. Showing the location with a visual is much more effective than just giving the intersecting streets nearby.
I have lived and educated in Philadelphia for 17 years. I relied on public transportation until the cost of public transportation is much higher than owning a car. I remember when I first introduced to public transportation in 1972 the bus fare was 35 cents and 40cents with transfer 5 cents to subway or L train. In 1980, the cost went for $2.75 and went up so I brought my first car. I think Philadelphia was one was the great model city in the model time compared to the largest city in the world! My mother brought a home in Southern Philadelphia near the air port. My family member went to the top school in Philadelphia.
My favorite example of abandoned subways is the Franklin Station on the Patco line. It's right after the Ben Franklin Bridge and is very spooky and cool. Not as dramatic a story, it was just never a profitable station and thus shut down
That's always been one of my favorites too. It's super cool going from the lofty heights of the ben franklin then down into the darkness past franklin square!
It was opened and closed 4 times, and is apparently readying for another re-opening now. There's just nowhere to go from that station once you exit it, although the new proposal has a new exit at 7th and Race which might make it a little bit useful, but what it would really need is connecting rail service of some sort. Maybe they could build an underground walkway to BSL, although 8th & Market already provides that connection, and it's not that far away.
Interesting information, but would have benefitted from video evidence of most of the things you were talking about, like "looking to the right when leaving the station and you will see an empty space..." and then showing us that space.
I have taken the Philadelphia subway system. There's s line that ran from the 30th Street Railroad Station into Center City that left me off within a block of the hotel I was staying at. That was very convenient .i took another line one to Levittown.
@@madelynmorgan2999 Yes. I can never understand how people think the two systems are somehow connected when they don't have the same cars or tracks. P.S. I'm sure you meant Frankford. I'm betting it's from -Autocorrect- Autocorrupt.
I had no idea there was a Passyunk spur proposed. I remember riding the Broad street subway and many times wondering what the extra space was near Snyder.
If you ride the orange line you can see tracks that go upward to a different place. Some are abandoned stations others are old opening. I've always wonder what they were
I drove the subway for almost 25 years recently retired in February those old openings was supposed to lead to other parts of the city like once the train left Erie and it veered to the left as you can see you have tracks going up towards hunting Park then it curves to the right to continue up to Roosevelt Boulevard also At olney station you had tracks that went up and towards the left that took you over to Grange that part of the line was supposed to go up Cheltenham Avenue towards Ogontz I forgot also at Erie they had tracks that was supposed to take you up to Chestnut Hill The subway was also supposed to go into the Navy Yard there’s a tunnel beyond Patterson station which is now covered up that goes all the way to the Navy Yard and the other tunnel was on the lower level of Patterson
@@larrymcneil8038 I’ve always wondered what that extra station under Patterson was used for I was always told it was for extra trains to pull into when there was a game at the Wells Fargo Center
@@dantelaws yes they used to store extra trains down on a lower level during the Eagles games we had about 13 trippers Then they also used to use the lower level for train service while the upper level was occupied with stored trains they don’t use the lower level anymore most of the time revenue will use the lower level while line trains use the upper level
@@larrymcneil8038 wow that’s so interesting my mother also worked at the Navy Yard so I used to go down there after school a lot. I never knew that the train originally went into the Navy Yard. I always found it weird that there was so much extra track at the end of Pattinson and wondered why the train never went down there
Thanks. I enjoyed watching this piece of our city history. I believe that subways weren't built on Roosevelt Blvd because of the water or river that use to run through it. Many houses sunk years ago that were on the boulevard.
As a native Philadelphian, I will give you a lesson on some pronunciations that you have butchered: Schuykill; Skoo-kill Olney; All-nee Passyunk: Pass-Shunk
I went to the US for the first time 5 years ago and had a chance to visit Philly ;-) it was awesome! I rowed on the Schuylkill and learned the correct pronounciation. This guy doesn’t do research into pronounciation - just the history. I have given him a tip how to pronounce ‘beaux arts’ (BOZAR from French) but he still says: BOW ARTS…. In several videos.😬 A creator who doesn’t interact with the audience who wants to help in a friendly manner must have an huge ego… or must be really ignorant. Unfortunately the content suffers as a result. Well… at least our ears are. It just comes off as unprofessional 🤷🏻♂️🤗
Don't forget Acaa Me for Acme Markets and Pavement for sidewalk. The front steps were the stoops. When I was a kid living in Philadelphia in the 1950's the Acme Market was the American Store, a little corner grocery store. Remember the Penn Fruit super markets?
Hello from the UK. This is the second video of your that I have watched. It is fascinating and yet another tale of how people of vision get side lined by the politics of short sightedness. I have used public rail and underground services for many years as an efficient way of getting around London and between city centres. I think that in the US there is still a real dislike of public transport and where people would rather take three times as long to get somewhere in their car.
@Jeremy Preece I'm glad you see the real smoke that continues to exist as to why public transit gets a negative nod; I'm from New York City and opinions continue to swirl around shaming every tropical storms/ hurricanes/ typhoons/ tornadoes. . .I could go on, the poi t of the matter is that I support public transportation despite idiosyncrasies-every thing is not exactly 💯%, but it IS efficient; there was once a slogan for New Jersey's public transit: "Public Transportstion: use it or lose it", and another for Georgia's public transit (i.e. Savannah's bus system): "Be in the know before you go"; the folks who depend something on their cars for a 3•hour trip (traffic woes, construction, road closures, etc.) ALWAYS forget what it's like to "depend" on public transportation regardless of problems.
It's the US view of "free-dumb". We lost funding for a metro line near where I live because people voted down a 2% tax to pay for it. Instead they burn up that much and more petrol sitting on a clogged motorway.
On the map at 10:00 you will see a thick, vertical purple line that starts at the 69th Street Terminal (bottom) and ends at the Norristown TC (Transportation Center, top). The purple line crosses a thin, horizontal black line which happens to be both a SEPTA regional rail route AND the classic "Main Line" AMTRAK (formerly Pennsylvania RR) route that connects Philadelphia to Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, and Chicago. Near where they cross you will see each line has a "Radnor" station. One might think that an escalator in Radnor would allow you to quickly change trains as would be possible on the Paris Metro or London "Tube" systems. *THAT WOULD BE A BIG NOPE* - the two "Radnor" stations are hundreds of yards apart and there isn't even a stairway or platforms at the cross point. This is an example of what Southeast Pennsylvania needs to overcome to create a first-class commuter network out of its ancient patchwork of rail rights-of-way.
When I was younger I've been in an empty abandoned subway station. My friends did graffiti and I would join them. I forget how we got into them but it was weird. This must have been where I was.
The Henry Avenue Bridge is a beautiful site in the fall. He also didn't mention the station on the broad Ridge spur right after the Fairmount Park stop is an abandoned station that they're thinking about reopening. It looks like old ghost town when you're right past it
Interesting information. I was wondering how you can say "I'm not from the area" by not saying your not from the area. You figured it out. "Skeegal river"
I'm just wondering why is there a clip on this video of the rapid transit line from Vancouver British Columbia Canada its 7:23 minutes into this video. I'm from Vancouver British Columbia Canada and I'm not sure why this transit line has to do with the transit system in Philly?
@@brenndenpodgorski3717 you have just said a mouth full there my friend! As I text you right now I am waiting over 20 minutes for the mfl that according to SEPTA's schedule, there should be a train every 5 minutes!
The entrance to the Roosevelt Blvd subway is still visible on the southbound side of the blvd before you reach Adams Ave. It is blocked off but it is still there....
@@mklinger23 and after watching the video throughout, the Roosevelt Blvd extension would've helped out alot, since that area is notorious for numerous accidents. Plus, if all of those Broad Street/Market-Frankford Line extensions were built when they were supposed to be, we would've given the New York City Subway some serious competition.
When I was a little boy in the '50s, I rode the Market St. line from 69th St. to 13th St. at least twice a week. The transit company was called the PTC (Philadelphia Transit Co.). I still remember their tokens that would release the turnstile as you enter the "El" (Elevated" station. At 13th St station the "El" was underground.
I'm just old enough to remember the PTC. I have fond memories of the green-and-cream paint scheme on their PCC trolleys. At least by the early 1960s the PTC was so messed up that today's SEPTA looks good by comparison. In fact SEPTA was created because the PTC was on the verge of collapse.
I grew up near Sears on Roosevelt blvd . 60’sand 70’s ..at the intersections of Roosevelt blvd and Whitaker ave and Adams ave there was a tunnel under the 12 lanes of traffic on the Blvd …in the center of that tunnel was the subway station it had a roll down security gate that you could see thru and there was a ticket window, turn styles and subway tracks that were 6 feet deep ..since then that space has been cinder blocked off ..but it’s there
I remember you could walk from the El at 30th and Market to Amtrak Underground. I also remember when the Broad Street 8th and Market spur used to stop at Spring Garden. Do any of you guys remember that open forum.🤔
Do a dive into the abandoned subway cars found in Newark New Jersey when they tore down the public service building in downtown Newark New Jersey. I recall this as I was walking a beat when it happened! Maybe the early 80s or late 70s. They were found in an abandoned subway station under the building!
Killer video upload... Great old photos blended in...I'll be sharing it... :)..As a native of the city for more than 50 years, hearing your pronunciation of Schuylkill Is funny...Phonetically it's pronounced; skool-kull...One of the words we learn to spell in grade school... And Passyunk is Passy-unk...:)
There’s been (4) attempts to start to build the Roosevelt line not just (2). Also, there’s just a station under the old Sears property not any actual tunnels.
It's not forgotten to me because I rode it for years...it started in 1968...I started at 13 yrs old...much much older now...lol...and when they had made the extension my foster father worked on that...use to run the tracks from Erie station...where they had a private station between there and Huntington Park...
An okay video....but I find it annoying that this guy is NOT FROM PHILLY!! I am a native N.Y.er but was raised here for the last 40 years!! I worked for S.E.P.T.A. as a bus mechanic for 14 years and had a friend that worked in the track department and told me a lot about the wasted underground tracks I'm surprised he didn't mention the stretch of the Market Frankford El track that was cut off and 46th and Market that would be rerouted underground the track used to stretch all the way down Market street to Center City was cut off at that point of Market st. in 1956! There was also a lot of WASTED track on the trolley lines 23 and 56 that was installed in the early ''90's but NEVER USED!! S.E.P.T.A. is notorious for WASTING MILLIONS of dollars on unfinished projects while fighting with it's union and it's members there are many stories of lawsuits theft graft outsourcing of routes scams with contracts with train and bus manufactures ...the company has been MESSY for a LONG TIME...but keep the videos coming the history is still interesting!!
@ITS HISTORY thank you for another great video about one of my favorite places on Earth. Truth be told, prior to August, 2020, every visit to Philadelphia was one during which I walked everywhere. However, during my August, 2020 visit, cabs, Ubers and various SEPTA buses were a regular part of my visit. The same for August, 2021, but in both, as well as August, 2022, a few subway train rides were a part of my visit. Although there were more train rides last August, but more bus rides for sure in August, 2021. I shall not deny there is a part of me who would be open to exploring these ghost tunnels, if that was an option. But if I encounter an actual ghost shows up, I have no doubt all of PENNSYLVANIA shall hear me scream!
You should research cinncinati and it's abandoned subway plans, it has tunnels and everything like Philly but never came about, also union terminal is something to research too
I worked on a septa project re doing the city hall el stop and stumbled on some of these abandoned lines and it was so cool and creepy at the same time under there
Skee cale river .later was changed to Schuylkill River .We still have some of the old bridges . even though the had replaced some bridges in the 60's.I was raised here and still can't believe how Philadelphia has since I was a kid.
I disagree with you about the charm of Philadelphia being its Urban decay. I'm not a Philadelphia native, but I have lived there for a year and a half now, and my girlfriend has lived there for more than a decade. I am from Baltimore City originally and Baltimore's Urban decay is far more significant than Philadelphia's. When I first moved to Philadelphia, the first thing that struck me was how much of a better version of Baltimore City it was in many ways. Also how different it was from Baltimore city, in that it had so much less Urban decay. The Urban decay is there, and recognizable to anyone who has lived in in American city. Urban decay is rampant in the US, but the charm of Philadelphia is not the decay, it's What the residents do to combat the decay and make Philadelphia a more hospitable place to live for the residents and visitors in my opinion
I lived in Philly for 20 years and never heard of the Skeecale River
As soon as I heard that I laughed and thought, okay this guy isn't from around here.
Skool - Kill River
Also "Passy - Yunk"
I'll just pile on and add that SEPTA is the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority 💀 SKOO kull 😎
Skully kill.
As a Philadelphian, he butchered so many words in this video.
yeah, go eat one of your nasty cheese steaks
I’m from New York I say stuff differently
To be fair, some aren’t the easiest to pronounce
He did, but just appreciate the video. How’s he supposed to know?
@@nicksacco5041 olney and rising sun isn't so hard
As a born and raised Philadelphian I really appreciate this video keep up the good work
I lived in Philly all my life & I appreciate our "Transit Lore" As a guy in my mid 40s I never knew the original name before SEPTA was "PRT". I also find fascinating that Roosevelt Boulevard had train tunnels that leads to Center City (Downtown). I know about the abandoned underground stations when you ride the "Ridge-Spur" express. But this video is good history.....thanks for the upload.....♦️♣️❤🖤♠️♦️♣️❤🖤♠️
The names of the system kept changing due to bankruptcies; PRT (Phila Rapid Transit) became PTC (Phila Transportation Corp) became SEPTA (Southeast PA Transportation Authority) which, unlike the companies that ran the lines prior to the ...um...1960's (?) is a quasi-governmental agency. When SEPTA was formed it absorbed the PTC and the Red Arrow Lines (which ran public transit west of the city). When the Penn Central and Reading Railroads went bust the long distance lines were formed into Amtrak and the local lines were absorbed by SEPTA giving us the infamous "Paoli Local." This resulted in an agency which runs the Broad St Subway, the El, buses, trolleys, trackless trolleys, and trains. I hear they'll be adding roller skates soon!
@@joelressner9651 Wow, everything you mentioned gave me phila transit history simple & clear. Here's a thought I was scrolling thru the comments today & there was dialog about the "Ghost Tunnels".on Ben Franklin Bridge. Which you can clearly see it when you travel.on the PATCO. Well one person mentioned in the upcoming 2023, I read Philly planning to revitalizing the "Ghost Tunnels" that will link the Ben Franklin to the Frankford - Market EL. Also Philly planning to add another Transit company rivaling SEPTA. Which I find great...another transit company would make suburban & the city access more vast, cuts driving & gas cost, keep SEPTA on there toes opposing them to strike every 2 to 3 years over contract disputes. Ultimately better for the environment. If New Yourk City & Los Angeles can have multiple bus lines. So why can't we ? ❤♥️♠️♣️♦️🖤❤♥️♠️
@@Notorious_G.O.D_76 Contracts are a legacy problem for SEPTA because former PTC-line employees have a separate contract from former Red Arrow line employees. (OK -- I'm not sure if this is still true. Anyone know?) The 2nd Ave subway in NYC demonstrates the enormous cost of drilling a new subway in an inhabited area,
There used to be train lines along the river. An extension of the El from Bridge/Pratt to the river could be build and those lines could be incorporated into the system.
Note: you cannot get to heaven on the Frankford El.
My dad grew up in Norristown and is in his 60s, when the NHSL was called the P and W to him.
@@Ranixo286 That's Awesome......your dad certainly is knowledgeable in our transit system....
It’s well understood that the NYC subway system was absolutely pivotal to its growth. And, they’re literally iconic. There’s people around the world who daydream of riding those grimey pieces of image. I wouldn’t be surprised if Philly could have at least 4m population if not more than NYC if they just didn’t sell out to GM and Ford so quickly.
However that lower population, in a still large population, also makes it uniquely viable to become a national hotbed for bike infrastructure and electric public transit if cards are played right.
As a New Yorker who grew up there during the Mad Men era, you are absolutely right. Of the 5 boroughs of NYC with Staten Island across the Lower New York Bay you can travel to all other boroughs by subway without traffic jams. In the 1960s the fastest way to Radio City Music Hall was by subway by the F Queens Boulevard express via the 6th Avenue subway to the 47th Street Radio City Music Hall station. The fare was 15 cents for subway and bus separately. In Old NYC in Old America.
@@luislaplume8261 Among the many places I've lived is Toronto, which has an excellent public transit system. Their advertising slogan was on the order of "we can get you there", And, they could! The subway, trolley, and bus routes enabled me to go anywhere in the city. SEPTA, on the other hand, seems to miss the mark on connectivity, especially with regional rail in the suburbs. If you got off the train at Exton, a major area in Chester County, you were stuck there even though a bus went right by it. The bus now stops at the train station increasing the connectivity of the system.
It would benefit Philly greatly if SEPTA execs were assigned two neighborhoods at random and tried to get from A to B. If they can't get within walking distance on SEPTA only, then it's time for a re-think of the system.
@@joelressner9651 Most executives in Transit Agencies are political hacks who know next to nothing about moving people. For example the Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigeig aka Pete Butt Plug, who was the Mayor of South Bend and was good for nothing in that small city. The best services in my old hometown of NYC were done by private businesses that had their executives have a hands on policy of riding with the public and motorman an conductors of elevated trains, subway trains and trolleys. The private companies were the IRT, BMT, of NYC until 1940 when the NYC government bought them .
There is an abandoned station at 6th and Vine, right at the foot of the Ben Franklin Bridge. The suspension bridge connects Philly to Camden, NJ and was completed in 1925; as shown on your maps, a subway/surface (PATCO) line crosses the bridge . However, by the time the bridge and train line was completed, the automobile had become much more ubiquitous, and the 6th and Vine station was abandoned. The rest of the line PATCO line uses half of the center city loop that was actually built: from 8th street through 16th and Spruce.
I believe there is a ghost station inside the BF bridge itself. It was supposed to connect with the Frankford El. When you ride the El when it passes under the bridge you can see the doors that are the entrance to the station.
The city has planned to revive the station they've already started on making a stairwell down to it
It’s spooky riding the PATCO lines through the ghost stations!
They should use it
It’s Franklin square and will reopen 2023
Such a damn shame that public transit in this country is considered unimportant, and when they are forced to consider it, they insist on using dirty diesel buses instead of clean electric streetcars and trolley buses.
I couldn't agree more
Are you sure about that, I thought they had CNG and other types of busses all around.
@@pgtmr2713 They do indeed exist, but most transit systems insist on diesel.
Public transit in the US is pathetic. It’s embarrassing.
@@JohnCap523 I'll never understand this. If YOU want buses GO where they have buses. Then we don't have to make more buses and build infrastructure no one will use. Be the change.
I've lived here for 45 years and the only abandoned station I've seen is on the 8th and Market train, but I have heard of the Roosevelt Blvd addition never knew the actual station was there. Great video!
The station was in the basement of the Sears parking garage on the boulevard. It may still be down there, sealed by surface paving.
@@joelressner9651 I had no idea about the Passyunk Spur train that was proposed, as I frequently visit the Tasker-Morris area since I go to a gun range that's not too far from there.
Adams and the Blvd.
Great video, my father who worked in the city his whole life (died of old age in the 70s) use to tell me about the old empty subway systems under the city.
Great video, very informative. You butchered the Schuylkill and Passyunk pronunciations tho dude lmfao
Can you do video about trolley parks in Philadelphia, particularly Willow Grove Park? Willow Grove Park was open from 1896-1976 and was built by the People's Traction Company who built a line out there. The park continued to operate well after trolley service ended in 1958. It closed after the 1976 season and was demolished to make room for the Willow Grove Park Mall which opened in 1982.
It would be neat to see more about these lines. They would extend as far as even doylestown and there is still a small section of rail at Edison ferlong and 611. It’s also interesting that those lines that headed up from the city to the willow grove park shaped some of the roads we use today like along jenkintown , Tyson and edge hill rds
Historical Preservation Commissioner here.
Can you share your knowledge.
Intrigued.
@@noxirs7059 Back when trolleys and interurban lines were the more prevalent in the U.S certain street car lines built parks in far flung communities to encourage ridership on the lines on the weekends especially. These parks often had a few rides, games and other amusements. Willow Grove Park was one such park. it's earliest signature feature was the fountain which was lit up with colored electric lights (the base of the fountain is still visible in the lake). Over the years more rides and attractions were added. There was a band shell that for years was visited by famous band leader John Phillip Sousa who performed at the park from 1901 to 1926. Their also was a bike track for brief time that held the national bike racing championship in either 1898 or 1899. One of the most distinguishing feature was The Matterhorn. A large rollercoaster that went in and around a plaster mountain that stood out like Cinderella's Castle in the Disney Park. My Great Uncle Arthur Scolari came to Willow Grove Park in 1940 to partake in the Horseshoe Pitching Championship of North America, which he won at the age of 15 . Sadly by the 1960s most people were going to corporate theme parks such as Disneyland and Six Flags, thanks in part to commercial airliners, the interstate system, and the popularity of the car, the park declined before closing for good after the 1975 season. It was left abandoned for a few years till it was cleared for the mall and shopping center that was built on the site in 1982. There was the largest bowling alley in the world. 116 lanes and four restaurants that outlasted the park but to was replaced by the shopping center, as it wasn't doing well, most likely due the lanes being warped due to the high water table. For a more in-depth history check out this link.
th-cam.com/video/FIYtP-J-4ws/w-d-xo.html
@@andrewscolari5724 Bill Cosby had a piece about going to Willow Grove Park, featuring the wooden roller coaster "eaten by termites" and his brother Roland getting sick on it. Absolutely brilliant stuff. I personally rode on that coaster. The whole structure shook, terrorizing the riders. I went later, when it was Six Gun Territory, and the place was really run down with many rides broken by that point.
Willow Grove Park was one of many terminal parks built by trolley companies to get riders onto their trolleys on the weekends.
i remember going to Woodside Park on my 8th grade trip from St. Veronica's School in 1951. We took a trolley to a point where we boarded an open sided trolley. We crossed the Schuykill River via the Strawberry Mansion Bridge. I recall sitting on the end of the bench and noting there was only air between me and the river far below! If you drive over the bridge now you can see the support structure extending from the North (I think) side of the bridge.This is where the tracks were located. They are gone now. I was always amazed there were no accidents. Woodside Park was demolished and houses built there..............
I worked in city hall
In the basement and sub basement and there’s like random small doors that lead to secret tunnels and abandon rail lines. Philadelphia city hall is amazing. They have jail cells in the basement so much cool history
Sounds awesome!
Some of those tunnels may access PECO's steam loop, which heats a lot of the buildings in Center City.
I'm learning something new here
Watch the movie 12 monkeys.
Very interesting stuff. As a former resident who grew up in Philly and always loved the rail systems as my main source of traveling through many of the areas you mentioned ,this story is a gem. Thank you!😊
Great Video. It's the SkooKill River.
Most of these TH-camrs live over a 1000 miles away and have never visited the areas
My great uncle Norman worked for the PTC on trolley cars at there barn repairing them. My Grandpa worked for Harbisons Dairy as a Milk Man, he used a horse. Going up and down North Philadelphia during the 20’s to the 50’s.
Thanks for the information. Half of these subway lines I never heard of. Septa/City definitely should open up the subway on Roosevelt Blvd. That area is so busy, such a distance, and would move faster since 1/3 of the traffic is underground.
would also probably cut down on the car accidents that happen around that section
There are many train stations in the suburbs that connected to Philadelphia and they shut them down. It would help so many ppl if they were still open and prob bring some money into the city. I live in north philly and this city has so many issues and I feel like there's so many things they could do but they just sleep on it all.
They definitely slept on the potential here I'm in Germantown the regional helps but still missed opportunities
there are stations that should be shut down and stay shut down. Chester transportation center comes to mind. when you get off as bus/trolley and have to have full riot gear, military grade pepper spray a full automatic weapon to hold the panhandlers,junkies and drug dealers at bay yea its time to put that station down
Very interesting video! For a transit enthusiast like me Philadelphia is an especially fascinating city. I noticed an error though at 7:22; the Market St. elevated is illustrated by a recent clip of Vancouver, Canada's elevated metro!
😸😸😹😹 Socash slipped that one past most of us. I saw that clip and had to stop and rewind
😂
He forgot the purple flash too!
@@kateapple1 What's that?
For Philly to become its new version of a 21st century city, it would be very interesting when these old plans will see a second life.
Let me start off by saying that this was a wonderfully prepared video segment on something that has fascinated me in all my years living in Philadelphia. So thank you so much. The extension of the Broad Street Line to be connected to Adams Ave & Roosevelt Blvd in fact actually still does exist and was not demolished in 1994 when the massive Sears facility on the boulevard was brought down. Above ground at the intersection of Adam and Roosevelt right in the middle median still sit the exhaust ventilation ducks for the ghost station and there are also metal ventilation ports along Adam’s Ave where the previous Sears above ground parking garage was located, but underneath it existed access pathways to the uncompleted station that got sealed off. In addition an underground pathway was built connecting pedestrians on either side of the boulevard from being able to access the station and safely get across the frantic 12 lanes. Proof of the walkway physically still exists but was cemented shut about 20 years ago. Fascinating stuff and a forgotten history of underground Philadelphia.
That Roosevelt blvd trail is really such ASHAME, literally SUCH A SHAME BECAUSE SOOOOOOO many people from the northeast could have took that line and the people who go to the mall wouldn’t have to consider that buses now, take FOREVER getting out and back just to go to the Franklin mills mall,none the less taking TWO buses just to get out there. That was literally a waste of digging. The other train trails sounded outdated for what they were now, but the bridge is such a shame. They should take it and turn it into a hiking trail instead. So much infrastructure left untouched and rotting for no reason which could be utilized to profit septa if they would PUT their heads the fuck together. If modernization wanted to expand, and Philadelphia wanted to attract more tourist, they would try to figure out a way to reach people at a further distance that can make it accessible by utilizing the trails dug already and work around it to make it for modern day use. But meanwhile they just spent 2.6 billion dollars on septa to redecorate the train stations and put new cars in. 🥹🥹🥹this is what I pay taxes for. Oh n these CRATER POTHOLES!
Ugh we gotta figure out our crime issue first, unfortunately it's gonna take a generation or two
Philadelphia mills mall now.
Philly is a democrat city, Id be surprised if you see your local government do anything useful on the forseeable future lmao
@@ryanparker4996 ahh that's dumb thinking, there's a lot of good projects in the works regardless of political stance
@@deluca9805 you wanna see your city improve then stop voting blue. Those people dont actually care about you.
My dad drove 40 years for PTC and SEPTA. Wish he were here to show and discuss this. Interesting Philly history.
I enjoyed your video. I have lived in Philadelphia for over 50 years now, I can tell you that a tunnel under the Art Museum which was to lead to Henry Avenue was built as was the one under Sears on the Roosevelt Boulevard but I couldn't see how far down it went 40 years ago. A friend of mine has worked in the Arch Street tunnel to do inspections more recently.
7:22 Vancouver Skytrain stock footage for a Philly subway video???
i enjoy the video but as a philly girl... pretty please ask someone local how to pronounce any names you dont know? please?
skool-kill or skoo-kill river, also the expressway that runs next to it .
Should of included the clip of the eagles fan running into the subway pole 😂
Also it should be noted that the Subway-Surface Trolley Tunnel was only section of the Darby Elevated ever built. That's why the Market St Subway is 4 tracks from 30th St to 15th Street. Originally the Elevated was suppose to branch off the MFL El at 32nd St and Market but of course it was never built. The current Subway-Surface Tunnel from 30th St to 40th St Portal was a later addition to the subway when University City buried both the El and Trolleys running through their campus. This is why the El and Trolleys seem to rise up in the middle of nowhere in West Philadelphia. Had the Darby El been built, I'm sure it too would've been buried following a similar route to today's Subway-Surface Lines with less sharp curves for bigger subway cars.
I know there is a Trolley portal that goes underground at 36th street between Market and Ludlow but I thought the Trolley and Market-Franford line starts running side by side from 32nd street to the other side of City Hall (called 13th street station though technically it’s under Juniper Street)?
@@szwakyd The Shared Tunnel from 22nd St to 32nd Stwas part of the University City Extension of the Tunnel.
@@CaseysTrains Does it go under the Sckulkill river?
@@drippinglass Yes. Prior to the mid-1950s it came up at 24th St. and ran above ground, looping around 30th St. Station. The tunnel was extended under the river to about 40th St. where it now comes up.
There are some cool videos available.
Roosevelt Blvd Subway is now gaining traction to actually being funded for construction due to the I95 highway collapse last month emphasizing the need for additional transit alternatives for the area. I think with the right planning, in the future we could even see more Subway/EL/Trolley lines being built in the city
say it with me
sk-yull-kill
i don't blame you for the mispronunciation, I just had to point it out lmao I love watching people that aren't from philly try to say our words
Having grown up in NYC I never appreciate the Subway. Once I moved to the Philly burbs I was surprised at the diversity of the SEPTA system. The use of regional rail, surface light rail and Subway-El lines is now appreciated. SEPTA needs to extend the Broad St line into the NE neighborhood.
As a Philly native, I can tell you that isn't really necessary. The Fern Rock transportation center has several buses at the station that will take you straight into the Northeast in no time. Especially since Fern Rock is already close to the Northeast. Not to mention, you also have the Frankford Line
Lets not forget strikes and high prices.
Great video. Except you fudged the river’s name. Its the Skook or the skook-kill or Skook-cull.
Glad someone already fixed that. It was driving me nuts and I had to stop the video to comment on it.
Came here to say this, too. Lol
With NE Philly being the largest part of the city both in land mass and population I hope the Roosevelt blvd subway come into fruition.
Former mayor,Frank Rizzo, decided that he liked a 1.8 mile commuter tunnel OVER a 12mile Roosevelt Blvd subway extension 100% paid for by the U.S. government. Go figure. That is what you get when Philadelphia residents elected a high school educated ex-cop. This is ALL fact and VERY sad.
Very interesting, but it would have been helpful to have more maps showing where each section is within the city as you introduce it. Showing the location with a visual is much more effective than just giving the intersecting streets nearby.
I have lived and educated in Philadelphia for 17 years. I relied on public transportation until the cost of public transportation is much higher than owning a car. I remember when I first introduced to public transportation in 1972 the bus fare was 35 cents and 40cents with transfer 5 cents to subway or L train. In 1980, the cost went for $2.75 and went up so I brought my first car. I think Philadelphia was one was the great model city in the model time compared to the largest city in the world! My mother brought a home in Southern Philadelphia near the air port. My family member went to the top school in Philadelphia.
Thanks for showing NYC subway footage in the Phila. subway video. 9:44.
My favorite example of abandoned subways is the Franklin Station on the Patco line. It's right after the Ben Franklin Bridge and is very spooky and cool. Not as dramatic a story, it was just never a profitable station and thus shut down
That's always been one of my favorites too. It's super cool going from the lofty heights of the ben franklin then down into the darkness past franklin square!
It was opened and closed 4 times, and is apparently readying for another re-opening now. There's just nowhere to go from that station once you exit it, although the new proposal has a new exit at 7th and Race which might make it a little bit useful, but what it would really need is connecting rail service of some sort. Maybe they could build an underground walkway to BSL, although 8th & Market already provides that connection, and it's not that far away.
Finalllyyyyy a video about Philly history on YT!
Is this sarcasm?
I learned a lot from this. However, the story would not be complete without the role of the auto and oil industries. Philadelp
Interesting information, but would have benefitted from video evidence of most of the things you were talking about, like "looking to the right when leaving the station and you will see an empty space..." and then showing us that space.
I have taken the Philadelphia subway system. There's s line that ran from the 30th Street Railroad Station into Center City that left me off within a block of the hotel I was staying at. That was very convenient .i took another line one to Levittown.
you took the market frankfort line to CC, and regional rail to levittown
@@madelynmorgan2999 Yes. I can never understand how people think the two systems are somehow connected when they don't have the same cars or tracks.
P.S. I'm sure you meant Frankford. I'm betting it's from -Autocorrect- Autocorrupt.
I haven’t lived in Philly since 2014. I appreciate this video. You’ve got a new subscriber.
I had no idea there was a Passyunk spur proposed. I remember riding the Broad street subway and many times wondering what the extra space was near Snyder.
I am a born and raised Philadelphian and I had NO idea about the Roosevelt line. That would have been AMAZING!!!!
If you ride the orange line you can see tracks that go upward to a different place. Some are abandoned stations others are old opening. I've always wonder what they were
I drove the subway for almost 25 years recently retired in February those old openings was supposed to lead to other parts of the city like once the train left Erie and it veered to the left as you can see you have tracks going up towards hunting Park then it curves to the right to continue up to Roosevelt Boulevard also At olney station you had tracks that went up and towards the left that took you over to Grange that part of the line was supposed to go up Cheltenham Avenue towards Ogontz I forgot also at Erie they had tracks that was supposed to take you up to Chestnut Hill The subway was also supposed to go into the Navy Yard there’s a tunnel beyond Patterson station which is now covered up that goes all the way to the Navy Yard and the other tunnel was on the lower level of Patterson
@@larrymcneil8038 I’ve always wondered what that extra station under Patterson was used for I was always told it was for extra trains to pull into when there was a game at the Wells Fargo Center
@@dantelaws yes they used to store extra trains down on a lower level during the Eagles games we had about 13 trippers Then they also used to use the lower level for train service while the upper level was occupied with stored trains they don’t use the lower level anymore most of the time revenue will use the lower level while line trains use the upper level
@@larrymcneil8038 wow that’s so interesting my mother also worked at the Navy Yard so I used to go down there after school a lot. I never knew that the train originally went into the Navy Yard. I always found it weird that there was so much extra track at the end of Pattinson and wondered why the train never went down there
@@larrymcneil8038 I’m have trouble understanding your last sentence “most of the time revenue will use the lower level…”. Revenue?
Thanks. I enjoyed watching this piece of our city history. I believe that subways weren't built on Roosevelt Blvd because of the water or river that use to run through it. Many houses sunk years ago that were on the boulevard.
Another awesome video with expert narration. I'm glad I subscribed
As a native Philadelphian, I will give you a lesson on some pronunciations that you have butchered:
Schuykill; Skoo-kill
Olney; All-nee
Passyunk: Pass-Shunk
I went to the US for the first time 5 years ago and had a chance to visit Philly ;-) it was awesome! I rowed on the Schuylkill and learned the correct pronounciation. This guy doesn’t do research into pronounciation - just the history.
I have given him a tip how to pronounce ‘beaux arts’ (BOZAR from French) but he still says: BOW ARTS…. In several videos.😬
A creator who doesn’t interact with the audience who wants to help in a friendly manner must have an huge ego… or must be really ignorant. Unfortunately the content suffers as a result. Well… at least our ears are. It just comes off as unprofessional 🤷🏻♂️🤗
Thank you because he annihilated those pronunciations.
Don't forget Acaa Me for Acme Markets and Pavement for sidewalk. The front steps were the stoops. When I was a kid living in Philadelphia in the 1950's the Acme Market was the American Store, a little corner grocery store. Remember the Penn Fruit super markets?
I straight up didn't know what he was talking about 😭😫😂
I was born in All-nee. You got that right!
Hello from the UK. This is the second video of your that I have watched. It is fascinating and yet another tale of how people of vision get side lined by the politics of short sightedness. I have used public rail and underground services for many years as an efficient way of getting around London and between city centres. I think that in the US there is still a real dislike of public transport and where people would rather take three times as long to get somewhere in their car.
@Jeremy Preece I'm glad you see the real smoke that continues to exist as to why public transit gets a negative nod; I'm from New York City and opinions continue to swirl around shaming every tropical storms/ hurricanes/ typhoons/ tornadoes. . .I could go on, the poi t of the matter is that I support public transportation despite idiosyncrasies-every thing is not exactly 💯%, but it IS efficient; there was once a slogan for New Jersey's public transit: "Public Transportstion: use it or lose it", and another for Georgia's public transit (i.e. Savannah's bus system): "Be in the know before you go"; the folks who depend something on their cars for a 3•hour trip (traffic woes, construction, road closures, etc.) ALWAYS forget what it's like to "depend" on public transportation regardless of problems.
It's the US view of "free-dumb". We lost funding for a metro line near where I live because people voted down a 2% tax to pay for it. Instead they burn up that much and more petrol sitting on a clogged motorway.
THIS DOCUMENTARY WAS SO VERY INTERESTING!!!!!
THANK YOU!!!!
Great report...love the NYC Subway ( entrance ) sign :-)
Great video!!
Im from westphilly and i love trains since i was a kid so this is wonderful to me
I love your channel, great job.
On the map at 10:00 you will see a thick, vertical purple line that starts at the 69th Street Terminal (bottom) and ends at the Norristown TC (Transportation Center, top). The purple line crosses a thin, horizontal black line which happens to be both a SEPTA regional rail route AND the classic "Main Line" AMTRAK (formerly Pennsylvania RR) route that connects Philadelphia to Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, and Chicago. Near where they cross you will see each line has a "Radnor" station. One might think that an escalator in Radnor would allow you to quickly change trains as would be possible on the Paris Metro or London "Tube" systems.
*THAT WOULD BE A BIG NOPE* - the two "Radnor" stations are hundreds of yards apart and there isn't even a stairway or platforms at the cross point. This is an example of what Southeast Pennsylvania needs to overcome to create a first-class commuter network out of its ancient patchwork of rail rights-of-way.
I love your channel! Always very interesting topics and well done videos!
When I was younger I've been in an empty abandoned subway station. My friends did graffiti and I would join them. I forget how we got into them but it was weird. This must have been where I was.
The Henry Avenue Bridge is a beautiful site in the fall. He also didn't mention the station on the broad Ridge spur right after the Fairmount Park stop is an abandoned station that they're thinking about reopening. It looks like old ghost town when you're right past it
Interesting information. I was wondering how you can say "I'm not from the area" by not saying your not from the area. You figured it out. "Skeegal river"
Consulting a local for prononciation guidance might have been a good idea.
Awesome video my friend.
I'm just wondering why is there a clip on this video of the rapid transit line from Vancouver British Columbia Canada its 7:23 minutes into this video. I'm from Vancouver British Columbia Canada and I'm not sure why this transit line has to do with the transit system in Philly?
Those old horse drawn trains where probably faster than what Septa has going for it today!!!
Yeah probably didn't have delays for equipment issues every day 😂
Comment of the year!!! LOL
@@brenndenpodgorski3717 you have just said a mouth full there my friend! As I text you right now I am waiting over 20 minutes for the mfl that according to SEPTA's schedule, there should be a train every 5 minutes!
😂😂😂
Skeecale River had me rolling💀
Passy-unk Ave and Skook-il River
I subscribed when you said “remanant”. More new words please 🍿
😂👏
Norm🍿e
The entrance to the Roosevelt Blvd subway is still visible on the southbound side of the blvd before you reach Adams Ave. It is blocked off but it is still there....
My dad use to work for Septa and he told me that there are a bunch of abandoned stations left over from canceled projects years ago
The Taylor plan is beautiful. I'm hoping it comes to fruition one day.
shame how the politicians fucked all that up and probably pocketed the money for themselves to fund lavish lifestyles
@@DrQuagmire1 100% politicians are why we can't have nice things.
@@mklinger23 and after watching the video throughout, the Roosevelt Blvd extension would've helped out alot, since that area is notorious for numerous accidents. Plus, if all of those Broad Street/Market-Frankford Line extensions were built when they were supposed to be, we would've given the New York City Subway some serious competition.
6:49 skeykal river lol
and 13:12 passunk lmao
When I was a little boy in the '50s, I rode the Market St. line from 69th St. to 13th St. at least twice a week. The transit company was called the PTC (Philadelphia Transit Co.). I still remember their tokens that would release the turnstile as you enter the "El" (Elevated" station. At 13th St station the "El" was underground.
I'm just old enough to remember the PTC. I have fond memories of the green-and-cream paint scheme on their PCC trolleys.
At least by the early 1960s the PTC was so messed up that today's SEPTA looks good by comparison. In fact SEPTA was created because the PTC was on the verge of collapse.
Very educational. And I will carry this into conversation whenever I get the chance.
Great video! Could you do one on the history of New York’s LIRR system?
LIRR and Metro North have so much history.
Greater Video And History is Really True We're Looking For
I grew up near Sears on Roosevelt blvd . 60’sand 70’s ..at the intersections of Roosevelt blvd and Whitaker ave and Adams ave there was a tunnel under the 12 lanes of traffic on the Blvd …in the center of that tunnel was the subway station it had a roll down security gate that you could see thru and there was a ticket window, turn styles and subway tracks that were 6 feet deep ..since then that space has been cinder blocked off ..but it’s there
I live in Philly and I never knew this.. Wow thanks
Anyone know what place that is in the last clip? Starting at 15:19
when the trolleys leave 13th street there's an abandoned track on the right hand side. it looks so eerie.
It’s a pocket track to put a disabled trolley there so to not impede trolley traffic.
@@josephheston9238 oh okay
I remember you could walk from the El at 30th and Market to Amtrak Underground. I also remember when the Broad Street 8th and Market spur used to stop at Spring Garden. Do any of you guys remember that open forum.🤔
Last Saturday I saw where they are reconnecting the El to 30th street station.
Yup. That's how my character gets back into the city on a book I wrote.
Great video. It's nice to hear some of the plans in the making. Chestnut Hill is gonna fight that BSL connection forever. I don't see it happening.
Over 50 years in Philly here. Yes, the tunnels still @ Sears bldg area on Whitaker & blvd & Byberry state hospital tunnels @ so Hampton & the blvd
Do a dive into the abandoned subway cars found in Newark New Jersey when they tore down the public service building in downtown Newark New Jersey. I recall this as I was walking a beat when it happened!
Maybe the early 80s or late 70s. They were found in an abandoned subway station under the building!
Killer video upload... Great old photos blended in...I'll be sharing it... :)..As a native of the city for more than 50 years, hearing your pronunciation of Schuylkill Is funny...Phonetically it's pronounced; skool-kull...One of the words we learn to spell in grade school... And Passyunk is Passy-unk...:)
There’s been (4) attempts to start to build the Roosevelt line not just (2). Also, there’s just a station under the old Sears property not any actual tunnels.
Great video! Very interesting!
6:54 - The WHAT river?!?
It's not forgotten to me because I rode it for years...it started in 1968...I started at 13 yrs old...much much older now...lol...and when they had made the extension my foster father worked on that...use to run the tracks from Erie station...where they had a private station between there and Huntington Park...
Did he ever mention doing any work on the Passyunk Spur near between Tasker and Snyder?
What river was that again??
An okay video....but I find it annoying that this guy is NOT FROM PHILLY!! I am a native N.Y.er but was raised here for the last 40 years!! I worked for S.E.P.T.A. as a bus mechanic for 14 years and had a friend that worked in the track department and told me a lot about the wasted underground tracks I'm surprised he didn't mention the stretch of the Market Frankford El track that was cut off and 46th and Market that would be rerouted underground the track used to stretch all the way down Market street to Center City was cut off at that point of Market st. in 1956! There was also a lot of WASTED track on the trolley lines 23 and 56 that was installed in the early ''90's but NEVER USED!! S.E.P.T.A. is notorious for WASTING MILLIONS of dollars on unfinished projects while fighting with it's union and it's members there are many stories of lawsuits theft graft outsourcing of routes scams with contracts with train and bus manufactures ...the company has been MESSY for a LONG TIME...but keep the videos coming the history is still interesting!!
Is there a possibility to open some of these for transit?
@ITS HISTORY thank you for another great video about one of my favorite places on Earth.
Truth be told, prior to August, 2020, every visit to Philadelphia was one during which I walked everywhere. However, during my August, 2020 visit, cabs, Ubers and various SEPTA buses were a regular part of my visit. The same for August, 2021, but in both, as well as August, 2022, a few subway train rides were a part of my visit. Although there were more train rides last August, but more bus rides for sure in August, 2021.
I shall not deny there is a part of me who would be open to exploring these ghost tunnels, if that was an option.
But if I encounter an actual ghost shows up, I have no doubt all of PENNSYLVANIA shall hear me scream!
You should research cinncinati and it's abandoned subway plans, it has tunnels and everything like Philly but never came about, also union terminal is something to research too
Cleveland has lots of abandoned transportation areas as well
I worked on a septa project re doing the city hall el stop and stumbled on some of these abandoned lines and it was so cool and creepy at the same time under there
People don't know that Philadelphia was once the nations largest city. It was the Federal Capitol before D.C. took it place.
It also was nearly selected as HQ for the United Nations.
I knew. The white house was originally in Philly. In Germantown not too far from where I live
Very well done!! Great research!! Thank you!!!
@ITS HISTORY can you do a similar video about the New York City ghost subway lines
Cool video.
Skee cale river .later was changed to Schuylkill River .We still have some of the old bridges . even though the had replaced some bridges in the 60's.I was raised here and still can't believe how Philadelphia has since I was a kid.
Man this skeekale river sounds really fun, how have I lived here for 14 years and never heard of it! (jokes aside great video!)
I disagree with you about the charm of Philadelphia being its Urban decay. I'm not a Philadelphia native, but I have lived there for a year and a half now, and my girlfriend has lived there for more than a decade. I am from Baltimore City originally and Baltimore's Urban decay is far more significant than Philadelphia's. When I first moved to Philadelphia, the first thing that struck me was how much of a better version of Baltimore City it was in many ways. Also how different it was from Baltimore city, in that it had so much less Urban decay. The Urban decay is there, and recognizable to anyone who has lived in in American city. Urban decay is rampant in the US, but the charm of Philadelphia is not the decay, it's What the residents do to combat the decay and make Philadelphia a more hospitable place to live for the residents and visitors in my opinion
LOL at how you pronounce Schuylkill! :D :D :D