SEPTA 15th Street Eastbound Trolley Station

The SEPTA Eastbound 15th Street Trolley Station is one of two 15th Street Trolley Stations in Center City Philadelphia. The Subway tunnels can be confusing if you are not accustomed to them. The 15th Street Subway/Surface station is easy to find. Just look for the giant clothespin around the southwest corner of City Hall on 15th Street at Centre Square. There you will find the stairway leading down to the station. This recording was made at the Eastbound station. Access to the Westbound station is across the street and on the other side of Dillworth Plaza at City Hall. Eastbound 15th Street Trolley Station is the penultimate stop before the final stop at 13th Street. All SEPTA Subway/Surface Routes (10,11,13, 34 & 36) stop at this busy station. Most passengers are getting off at 15th Street Eastbound with only a few pickups. The reason is that in about a minute all passengers will need to discharge at 13th Street and get back on to go westbound at either Berth 1 or 2 depending on which trolley you are taking. Just listen to the “Alvinator,” he’ll tell you where to go. Trolleys continue to the 15th Street Westbound station where Route 10,11, & 13 will discharge & pick up passengers at Berth 1. Route 34 & 36 will discharge & pick up at Berth 2 before continuing to to their destinations. It’s a bit hard to convey this in a description that very few people read, so I also included this in the video. You will notice a third headlight on top of the car. This is called a roof light and is only used in the subway and SEPTA PRW (Private Right of Way) and not on city streets. This video features 25 different iconic Kawasaki Type K Light Rail Vehicles. The “K” cars have been in service with SEPTA for over 40 years. SEPTA has recently announced that a deal was made with Alstom for replacements to the SEPTA trolley fleet scheduled for 2027. Loved by generations of operators, these cars each seem have their own personalities and idiosyncrasies. It’s fun to read & listen to both current and former operators tell you about their favorites. They’ll tell you which ones are the fastest, which ones have the best air conditioning, the best brakes, best horn, etc. They’ll also tell you about the cars that they don’t like for various reasons. So to some, it’s not just the same type of trolley over & over again. The trolley tunnel stations are very busy! I originally recorded over 40 minutes of footage for this video in a short amount of time. I edited it down but it still runs a little long. People will sit and mindlessly watch 40 minutes of baby Yoda's or Wednesday Addams dancing on this platform without complaint. I see the wonderful people that I work with do this on their lunch hour all the time. So in my opinion, 16 minutes of SEPTA trolleys can’t be all that bad. The K cars days are numbered. Appreciate them while you still can. Thanks for watching! 0:00 Look For The Giant Clothespin 0:08 Shave And A Haircut Two Bells Thanks Bill! 0:20 15th Street Trolley Station Eastbound 0:26 Routes 11,10 & 34 Stack Up At 15th Street Station And Two Bells From 9022! 2:33 Route 36 Arrival & Discharge 13th Street Station 3:10 Route 36 Pick Up 13th Street Station Berth 2 3:40 Route 11 Arrival & Discharge 13th Street Station 4:16 Route 11 Pick Up & Departure 13th Street Station Berth 1 4:46 15th Street Station Westbound 4:50 Route 36 Discharges & Pickups 13th Street Station Westbound Berth 2 5:36 Route 10 Discharges & Pickups 13th Street Station Westbound Berth 1 6:19 Back To 15th Street Eastbound Discharges & Some Pickups 6:23 Bells & Horn From Route 34 Trolley 9020 Thanks DP! 8:38 Two Bells From Route 13 SEPTA Trolley 9010! 9:17 Enjoy Over 7 Minutes Of The Sights & Sounds SEPTA Trolleys At 15th Street!