12-12-27 PHOTOS: SEPTA Mid-Winter Trip XII

Wow, its only March and I am already posting photos of the M-W-T. It seems that my year long effort to reign in my photo backlog is finally starting to pay off :-) Anyway unlike the previous two M-WT's which were marred by first snow then rain, this one was a non-qualified success with around 18 participants showing up despite the rather cloudy weather. I want to start by thanking everyone who attended because if you didn't show up I'd have no real reasons to put these trips on.

This years event was to make up for the focus on Silverliner II's and III's over the last couple of M-W-T's so and consisted of an M-W-T first ever trip to the airport and back, followed by an MFL run out to 69th St, then a Rt 101 trip to Media, R3 back to 30th St then Rt 10 to the Rt 15 junction at Girard, then Rt 15 to the new casino loop, then MFL again back to 8th, BRS to Fern Rock and finally a BSS express run to Walnut-Locust. Here is a google Map of this year's route/

Now I don't tend to take a lot of photos on these trips as I am actually busy trying to make sure that everyone is where they need to be and not dawdling in some restaurant, but you can see all the photos I did end up taking right here.

While the trip officially starts in Center City I make it a happy to kick things off early with those who decide to take PATCO into the city. For years I have been trying to get head end video of an express run being thwarted first by self-important operators and then by PATCO's elimination of such service during the post-Christmas week. Well for the past two years the service has returned and using the "newspaper" method to shield my videography from the operator I got this video of an express ride from Lindenwold all the way to 8th and Market. The video comes with a bonus commentary by Phil Nasadowski discussing how hard it is to get film for his 16mm motion picture camera. The footage was hindered slightly by a light rain, but features an operator not afraid to use his horn through the express stations.


Like I said this year marked our first ever trip to the Philadelphia International Airport. The reason this has been neglected was due to the Zone 5 cost of such trips and that in the past the old SEPTA Day Pay was good for only one RRD ride and going to the airport was never seen as worth the cost. However now what we have the Independence pass with unlimited trips on everything there's no reason NOT to go to the Airport so off we went. Here we see SL-IV car #384 sitting at the Terminal E/F Terminal.

Some Subchatters mill about near the end of track at the Terminal F station.

Some residual raindrops were making front window photography difficult so I went back to video for the run from Eastwick through to University City.


30th St Station and the Circa Center, which is showing off its adaptive camouflage.

MFL trainset rounding the loop at 69th St...

While the next outbound train platforms.

SEPTA Suburban K-Car #124 being used to train operators on the Rt 102.

Center Rt 100 platform under reconstruction.

K-Car #108 about to depart 69th St on a Rt 102 run.

K-Car #118 depositing us in the middle of downtown Media.

After lunch it was time to walk down the hill to the R3 media station where SL-IV #131 would take us back to 30th St station.

At 30th St Station there was time for a photo op from the car park there that overlooks the Race St engine house. Here we see Amtrak MoW GP38-2 #722 with P42DC #22.

AEM-7 #946 in the inspection area.

The 40th anniversary train was still in Penn Coach yard.

Acela Express pwer car #2008 pushes east out of 30th St station.

AEM-7 #950 on a Keystone run from above.

M-W-T participants with K-Car #9105 on the Rt 10 at Girard.

Inbound Rt 10 K-Car #9080 at Girard.

 PCC II #2325 at Girard.

#2325 again on the new Sugarhouse Casino loop. This is the temporary terminal for the Rt 15 while Richmond St is being rebuilt.

#2325 rounding the loop.



Passenger boarding at the Casino loop.

Video out the back of #2325 as it makes the turn onto Girard St where the new casino branch splits from the old Girard Ave line. Listen as Phil runs off a few feet of film in his Bolex camera.



Broad Ridge train at the 8th and market terminal just before SEPTA's friendliest employee started bitching people out for taking photographs.

Broad Street Subway train at Fern Rock.

Video of BSS trains headed around and loop and into the Fern Rock platform.



While heading back from Fern Rock I also grabbed a quick video of a door problem on our BSS car. Wait for it, it manifests on closing.



Well that's it for the trip, I just wanted to thank everyone again for attending. See you all next year when we can hopefully celebrate the new RiverLINE-ACL transfer station.