Elmwood Carhouse

Elmwood Carhouse is a SEPTA Subway–Surface trolley carbarn^[1][2] that house the current Kawasaki LRVs that run on routes 11, 13, 34 & 36. From September 1992 to September 2005, Route 10 was housed here as well; however, with the restoration of the trolley service to Route 15 in 2005, the Route 10 trolleys are stored at Callowhill Carhouse.

Elmwood Carhouse
Side view of a row of Kawasaki LRVs awaiting assignment at Elmwood Carhouse in 1993.
General information
Location	7311 W. Elmwood Avenue Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
Coordinates	39.914633°N 75.243275°W / 39.914633; -75.243275
Owned by	SEPTA
Connections	SEPTA City Bus: 68 SEPTA Suburban Bus: 108
History
Electrified	Overhead lines
Services
Preceding station SEPTA Following station 80th Street–Eastwick Terminus Route 36 major stops 40th Street Portal toward 13th Street
Future services (2024) Preceding station SEPTA Metro Following station 80th/​Eastwick Terminus major stops 40th Street Portal toward 13th Street
Location

The Elmwood Carhouse replaced the vintage Woodland Carhouse which was located at 49th & Woodland. On October 23, 1975 part of Woodland carbarn suffered a devastating fire in which several trolleys were destroyed. The Elmwood Carhouse officially opened on November 15, 1981.

Description

Another row of K-Cars in 2015

Elmwood Depot also known as Elmwood Loop and Elmwood Avenue Loop, is a storage facility and alternate terminus for the SEPTA Route 36 Subway-Surface Trolley Line, in the Elmwood Park section of Southwest Philadelphia. Besides cars from Route 36, the facility is used to store and maintain cars from SEPTA Routes 11, 13, and 34. SEPTA Route 10 was also housed here from 1992 to September 5, 2005.

Its official address is at 7311 W Elmwood Avenue, but the yard stretches southwest to Island Road and north to Amtrak's Northeast Corridor line. Trolleys run from here to Eastwick Loop or to Center City Philadelphia.

A decorative arch bridge carries the NEC/Wilmington/Newark Line right-of-way over Island Road and the trolley tracks between Routes 11 and 36. Between the Eastwick Loop and Elmwood Depot, the trolleys have their own right-of-way for a short period in the middle of Island Road where the tracks are not on a paved street and the wooden ties are visible.

Outside the yard, there are connections to SEPTA City Bus Route 68 and SEPTA Suburban Bus Route 108.

References

1. Fitzgerald, Thomas (2022-09-22). "SEPTA is aiming to buy a new trolley barn after losing another property to Amazon last year". The Philadelphia Inquier. Retrieved 2024-01-12.
2. "Runaway SEPTA trolley slams into historic home in Southwest Philadelphia". WHYY. Retrieved 2024-01-12.

External links

• Elmwood Depot Track map (Philadelphia Trolley.org)
• Elmwood Carhouse (KTransit.com)
• Station from Google Maps Street View