SEPTA Dedicates the
Frankford Transportation Center


On December 12, 2006, SEPTA dedicated the Bridge Street Station and a parking garage, celebrating the end of a ten-year project to rebuild the Frankford Transportation Center (FTC).

SEPTA General Manager Faye Moore

Congresswoman Allison Schwartz (D-PA), 13th Congressional District

Former Congressman Robert A. Borski, 3rd Congressional District. Rep. Borski was instrumental in getting the FTC project started.

SEPTA Board member Jettie Newkirk

At ten a.m., the dedication began with remarks by SEPTA General Manager Faye Moore and several invited guests who had been involved with the project over the years, including Megan Forrestal, Frankford resident and President of the Frankford Business and Professional Association; Toby Fauver, Director of PennDOT's Bureau of Public Transportation; Congresswoman Allison Schwartz (D-PA) and former Congressman Robert A. Borski. Free refreshments and live jazz made the station festive for both ceremony attendees and riders on their mid-morning commute.

Jazz and refreshments welcomed riders to the ceremony

After the main terminal building opened in 2003, work began to restore the historic Bridge Street Terminal.

The historic station building provides an attractive entrance to the FTC. The terra cotta, limestone, and brick details were cleaned and restored to their 1922 appearance. Between the new elevated track structure and the revised scheme of lighting and windows, the most striking contrast with the former condition of the station is the bright, airy feel of the interior now.


The New Garage


The FTC Parking Garage

On Tuesday, September 5, 2006, the FTC parking garage, a four-story, 1,000-space facility, located on Bustleton Avenue north of Bridge Street, opened its doors to the public. It is the first parking structure built for a SEPTA transportation facility and it offers the newest innovation in the industry – a self serve operation with an array of customer payment options for daily or occasional riders.

FTC is one of SEPTA's busiest transportation centers. More than 50,000 riders travel through it daily, on 16 bus routes and the Market-Frankford Elevated. It is fully ADA-accessible to riders, with elevators and escalators in all main areas, including the parking garage.

SEPTA began the $650 million program in 1986, rebuilding the entire Frankford Elevated Line, constructing new track, signal systems, and stations along the 5.25-mile span between Girard Avenue and Bridge Street.

The Frankford and Pratt area, circa 1922 when the original station was constructed. (Courtesy Historical Society of Frankford)

The project also included the transformation of Bridge & Pratt Terminal into the Frankford Transportation Center (FTC), the largest, single-site construction project ever undertaken by SEPTA.