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The T4 (Woodland Avenue line), is a trolley line operated by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) that connects the 13th Street station in downtown
Philadelphia 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 ...
,
Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
, to Darby Transportation Center in
Darby, Pennsylvania Darby is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, United States. The borough is located along Darby Creek southwest of Center City, Philadelphia, Center City Philadelphia. The borough of Darby is distinct from the ne ...
. It is one of five lines that are part of the T trolley network. Sitting at an average of 13,580 riders per weekday in 2019, it is the most used T route, even though it lacks overnight service.


Route description

Starting from its eastern end at 13th Street, the T4 runs in a tunnel under Market Street. It stops at underground stations at 15th Street, 19th Street, 22nd Street, 30th Street, and 33rd Street. From 15th to 30th Streets, it runs on the outer tracks in the same tunnel as SEPTA's Market–Frankford Line. Passengers may transfer free of charge to the L at 13th, 15th, and 30th Streets and to the B at 15th Street/City Hall. Connections to the
SEPTA Regional Rail The SEPTA Regional Rail system is a commuter rail network owned by SEPTA and serving the Philadelphia metropolitan area. The system has 13 branches and more than 150 active stations in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, its suburbs and satellite town ...
are also available. Underground passageways connect the 13th and 15th Street/City Hall stations to Jefferson Station and Suburban Station. The T4 surfaces at the 40th Street Portal near 40th Street and Baltimore Avenue ( US 13), and then runs southwest along Woodland Avenue, along with T5 trolleys. At 49th Street, the T5 splits and heads south. The T4 continues its run along Woodland Avenue, and is the most consistent of the five subway–surface lines when it comes to taking a straight route. The line runs parallel to the north side of the
Wilmington/Newark Line The Wilmington/Newark Line is a route of the SEPTA Regional Rail commuter rail system in the Philadelphia area. The line serves southeastern Pennsylvania and northern Delaware, with stations in Marcus Hook, Pennsylvania, Wilmington, Delaware, and ...
and crosses a bridge over
CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Railroad classes, Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of trac ...
's
Philadelphia Subdivision The Philadelphia Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland. The line runs from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, southwest to Baltimore, Maryland, along a forme ...
freight line, at 60th Street. At the intersection of Island Road and the Cobbs Creek Parkway, a track runs southward toward Elmwood Depot on the corner of Elmwood Avenue, which is a major turning point for the T5. The northwest corner is also the home of the historic Blue Bell Inn The T4 moves northwest from Woodland Avenue to Main Street as it crosses the Cobbs Creek and enters Darby. Here, the T4 crosses the Philadelphia Subdivision again, but at an at-grade crossing along with 6th Street. The road and line move to the west shortly, only to turn back northwest and finally north to 9th Street at the Darby Transportation Center. Some T3 trolleys also terminate at the station, but the other public transportation consists of SEPTA Suburban Transit Division buses.


History

The T4 was first established as the West Philadelphia Passenger Railway Company in Darby on December 24, 1858, and ran as
horsecar A horsecar, horse-drawn tram, horse-drawn streetcar (U.S.), or horse-drawn railway (historical), is a tram or streetcar pulled by a horse. Summary The horse-drawn tram (horsecar) was an early form of public transport, public rail transport, ...
s from 9th and Main Streets in Darby to 49th Street and Woodland Avenue in West Philadelphia. It was originally a segregated streetcar that required African-Americans to ride on platforms along with the driver, until abolitionist
William Still William Still (October 7, 1819 – July 14, 1902) was an African-American abolitionist based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was a conductor of the Underground Railroad and was responsible for aiding and assisting at least 649 slaves to freedom ...
challenged that rule between 1859 and 1867. In 1896, the line was extended as far east as Front Street via Chestnut and Walnut Streets, and was integrated into the subway–surface trolley system by the Philadelphia Rapid Transit Company on December 15, 1906. The original numbered designation was "Route 11". The at-grade crossing along Main Street at the intersection of Sixth Street in Darby was the site of the Darby
Baltimore and Ohio Railroad The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the oldest railroads in North America, oldest railroad in the United States and the first steam engine, steam-operated common carrier. Construction of the line began in 1828, and it operated as B&O from 1830 ...
station. B&O had passenger service into Philadelphia until 1958. On December 9, 2021, a then-Route 11 trolley collided with a
CSX Transportation CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of track, it is the lead ...
freight train operating on the
Philadelphia Subdivision The Philadelphia Subdivision is a railroad line owned and operated by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland. The line runs from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, southwest to Baltimore, Maryland, along a forme ...
at the at-grade crossing between the two lines near the intersection of Main Street and Sixth Street in Darby. Seven people on the trolley were injured, and the front windshield was smashed. All of the people injured in the crash were treated and released from the hospital on the same day. This is reportedly the only remaining intersection in the nation where an active freight rail line crosses a fixed active rail transit line. In 2021, SEPTA proposed rebranding their rail transit service as "SEPTA Metro", in order to make the system easier to navigate. Under this proposal, the subway–surface lines were rebranded as the "T" with a green color and numeric suffixes for each service, and Route 11 was renamed "T4". SEPTA described that "most comments were positive" in the public comment period for this rebranding project.


Stations and stops

All are in either the
City of Philadelphia 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 ...
or the Borough of Darby.


References


External links


Official SEPTA Route 11 schedule and mapSubway-Surface Lines & Proposals on Google Maps
{{SEPTA , state=autocollapse 11 Railway lines opened in 1858 Tram routes in Philadelphia 1858 establishments in Pennsylvania