Franklin Street station (Pennsylvania) explained

Franklin Street
Style:SEPTA
Style2:SEPTA Former
Type:BARTA bus terminal
Former SEPTA regional rail station
Address:Franklin Street and 7th Street
Reading, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Coordinates:40.3329°N -75.9243°W
Owned:BARTA
Platform:2 side platform
Tracks:2
Connections: BARTA buses: All at the BARTA Transportation Center
Structure:Stone
Parking:Yes
Accessible:Yes
Closed:June 30, 1981[1]
Rebuilt:February 8, 1929 - February 25, 1930[2] [3]
2013
Electrified:No
Other Services Header:Former services
Mapframe:yes
Mapframe-Custom:
Shape:none
Line:none
Marker:bus
Marker-Color:
  1. 000
Zoom:14

Franklin Street station is a former railroad and bus station in Reading, Pennsylvania. It currently is owned by Berks Area Regional Transportation Authority (BARTA) and hosts a brewpub restaurant operated by Saucony Creek Brewing Company.

Built by the Reading Railroad and dedicated on February 25, 1930, Franklin Street Station later served the SEPTA diesel service extending the Manayunk/Norristown Line to Pottsville. It closed when SEPTA cancelled the diesel service in 1981. BARTA acquired the building on December 14, 2005, and converted it into a bus depot in May 2013.[4]

History

The Franklin Street station served the railroad from 1930 until 1981 when SEPTA diesel service ceased operations. Medium distance trains serving the station included the King Coal and Schuykill.[5] From 1981 until 2013, the building sat vacant until BARTA acquired and refurbished the building for bus services. The plan was to alleviate overcrowded services at the BARTA Transportation Center located about a block away, as well as make an effort to preserve the historic station.[6] Grants from federal, state and local sources funded the acquisition and rehabilitation costs. The purpose for the acquisition was to create a multi-use complex in which the rehabilitation/renovation of the existing Franklin Street Station building and site was an integral component of the overall development of a transportation facility in the area. Between September 2013 and January 2014 BARTA bus service to Lebanon was operated from the Station. Due to low ridership, the bus service was discontinued.

In July 2017 the station was used for a multimedia art exhibition entitled "This is Reading" [7]

In June 2018, Saucony Creek Brewing Company leased the facility and opened a brewpub restaurant[8] in July 2019.

There is a proposal to return SEPTA Regional Rail service to the station by way of an extension of the Manayunk/Norristown Line, providing passenger train service from Reading to Philadelphia. In 2020, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation conducted a feasibility study on bringing passenger train service to Reading via Amtrak.[9] [10]

Notes and References

  1. News: Rail Service Marks End of an Era . February 4, 2020 . The News Herald . July 29, 1981 . . 1. Newspapers.com.
  2. News: Contract Awarded for New Depot . August 23, 2020 . The Reading Times . February 9, 1929 . 7. Newspapers.com.
  3. News: New Reading Station Dedicated Yesterday . August 23, 2020 . The Evening News . February 26, 1930 . Harrisburg, Pennsylvania . 24. Newspapers.com.
  4. Web site: From grim to grand: Franklin Street Station gleams again 2/20/2013 .
  5. 'Official Guide of the Railways,' June 1961, Reading Railroad section, Table 3
  6. Web site: Franklin Street in its heyday.
  7. Web site: This is Reading. 17 July 2017. Lynn Nottage.
  8. Web site: Saucony Creek Brewery to open downtown Reading location. 22 July 2019. Reading Eagle.
  9. News: Vasil. Jim. Reading to Philly rail study shows idea gaining steam. WFMZ-TV. Allentown, PA. January 11, 2021. January 11, 2021.
  10. Web site: Reading to Philadelphia Passenger Rail Analysis. Pennsylvania Department of Transportation. December 2020. January 11, 2021.