SEPTA unveils plan to rebuild Levittown rail station

Elected officials joined Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) executives late last week to unveil plans to rebuild Levittown's train station as part of the agency's "Catching Up" capital improvement program.

The project had been on hold due to lack of funding, but is now moving forward as a result of Act 89, Pennsylvania's new transportation funding bill, which Gov. Tom Corbett signed last fall, SEPTA officials said in a press release.

"The renovation of Levittown Station is an important milestone for SEPTA as we move to address some of our most critical needs, including vital infrastructure upgrades and equipment replacement," SEPTA Chairman Pasquale Deon said.

The project, which local news media reported would cost about $24 million, will transform the structure from a 1950s station into a modern intermodal facility featuring a new building, high level platforms, pedestrian overpass and reconfigured Fallsington Avenue/Route 13 Expressway station entrance. The station also will comply with the Americans With Disabilities Act and will offer 70 parking spaces.

Nearly 11,000 riders use the Trenton Line each day, and on an average weekday 1,264 trips begin or end at Levittown Station. Demand on all regional rail lines continues to grow. Last year, regional rail ridership reached a record 36 million trips, and has increased by 50 percent over the last 15 years.

SEPTA plans to award contracts for more than $100 million in new capital projects in 2014, including improvements that were deferred in recent years due to funding constraints. The pace of this work will increase as more funding comes in from Act 89. Within five years, SEPTA projects its annual capital budget to exceed $600 million, which is more than double the $300 million annual amount SEPTA has had available for improvements in each of the last four years, officials said.