December 21, 2017
Thom Carroll/PhillyVoice
A Philadelphia-bound SEPTA Regional Rail Train at the East Falls Station, Tues. Oct. 17, 2017.
Hundreds of commuters found themselves stuck on trains making their way into Center City at the height of the morning rush Thursday because of downed wires on the tracks.
SEPTA spokesman Andrew Busch said the wires fell between 30th Street and Suburban stations around 8:30 a.m. The wires didn't come down on any trains, but they did trigger an automatic power cut, leaving two Regional Rail trains in the immediate area "stranded," Busch said.
Around 800 commuters waited for about an hour before a rescue train came to pick them up.
The incident had massive ripple effects on the morning commute, causing delays of up to two hours. Other Regional Rail trains were diverted, including a Doylestown Line train that stopped at Fern Rock around 9:20 a.m.
The passengers were told of the downed wires and residual delays, but not much about when the train would start moving again. Instead, they were ushered onto the Broad Street Line subway for free as an alternative route into downtown.
Busch said all passengers forced to take other means of transportation on SEPTA had their fares honored.
All SEPTA Regional Rail lines are now running, but crews are still working on the downed wires and hope to be done by mid-afternoon in time for the evening rush.
Residual delays are still expected, and were as long as an hour as of noon. Passengers can check SEPTA's system status website or Twitter account for updates.
