Church station is an

elevated An elevated railway or elevated train (also known as an el train or el for short) is a railway with the Track (rail transport), tracks above street level on a viaduct or other elevated structure (usually constructed from steel, cast iron, concre ...

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT) or heavy rail, commonly referred to as metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport that is generally built in urban areas. A grade separation, grade separated rapid transit line below ground su ...

station Station may refer to: Agriculture * Station (Australian agriculture), a large Australian landholding used for livestock production * Station (New Zealand agriculture), a large New Zealand farm used for grazing by sheep and cattle ** Cattle statio ...

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, served by

SEPTA Metro SEPTA Metro is an urban rail transit network in and around Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, operated by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA). The network includes two rapid transit lines, a light metro line, ...

L trains. It is located on Frankford Avenue between Ruan and Church streets in the Frankford neighborhood of

Northeast Philadelphia Northeast Philadelphia, nicknamed Northeast Philly, the Great Northeast, and known colloquially as simply "the Northeast", is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. According to the 2000 census, Northeast Philadelphia has a population of betw ...

. The station was originally named Ruan–Church station, and it is also served by

SEPTA City Bus The City Transit Division of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) operate almost all of Philadelphia's public transit, including all six trolley, three trackless trolley, and 70 bus lines within city limits. Some of ...

routes 3 and 5.

History

Church is part of the Frankford Elevated section of the line, which began service on November 5, 1922, as Ruan–Church station. Between 1988 and 2003, SEPTA undertook a $493.3 million reconstruction of the Frankford Elevated. Church station was completely rebuilt on the site of the original station; the project included new platforms, elevators, windscreens, and overpasses, and the station now meets ADA accessibility requirements. The line had originally been built with

track ballast Track ballast is the material which forms the trackbed upon which railroad ties (UK: sleepers) are laid. It is packed between, below, and around the ties. It is used to bear the compression load of the railroad ties, rails, and rolling stock; ...

and was replaced with precast sections of deck, allowing the station (and the entire line) to remain open throughout the project. During the Market–Frankford's rush-hour

skip-stop Skip-stop is a public transit service pattern which reduces travel times and increases capacity by having vehicles ''skip'' certain ''stops'' along a route. Originating in rapid transit systems, skip-stop may be also used in light rail and bus ...

service pattern, Church was only served by "B" trains. This practice was discontinued on February 24, 2020.

Station layout

There are two staircases at the station, with the main entrance on the west side of Frankford Avenue between Ruan and Church streets. Across the street is an eastbound platform exit-only staircase. South of the station, the tracks turn west to travel along Kensington Avenue.

References

External links

*
Images at NYCSubway.orgStation entrance from Google Maps Street View
{{DEFAULTSORT:Church (SEPTA Market-Frankford Line station) SEPTA Metro L stations Railway stations in Philadelphia Railway stations in the United States opened in 1922 Historic American Engineering Record in Philadelphia