Station Review #115: 23rd-Venango Loop (SEPTA)


23rd and Venango loop is a SEPTA bus loop located on 23rd Street, Venango Street, and Hunting Park Avenue in the Nicetown neighborhood of North Philadelphia. 
 

Buses That Stop Here

Two buses stop at 23rd-Venango Loop, they are:
 
  • 33 - Penns Landing to 23rd-Venango: This is an L shaped route that links neighborhoods like Nicetown, Allegheny, Cecil B. Moore, Sharswood, Francisville, and Fairmount to Center City via 19th/20th Streets and 22nd Street.  This bus links 23rd-Venango Loop to Allegheny station on the Manayunk-Norristown Line
  • 56 - 23rd-Venango or Bakers Centre to Torresdale-Cottman: This bus is a crosstown bus that goes along Erie and Torresdale Avenues. This bus links directly to the B1/B2/B3 at Erie Station and the L at Erie/Torresdale station

Tour

Some route 56 buses at the station
 
23rd-Venango is a small bus loop, though it doesn't really need to be all that large. 

One of the shelters

Each shelter has two long benches, a code of conduct for riding SEPTA buses, and a map of the bus route that stops there. The bus maps here are usually outdated, this one especially since the H, XH, and R have all since become the 71, 81, and 82 respectively.  

Cone. 
 
Why is there a cone there? I have no clue how this happened.  


The station has two lanes for buses, the inner lane for 56 buses, and the outer lane for 33 buses. At the outer lane is a small breakroom and bathroom for operators. Behind the point of view of this photo is also the TVMs and a sign for the station. 


Bus Connections

 
23rd-Venango Loop has more buses connecting to the station than buses that stop at the station. These buses are:
 
  • 1 - Parx Casino to 54th-City: This is a long-haul bus route that just goes across the majority of Route 1 in Philadelphia. There once was a time when this bus ran to 69th Street Transit Center, which means this bus was a one seat ride between Delaware and Bucks Counties.  The transit cuts coming to SEPTA in a few months will cut this bus. 
  • 71 - Broad-Erie to Cheltenham-Ogontz: Formerly Route H, this bus goes between the intersection of Broad Street and Erie Avenue and Chelterham-Ogontz loop via Mount Pleasant Avenue and Wadsworth Avenue. This bus also serves Cedarbrook Plaza.
  • 81 - Broad-Erie to Cheltenham-Ogontz: Formerly Route XH, this bus goes between the intersection of Broad Street and Erie Avenue and Chelterham-Ogontz loop via Walnut and Washington Lanes. 
  • 82 - Wissahickon Transit Center/Henry-Midvale to Frankford Transit Center: This bus generally goes along the southwestern section of Roosevelt Boulevard and Hunting Park Avenue. At Fox Street, this bus splits into two routes, one going to Wissahickon Transit Center, and one going to Henry Avenue and Midvale Avenue (Very close to the Thomas Jefferson University East Falls Campus)

Points of Interest near 23rd-Venango Loop

There's not much here. There's the old abandoned Budd Manufacturing plant if you want railway history, and Budd Pharmeceuticals, named after the same place right across the street. Besides that, there's a Rita's, a convenience store, and very dense housing. 

Statistics


Name: 23rd-Venango Loop
Agency: SEPTA
Line(s): 33, 56
Locality: Nicetown
City/Township: Philadelphia
County: Philadelphia
State: Pennsylvania
Ridership: 1828 riders per average weekday (2024)

Amenity Checklist


Some vestige of accessibility: ✓
Employee bathrooms: ✓
Bike Racks: ✓
Clean: ×
Connections to other transit routes: ✓
Easy to get around: ✓
Existence is justifiable: ✓
Lighting: ✓
Maps: ✓
Seating: ✓
Shelters: ✓
Something for fares: ✓
Station in Good Condition: ✓
Updated Signage: ×
 
Final Verdict: 8.5/10 

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