SEPTA Awards Design Contract for Broad Street ADA Improvements

Written by Kyra Senese, Managing Editor
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SEPTA

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority on March 23 awarded a contract to move forward with accessibility enhancements at three subway stations.

Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc. will provide architectural, design, and construction services for the Broad Street Line’s Lombard-South and Ellsworth-Federal Stations, as well as the Broad-Ridge Spur’s Chinatown Station.

The stations were constructed decades before the Americans with Disabilities Act came about and are currently solely accessible by stairs. 

“Thanks in part to federal infrastructure funding, SEPTA is committed to making all stations on the Broad Street Line and Market-Frankford Line accessible,” SEPTA said in a release. 

Beginning the design phase will allow SEPTA to pursue competitive funding specifically for accessibility improvements at legacy rail stations,said SEPTA Board Chairman Pasquale Deon Sr. 

“SEPTA continues to work with state and local funding partners to identify additional resources to help leverage and maximize federal dollars to address SEPTA’s capital needs,” Deon Sr. said. 

The contract with Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc. for $5,793,063 will move forward the design of the Lombard-South, Ellsworth-Federal, and Chinatown Stations. SEPTA can begin construction after the design process is complete. Elevator construction, platform renovation, new signs, lighting, and security cameras, and waterproofing are among the upgrades that will make these stations completely ADA accessible and maintain a state of good repair, SEPTA said. 

“Station accessibility is a core component of SEPTA Forward, the authority’s Strategic Plan,” said SEPTA General Manager and CEO Leslie Richards. “We have made significant progress in upgrading our infrastructure, and we will continue to prioritize enhancements across the system to make SEPTA easier to use and more accessible to all.”

Under its 12-Year Capital Program, SEPTA prioritized accessibility on both the Market-Frankford Line and the Broad Street Line. SEPTA is nearly through with an ADA enhancement project at Susquehanna-Dauphin Station, and construction continues at Tasker-Morris Station, in addition to the three Broad Street Line stations that will move forward with the March 23 Board approval. 

With the announcement of the new capital budget and program in April, SEPTA said the authority will also update the timetables for work at other stations on the Broad Street and Market-Frankford Lines.

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