Station Review #32: Olney (SEPTA)



Olney is a SEPTA station located in the Olney neighborhood of Philadelphia, PA. Olney station is the sixth station on the Fox Chase Line, and the first unique station on the line, going northbound.


History

Original Olney station, from the 1860s


Olney station was originally built in the 1860s or so by the Philadelphia, Newtown, snd New York Railroad, as one of the first stations. The PNNYRR itself was then absorbed by the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad, which then made a new station in 1906. 

The original station remained for a while afterwards, and nobody knows when it was torn down. I hypothesize that it was torn down in the 1950s, or so. 

Credit to West2K for the photos shown here

I could not find any color photos of Olney station from before it was demolished, despite that happening fairly recently. I have seen the building itself before, and the building is brick, with the walls red. The roof was black, meanwhile, similar to many other roofs out there. The building was boarded up, with plywood on the windows, and was in a state of deep disrepair. Over all, a sad sight, but it's not surprising that it got demolished. 

In 2008, Olney station was rebuilt to be accessible, with the old station building demolished. This was part of a large project in which most of the Fox Chase line stations were rebuilt to be accessible.

Tour
Shelter

The station consists of two shelters, though the train only stops at one, which is on the platform. The shelters are of the Muntin window type, which is unsurprising considering that the station was rebuilt in 2008. Nowadays, the shelter windows tend to be partially broken, with specific portions constantly missing. 




Inside the shelters themselves, there isn't much. The bare essentials are more than enough, however. The shelters have a few benches and a map. The station has full high level platforms and ramps, meaning it is fully accessible.


For some reason, there is a shelter outside of the station that looks exactly the same as the shelter at the station. I don't understand why this is either. 

The station has other amenities as well, such as signs announcing when the next train is coming: 

train

And there are also many benches outside of the shelters, as well. 

Close Clearance

There are also many close clearance signs on the line, as clerance is pretty important on this line. 


Bus Connections

SEPTA has one bus connection at Olney avenue, that being the 8. 

The 8 runs express (kind of) services between Olney Transportation Center to Frankford Transportation Center, via Tabor Road and Roosevelt Boulevard. 

Points of Interest in Olney 

There are a few things to do in the Olney neighborhood of Philadelphia: 

- Tacony Creek Park
- Fisher Park
- Shops along 5th Street and Olney Avenues
- The Olney Library

besides these things, there's not much else to do in Olney. 

Amenity Checklist

Accessible: ✓
Bathrooms: ×
Clean Station: ×
Connections to other transit routes: ✓
Easy passage for each side: ✓
Fare Payment Kiosks (if applicable): ✓
Indoor Shelters: ×
Maps: ✓
Multiple entrances/exits: ×
Adequate Parking: ✓
Seating: ✓
Shelters: ✓
Station In Good Condition: 
Ticket Kiosks (if applicable): ×
Ticket Offices: ×
TOD: ×
Train Departure/Arrival Info (signs that update/screens): ✓
Updated Signage: ✓

Final Verdict: 8/10

I really do wish the location was better, though. 

Station Directory

''''''''Center City Zone''''''''
30th Street
Suburban
Jefferson (Market East)
Temple University 
''''''''Zone 1''''''''
Wayne Junction 
Olney
''''''''Zone 2''''''''
Lawndale
Cheltenham
Ryers
Fox Chase

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