View source for Airport Line (SEPTA)

{{Short description|SEPTA Regional Rail service}}
{{About|the SEPTA Regional Rail line|other rail lines of the same name|Airport Line (disambiguation){{!}}Airport Line}}
{{Use American English|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox rail line
| name                            = Airport Line
| color                           = {{rcr|SEPTA|Airport}}
| logo                            = 
| logo_width                      = 
| logo_alt                        = 
| image                           = Train 829 at Airport Terminal A station.jpg
| image_width                     = 
| image_alt                       = 
| caption                         = A SEPTA train at the Airport Terminal A station bound for [[Center City, Philadelphia|Center City Philadelphia]]
| type                            = [[Commuter rail]]
| system                          = [[SEPTA Regional Rail]]
| status                          = <!-- Operating -->
| locale                          = 
| start                           = [[Philadelphia International Airport Terminals (SEPTA station)|Philadelphia International Airport Terminals]]
| end                             = [[Glenside station|Glenside]]
| stations                        = 16
| routes                          = 
| daily_ridership                 = 5,722 (FY 2024)<ref name="ridership" />
| open                            = April 28, 1985
| close                           = 
| owner                           = 
| operator                        = [[SEPTA Regional Rail]]
| character                       = 
| depot                           = 
| stock                           = [[Electric Multiple Unit]]s
| linelength                      = 
| tracklength                     = 
| tracks                          = 
| gauge                           = {{track gauge|ussg|allk=on}}
| old_gauge                       = 
| minradius                       = 
| racksystem                      = 
| routenumber                     = 
| electrification                 = [[Overhead line]], [[Amtrak's 25 Hz traction power system|12&nbsp;kV&nbsp;25&nbsp;Hz&nbsp;AC]]
| speed                           = 
| elevation                       = 
| website                         = [http://www.septa.org/ septa.org]
| map                             = {{switcher
|{{maplink-road|from=Airport Line (SEPTA).map}}
|Show interactive map
|{{Airport-infobox}}
|Show route diagram map
}}
| map_state                       = 
}}
The '''Airport Line''' (formerly the '''R1 Airport''') is a route of the [[SEPTA Regional Rail]] [[commuter rail]] system in [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]], which officially runs between [[Philadelphia International Airport]] through [[Center City, Philadelphia|Center City]] to [[Temple University station]]. In practice, however, only a few trains originate or terminate at Temple University; most are through routed with lines to the north after leaving the [[Center City Commuter Connection]]. Half of weekday trains are through routed with the [[Warminster Line]], with the other half of weekday trains through routed with the [[Fox Chase Line]]. All weekend and holiday trains are through routed with the Warminster Line and terminate either in Warminster or [[Glenside station|Glenside]].

The line between Center City and the airport runs seven days a week from 5:00 am to midnight with trains every 30 minutes daily. The trip length from [[Suburban Station]] to the airport is 19 to 24 minutes. The line is fully [[Grade separation|grade-separated]] in the normal service, but one public [[grade crossing]] between Temple University and Glenside is present at Rices Mill Road in Glenside.

==Route==
[[File:SEPTA Airport Line map.svg|thumb|left|250px|Geographic map of the route]]
While geographically on the former [[Pennsylvania Railroad]] side of the Regional Rail System, the route consists of new construction, a reconstructed industrial branch of the former Pennsylvania Railroad, and a shared [[Conrail]] (formerly [[Reading Company]]) freight branch. The Airport Line opened on April 28, 1985, as SEPTA R1, providing service from [[Center City, Philadelphia|Center City]] to [[Philadelphia International Airport]].<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Sebree |first=Mac |author-link=Mac Sebree |date=August 1985 |title=Interurbans Newsletter |url=http://original.trainlife.com/magazines/pages/596/41832/august-1985-page-38 |magazine=[[Pacific RailNews]] |publisher=Interurban Press |page=38 |issue=261 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180625190033/http://original.trainlife.com/magazines/pages/596/41832/august-1985-page-38 |archive-date=June 25, 2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref> By its twentieth anniversary in 2005, the line had carried over 20 million passengers to and from the airport. The line splits from [[Amtrak]]'s [[Northeast Corridor]] north of [[Darby (PA)|Darby]] and passes over it via a [[flying junction]]. West of the airport, the line breaks from the old right-of-way and a new bridge carries it over [[Interstate 95 in Pennsylvania|I-95]] and into the airport terminals between the baggage claim (arrivals) and the check-in counters (departures).

The line stops at [[Philadelphia International Airport stations|four stations]] which are directly connected to each airport terminal by escalators and elevators which rise one level to the walkways between the arrival and departure areas. All airport stations feature [[high-level platform]]s to make it easier to board and alight from the train with luggage. Some stations can be accessed directly from the arrivals concourse by crossing Commercial Vehicles Road. The line ends between Terminals E and F at their combined station.

{{As of|2022}}, most weekday Airport Line trains are through routed with the [[Warminster Line]] and the [[Fox Chase Line]] and alternate between terminating in Warminster and Fox Chase respectively. Most weekend trains are through routed with the Warminster Line and alternate between terminating in Glenside and Warminster.<ref>{{cite web|title=Airport Line schedule|publisher=SEPTA|date=December 16, 2018|url=http://www.septa.org/schedules/rail/pdf/air.pdf|access-date=December 24, 2018}}</ref>

==Stations==
[[File:SEPTAR1AirportUniversityCity2007.jpg|thumb|right|A [[Budd Silverliner]] on the Airport Line train in 2007, after departing [[30th Street Station]]]] 
The Airport Line makes the following station stops in Philadelphia, after leaving the [[Center City Commuter Connection]].<ref name="airtimetable">{{cite web|url=https://www.septa.org/schedules/rail/pdf/air.pdf|title=Airport Line Timetable|date=September 10, 2017|publisher=Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority|access-date=November 4, 2017|location=[[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]]}}</ref>

{|class="wikitable"
|- style="vertical-align:bottom;"|
!Zone
!Location
!Station
![[Railway milepost|Miles (km)]]<br>from<br>{{nowrap|[[Center City Commuter Connection|Center City]]}}
! class="nowrap"|Connections / notes
|-
|C
|[[University City, Philadelphia|University City]]
|{{stl|SEPTA|Penn Medicine}} {{NJT acc}}
|{{convert|1.8|mi|km|abbr=values}}
|{{Unbulleted list
   | {{ric|SEPTA}} [[SEPTA Regional Rail]]: {{ric|SEPTA|Manayunk/Norristown}} {{ric|SEPTA|Media/Wawa}} {{ric|SEPTA|Warminster}} {{ric|SEPTA|West Trenton}} {{ric|SEPTA|Wilmington/Newark}}
   | {{bus icon}} [[SEPTA City Bus]]: {{SEPTA bus link|40|LUCY}}
   }}
|-
|1
|[[Eastwick, Philadelphia|Eastwick]]
|{{stl|SEPTA|Eastwick}} {{NJT acc}}
|{{convert|7.2|mi|km|abbr=values}} 
|{{Unbulleted list
   | {{bus icon}} SEPTA City Bus: {{SEPTA bus link|40|LUCY}}
   | {{rint|bus}} [[SEPTA Suburban Bus]]: {{SEPTA bus link|108|115}}
   }}
|-
|rowspan=4|4
|rowspan=4|[[Philadelphia International Airport|Philadelphia International<br/>Airport]] {{rint|air|link=Philadelphia International Airport}}
|[[Philadelphia International Airport stations|Terminal A]] {{NJT acc}}
|rowspan=2|{{convert|9.1|mi|km|abbr=values}}
| rowspan="4"|{{Unbulleted list
   | {{bus icon}} SEPTA City Bus: {{SEPTA bus link|37}}
   | {{rint|bus}} SEPTA Suburban Bus: {{SEPTA bus link|108|115}}
   }}
|-
| [[Philadelphia International Airport stations|Terminal B]] {{NJT acc}}
|-
|[[Philadelphia International Airport stations|Terminals C & D]] {{NJT acc}}
|{{convert|9.3|mi|km|abbr=values}} 
|-
|[[Philadelphia International Airport stations|Terminals E & F]] {{NJT acc}}
|{{convert|9.4|mi|km|abbr=values}} 
|}

==History==
{{See also|Chester Secondary}}
[[File:R1 Airport.gif|200px|left|thumb|R1, the former designation of SEPTA's Airport Line]]
The line south of the Northeast Corridor was originally part of the [[Philadelphia, Wilmington and Baltimore Railroad]] main line, opened on January 17, 1838. The connection between the NEC and the original PW&B is made however by the later [[60th Street Branch]]. A new alignment of the PW&B (now the NEC) opened November 18, 1872, and on July 1, 1873, the [[Philadelphia and Reading Railway]], later the Reading Company, leased the old line for 999 years. Connection was made over the PRR's [[Junction Railroad (Philadelphia)|Junction Railroad]] and later the [[Baltimore and Ohio Railroad]]'s [[Baltimore and Philadelphia Railroad]]. However, as a condition of the sale, no passenger service was provided. The line passed into Conrail in 1976 and SEPTA in 1983, with passenger service to the Philadelphia International Airport beginning on April 28, 1985.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.septa.org/service/rail/anniversary.html|title=SEPTA – Airport Line – Celebrating 25 Years}}</ref>

Infill stations were planned from the beginning of service, two of which were on the Airport Line proper: one at 70th Street, the other one at 84th Street. The latter station was opened in 1997 as [[Eastwick (SEPTA station)|Eastwick]], while 70th Street was never built, and has since disappeared from maps. Additionally, University City station (proposed as "Civic Center", now [[Penn Medicine Station]]) opened in April 1995 to serve all R1, [[Wilmington/Newark Line|R2]] and [[Media/Wawa Line|R3]] trains passing it. All these stations appeared on 1984 SEPTA informational maps, the first ones to show the Center City Commuter Connection and the Airport Line.

SEPTA activated [[positive train control]] on the Airport Line on October 10, 2016.<ref>{{cite web|title=Positive Train Control Update|publisher=SEPTA|date=May 1, 2017|url=http://www.septa.org/service/rail/ptc/2017-04-update.html|access-date=May 17, 2017}}</ref>

==Ridership==
Between FY 2013–FY 2019 yearly ridership on the Airport Line peaked at 2,457,743 during FY 2015, but fell to 1,518,250 by FY 2019. Ridership collapsed during the [[COVID-19 pandemic in the United States|COVID-19 pandemic]], but improved to 1,229,023 by FY 2022.{{refn|group=note|Data for individual lines is not available for FY 2020.<ref name="ridership">{{cite web | url=https://public.tableau.com/shared/RSMSKC5RP | title=Route Operating Statistics | last=SEPTA Data Group | accessdate=March 22, 2024}}</ref>}}

{{ #invoke:Chart | bar chart
| group 1 = 2247816:2345820:2457743:2322271:2084924:1902127:1518250:0:307559:1229023:1606893
| units suffix =
| group names = Annual ridership
| width=800
| x legends = FY 2013:FY 2014:FY 2015:FY 2016:FY 2017:FY 2018:FY 2019:FY 2020:FY 2021:FY 2022:FY 2023
| colors = #{{rcr|SEPTA|Airport}}
}}

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
*[https://www.septa.org/schedules/AIR SEPTA – Airport Line]

{{SEPTA |state=autocollapse}}
{{Delaware Valley transit}}

<!--R1 Airport was the old main line-->

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Airport Line (SEPTA)| ]]
[[Category:SEPTA Regional Rail]]
[[Category:Airport rail links in the United States]]
[[Category:Reading Company lines]]
[[Category:Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington Railroad lines]]
[[Category:Railway lines opened in 1985]]
[[Category:Philadelphia International Airport]]
[[Category:1985 establishments in Pennsylvania]]