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Fox Chase Branch

The Fox Chase Branch, formerly the Newtown Branch, is a railway line in the state of Pennsylvania. It runs 4.9 miles (7.9 km) from a junction with the SEPTA Main Line near Wayne Junction to Fox Chase. At its fullest extent, it continued another fifteen miles north to Newtown. The oldest part of it was built in 1876 by the Philadelphia, Newtown and New York Railroad. It was part of the Reading Company system from 1879 until 1976. Today it is owned by SEPTA and hosts the Fox Chase Line commuter rail service.

Fox Chase
Overview
OwnerSEPTA
Service
Services     Fox Chase Line
History
Opened14 June 1876 (1876-06-14)
Electrified26 September 1966 (1966-09-26)
Technical
Line length4.9 mi (7.9 km)
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Electrification12kv 25hz overhead catenary
Route map

Legend
mi
26.3
 Newtown
25.0
 George School
Neshaminy Creek
22.4
 Holland
20.8
 Churchville
Newtown Rail Trail
18.9
 Southampton
18.0
 County Line
Bucks County
Montgomery County
Pennypack Trail
Trenton Cutoff
17.1
 Woodmont
Pennypack Creek
Pennypack Creek
15.1
 Bryn Athyn
Pennypack Creek
14.4
 Huntingdon Valley
14.0
Neshaminy Line
Pennypack Creek
Pennypack Creek
12.8
 Walnut Hill
11.1
 Fox Chase
10.1
 Ryers
Trenton Subdivision
9.7
 Cheltenham
9.0
 Lawndale
7.3
 Olney
Olney Branch
Bethlehem Branch
SEPTA Main Line
6.2
Newtown Junction
Trenton Subdivision
SEPTA Main Line
This diagram:

History

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The Philadelphia, Newtown and New York Railroad's initial line branched off the Connecting Railway (now the Northeast Corridor) near Erie Avenue, and ran almost due north to Olney and across the Tacony Creek to Cheltenham and Fox Chase. The new line was 5.8 miles (9.3 km) long. The Pennsylvania Railroad controlled the line at the beginning, and contemplated extending it across the Delaware River to create a new through route between Philadelphia and New York City, although this never occurred. Service began on June 14, 1876.[a][3][4] The company further extended the line 15.45 miles (24.86 km) from Fox Chase to Newtown on February 4, 1878.[4]

The Philadelphia and Reading Railroad leased the line on November 12, 1879, ending the Pennsylvania Railroad's involvement with the company. The plan at the time was to build a connecting branch west from Olney to a junction with the Tabor Branch near Wayne Junction and route passenger trains to the Philadelphia, Germantown and Norristown Railroad depot at Ninth and Green.[5] This did not happen immediately, so trains from the Newtown Branch continued down the North Pennsylvania Railroad's main line to that railroad's depot at Third and Berks.[6] The planned link with the Tabor Branch was built in 1892.[4] Post re-routing, the original part of the branch south of Olney was designated the Olney Branch.[7]

The Reading proceeded with its own faster New York to Philadelphia route in 1904–1906 with the building of the New York Short Line. The new line branched off from the Newtown Branch at Cheltenham and ran northeast to Neshaminy Falls on the New York Branch. The Newtown Branch was double-tracked between Newtown Junction and Cheltenham Junction as part of this effort. The new line opened on May 27, 1906.[8] Administratively, the Newtown Branch's southern terminus was cut back to Cheltenham Junction once the New York Short Line opened.[7]

The Philadelphia, Newtown and New York Railroad was one of twelve railroads merged into the Reading Company effective December 31, 1945.[9] The Newtown Branch was the last of Reading's suburban branches to be electrified. The city of Philadelphia funded the effort through the Passenger Service Improvement Corporation (PSIC), and the branch was electrified to Fox Chase, the last station within the city limits, on September 29, 1966. Diesel operation continued north of Fox Chase to Newtown.[10]

With the Reading Company's final bankruptcy in 1976, the Newtown Branch was conveyed to SEPTA.[11] SEPTA suspended the diesel service to Newtown on July 1, 1981, as part of a systemwide discontinuation of non-electrified service.[12] SEPTA ran a modified version of the diesel service, called the Fox Chase Rapid Transit Line, between October 5, 1981, and January 18, 1983.[13] The right-of-way beyond Fox Chase is mostly preserved. 6.2 miles (10.0 km) within Montgomery County was converted into the Pennypack Trail.[14] Another 2.1 miles (3.4 km) in Bucks County was converted into the Newtown Rail Trail in 2022.[15]

The remaining line between Cheltenham Junction and Fox Chase became known as the Fox Chase Branch, and SEPTA continues to operate the Fox Chase Line commuter rail service over it. The former New York Short Line became part of Conrail's Trenton Line, with SEPTA and Conrail sharing the track between Cheltenham Junction and Newton Junction. Beginning in 1989 that double-tracked portion was functionally split, with each operator using one track.[16] The two lines were physically separated in 2004–2005.[17][18] SEPTA activated positive train control on the Fox Chase Line on May 23, 2016.[19]

Notes

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  1. ^ Dates given in other sources include October 1876[1] and 1873.[2]

Footnotes

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  1. ^ Coates (1990), p. 102.
  2. ^ Holton (1989), p. 281.
  3. ^ "Philadelphia, Newtown and New York". Railway World. 2 (25): 397. June 17, 1876.
  4. ^ a b c ICC (1931), p. 836.
  5. ^ "Reading Railroad's New Link". Reading Times. November 12, 1879. p. 1. Retrieved June 10, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ Official Guide of the Railways. New York: National Railway Publication Co. July 1881. OCLC 6340864.
  7. ^ a b "Reading Company Timetable" (PDF). Reading Company. January 1, 1973.
  8. ^ Coates (1990), pp. 102–103.
  9. ^ ICC (1947), p. 573.
  10. ^ Coates (1990), p. 103.
  11. ^ USRA (1975), p. 332.
  12. ^ Williams (1998), p. 47.
  13. ^ King, Larry (May 17, 2006). "New vision for abandoned rail line Speedy bus line could revive the Newtown-Fox Chase route. Old rail line may be revived for bus system". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on December 28, 2015. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  14. ^ Heinze, Justin (May 11, 2021). "Final Leg Of Iconic Montgomery County Trail Now Completed". Abington, PA Patch. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  15. ^ Werner, Jeff (April 27, 2022). "EAST MEETS WEST: Opening of first phase of Newtown Rail Trail links Bucks and Montgomery trail networks". The Reporter. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  16. ^ Allen & Newmark (2020), p. 222.
  17. ^ "SEPTA, CSX work through separation anxiety". Railway Track & Structures: 36–39. October 2015. Retrieved June 8, 2022.
  18. ^ "Rail News - SEPTA adjusts regional train schedules". Progressive Railroading. June 20, 2005. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  19. ^ "Positive Train Control Update". SEPTA. May 1, 2017. Archived from the original on May 23, 2017. Retrieved June 10, 2022.

References

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