Route of the Week - Media/Elwyn Line

November 11, 2019

The Media/Elwyn Line is vital in connecting many of Philadelphia's suburbs to the city itself. Formerly known as the R3, it runs from Elwyn Station to Center City, and helps thousands of people get to work and school everyday. 

The origins of this line trace back to 1853, when it was built by West Chester and Philadelphia Railroad. However, SEPTA didn't take it over for over a hundred years, in 1984. 

Today, this line carries more than 11,000 people every week day, from about 5:30a to 12:45a. It travels 1,271 miles over that span, stopping at 19 stations along the way, from Elwyn to Temple University.

In Spring of 2018, construction began to extend the Media/Elwyn Line to Wawa Station in Chester Heights, PA. Its targeted complete date is the end of 2021. This project would not be possible without Pennsylvania Act 89 which created a long term funding solution for critical highway and transit infrastructure needs across the Commonwealth. This same act made renovations to Secane Station possible, which is also on the Media/Elwyn Line. 

As you go down the line, you can find more and more towns with vibrant lives within them. Media, for example, has a lovely downtown area with dozens of restaurants and bars. And not only is it serviced by the train line, it's also has trolley routes that go through town. And this week is Restaurant Week in Media! Find out about the great deals being offered here until 11/15/19.

But remember, if you're planning on taking the Media/Elwyn Line to Media soon: Trolley Routes 101 and 102 will be replaced by bus shuttles this weekend. They will be back to full operation Monday, 11/18.

So make sure you take a trip on one of the oldest lines that SEPTA offers. There are some incredible towns along the way waiting to be explored.