Station Review #34: Cheltenham (SEPTA)


Cheltenham is a station on SEPTA's Fox Chase Line, located in Cheltenham Village, a village located inside Cheltenham Township. Or at least, it's supposed to be. The station is actually located in the Burholme neighborhood of Philadelphia, but the city limits are about half a block away (Ironically, Lawndale station is located in Cheltenham Township, but in a portion where the people of Cheltenham Township itself cannot 
access it because of the country club behind it).

History
Station in the 1930s

Cheltenham Station was originally an old wooden structure built sometime in the mid to late 1800s. It is very likely that the station was made in the 1860s by the Philadelphia, New York, and Newtown Railroad, or the 1880s-1890s by the Reading Railroad. When exactly the station was constructed aside, Cheltenham station had this building for many decades afterwards. 

Cheltenham station in the 1990s

The station lasted a long time, up until 1993, when it recieved large amounts of fire related damage from arson. The damage was assessed to be too much, and they tore down the station.

Temporary trailer

SEPTA quickly built a trailer to replace the station temporarily. For about 13 years, SEPTA had the trailer shown above as the station. Talk about "temporary"! 

Finally, in 2007, SEPTA replaced the station with the station that exists today, and for the first time in the station's history, Cheltenham station became accessible.

Tour

There's a lot at Cheltenham station. For one, the station has a station house and a 23 spot parking lot. 

The station is similar to many other stations with a station house, and has all you'd expect: a station house, a platform, a sign, and a few benches. Really, do you need much more than that at a station like this? 

The sign that says when the next trains are coming

Inside the station house

Going inside the station house, there is not much to see. A large bench wraps around two of the walls, and there are a few tables and shelves. The entire room smells like some sort of odd scented perfume. The scent is incredibly strong. 

Bench

On the other side, there's a table, and a bookshelf with a few books in both. 

This place reminds me of some sort of office, where you wait for something for a long while, much like a dentist's waiting room or a doctor's office. The largest difference is that there's candy here, which more health conscious dentist and doctor's offices would not have. 

Inside the station house, there are also the customary maps, as well. There's a map of center city, and a map of the network as a whole. 

On the other wall facing the wall with the maps, there is a small fact sheet about Cheltenham Station's history. I think it's pretty interesting, honestly. 

Gallery
Silverliner V Train at Cheltenham station

Single platform

These are at all accessible stations

Painting

Platform

Parking Lot

Single tracking at work

More single tracking

Bench

Bus Connections
Cheltenham Station has one bus connection total, that being route 70, which goes between Frankford - Gregg Loop in Torresdale (or Torresdale - Cottman loop in Tacony) to Fern Rock Transportation Center. 

Statistics and Amenities

Name: Cheltenham
Agency: SEPTA
Line: Fox Chase
Locality: Cheltenham Village 
City/Township: Cheltenham
County: Montgomery 
Ridership: 293 boardings and 251 alightings

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: 9.5/10. This is a perfect example of a train station done right. 

Station Directory

''''''''Center City Zone''''''''
30th Street
Suburban
Jefferson (Market East)
''''''''Zone 1''''''''
Wayne Junction 
''''''''Zone 2''''''''
Cheltenham
Ryers


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