SEPTA Breaks Ground on New Accessibility Project At Tasker-Morris Station
September 28, 2022
On Wednesday, September 28, 2022, SEPTA gathered with elected officials and other stakeholders at Tasker-Morris Station to break ground for a new project that will make the South Philadelphia Broad Street Line station fully accessible, and deliver modern amenities for riders.
A key element of the $19 million project will be providing elevator access from street level to the mezzanine level and a second elevator to the platform below. This will make the station fully compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
“Thanks to funding from the Commonwealth and the City of Philadelphia, we are making investments that will improve mobility and enhance access, and support the communities we serve,” said SEPTA General Manager and CEO Leslie S. Richards. “This project is helping to revitalize a critical station, and we look forward to delivering more improvements on the line in the near future.”
In addition to the new elevators, other planned improvements to the station include:
• New lighting and other electrical improvements
• ADA-compliant communications system upgrades w/emergency call boxes and HD security cameras
• New safety and wayfinding signage
• ADA-compliant guard rails and handrails
• Modified fare lines for improved flow
By the time the project is completed in early 2024, 13 of the 22 Broad Street Line stations will be fully ADA accessible. More info here.
Tasker-Morris serves approximately 3,000 riders each weekday and has been a part of this community since September 18, 1938 – 84 years almost to the day – and was named after nearby streets whose histories are rooted in the Pascal Ironworks formerly located on Fifth Street.
The station will remain open during construction.
Valuable partnerships - along with support from the Commonwealth and the City of Philadelphia - are essential in making infrastructure upgrades to SEPTA’s transportation network a reality. We thank our colleagues at PennDOT, Congressman Dwight Evans, Pennsylvania State Senator Nikil Saval, Pennsylvania State Representatives Jordan Harris and Elizabeth Fiedler for their support in protecting Act 89 funding this past budget season that will make projects like this possible in the future. We also thank Philadelphia City Councilmembers Mark Squilla, First Councilmanic District, Kenyatta Johnson, Second Councilmanic District, Amy Nieves, Executive Director – Mayor’s Commission for People with Disabilities, and Latoya Maddox, Chairperson of SEPTA’s Advisory Committee for Accessible Transportation also known as SAC. And the construction and design teams: JMT, Sowinski Sullivan Architecture and Engineering, EJ Electric, AP Construction, and Lima Company.
