September 14, 2026
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Three trolley stations, including the one at 33rd Street, will receive an $80 million federal grant to make accessibility improvements.
Three trolley stops in Center City will receive accessibility improvements with an $80 million infusion from the Federal Transit Administration.
Upgrades to 22nd Street, 33rd Street and 36th Street stations will include the installation of raised platforms, wayfinding tools and elevators that connect passengers at the street level to the boarding areas underground, SEPTA said Monday.
All three stations were originally built in 1955 and are currently only accessible via stairs.
Construction on each station is anticipated to begin between 2027 and 2028 and will finish by 2030, said Andrew Busch, chief officer of media relations with SEPTA.
"Ensuring that every customer can access transit services that is safe, clean and reliable is a core part of SEPTA's mission," SEPTA Board Chair Kenneth E. Lawrence Jr. said in a statement. "Station accessibility projects like those this grant will fund are critically important to that effort."
Funding for the improvements will come from the All Stations Accessibility Program under the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The grant also funded SEPTA's $44 million reconstruction of the 11th Street Station on the Market-Frankford Line. That project began earlier this month and the station will be closed for roughly one year.
Similar long-term closures have not been planned at this stage for improvements at the three Center City trolley stations, SEPTA said.
"We will be able to accelerate work by utilizing things like planned outages for track or overhead wire work in the tunnel to do work that would otherwise cause disruptions," Busch said in an email. "We also may do some temporary shuttle busing as needed to work in the track area."
The $80 million of federal funding SEPTA received is part of a $233 million investment from the Department of Transportation that includes eight projects in five states, the department said Thursday.
