The Trenton Line is a route of the

SEPTA Regional Rail The SEPTA Regional Rail system is a commuter rail network owned by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority and serving the Philadelphia Metropolitan area. The system has 13 branches and more than 150 active stations in Philadelp ...

(

commuter rail Commuter rail, or suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Generally commuter rail systems are con ...

) system. The route serves the northeastern suburbs of

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

with service in

Bucks County Bucks County is a county in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. As of the 2020 census, the population was 646,538, making it the fourth-most populous county in Pennsylvania. Its county seat is Doylestown. The county is named after the English ...

along the

Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for along the borders of New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware, before ...

Trenton, New Jersey Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.30th Street Station 3 (three) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 2 and preceding 4, and is the smallest odd prime number and the only prime preceding a square number. It has religious or cultural significance in many societie ...

via the Philadelphia Zoo (without stopping there), to North Philadelphia, before running parallel to

I-95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the Canadia ...

and then

US 13 U.S. Route 13 (US 13) is a north–south U.S. highway established in 1926 that runs for from Interstate 95 (I-95) just north of Fayetteville, North Carolina to US 1 in the northeastern suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in Morrisville ...

for several miles. It crosses the

Trenton, New Jersey Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784.Trenton Transit Center Trenton Transit Center is the main passenger train station in Trenton, New Jersey. It is the southernmost stop in New Jersey on the Northeast Corridor. It is the terminus for NJ Transit trains to and from New York City and SEPTA Trenton Line ...

, which is also served by

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak () , is the national passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates inter-city rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous U.S. States and nine cities in Canada. ...

and

New Jersey Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit, and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey, along with portions of New York State and Pennsylvania. It operates bu ...

trains. The route is part of the middle leg of Amtrak's

Northeast Corridor The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston through Providence, New Haven, Stamford, New York City, Philadelphia, Wilmington, ...

; all 11 of Amtrak's Northeast Corridor services run along this line. The line's termini, 30th Street and Trenton Transit Center, have long been among the busiest Amtrak stations in the country. On weekdays, Amtrak connections are also available at North Philadelphia and Cornwells Heights. Connecting Trenton Line service is listed in timetables for NJ Transit's Northeast Corridor Line, of which Trenton Transit Center is the southern terminus.

History

Electrified service between Philadelphia and Trenton began on June 29, 1930. Between 1984–2010 the route was designated R7 Trenton as part of SEPTA's diametrical reorganization of its lines. Trenton Line trains operated through the city center to the Chestnut Hill East Line on the ex-Reading side of the system. The R-number naming system was dropped on July 25, 2010. , most Trenton Line trains continue through Center City to the Chestnut Hill East Line, while some trains terminate at Temple University or continue to other destinations. The Trenton Line usually has two push-pull electric-locomotive-hauled trains on the morning express runs and two on the evening express runs. Each train is usually made up of 6 coach trailers made by Bombardier with

ACS-64 The Siemens ACS-64, or Amtrak Cities Sprinter, is an electric locomotive designed by Siemens Mobility for use on the Northeast Corridor (NEC) and the Keystone Corridor in the northeastern United States. The design was based on locomotives Sieme ...

locomotives hauling them. SEPTA activated

positive train control Positive train control (PTC) is a family of automatic train protection systems deployed in the United States. Most of the United States' national rail network mileage has a form of PTC. These systems are generally designed to check that trains a ...

on the Trenton Line on May 1, 2017.

Stations

The Trenton Line includes the following stations north of the

Center City Commuter Connection 250px, The ASCE plaque in Jefferson Station 250px, City plaque in Jefferson Station The Center City Commuter Connection, (CCCC) commonly referred to as "the commuter tunnel", is a passenger railroad tunnel in Center City, Philadelphia, Penns ...

; stations indicated with gray background are closed. All stations within the Philadelphia city limits have a ticket office for purchasing ticket(s) to ride the Trenton line. Many stations outside the city limits have a ticket office as well, however they have shorter hours (most outside the city limits are closed on weekends) and fewer amenities than the ticket offices inside the stations within

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

. Cornwells Heights station is considered a popular station on the route as it is the busiest SEPTA Regional Rail station outside of Center City, and serves Amtrak trains as well.

Ridership

Between FY 2008–FY 2018 yearly ridership on the Trenton Line has ranged from 3.1–3.6 million.

Notes

References

External links

* {{Delaware Valley transit SEPTA Regional Rail Pennsylvania Railroad lines