Thorndale station (SEPTA)

Thorndale station is a SEPTA Regional Rail station in Thorndale, Pennsylvania. Located on South Bailey Road and East Lincoln Highway (U.S. 30 Business), it serves the Paoli/Thorndale Line. While Thorndale station is the terminus of SEPTA's Paoli/Thorndale Line service, the tracks continue (with service by Amtrak), to points west, including Lancaster, Harrisburg, and Pittsburgh. Amtrak does not stop at Thorndale.

Thorndale
Thorndale station from street level
General information
Location	201 South Bailey Road Thorndale, Pennsylvania
Coordinates	39°59′33″N 75°45′45″W / 39.9926°N 75.7626°W / 39.9926; -75.7626
Owned by	Amtrak^[1]
Operated by	Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority
Line(s)	Amtrak Keystone Corridor
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	4
Connections	SEPTA Suburban Bus: 135
Construction
Parking	447 spaces^[2]
Bicycle facilities	7 rack spaces^[2]
Accessible	Yes^[3]
Other information
Fare zone	4^[3]
History
Opened	November 22, 1999 (1999-11-22)^[4]
Passengers
2017	427 boardings, 352 alightings (weekday average)^[5]
Rank	59 of 146
Services
Preceding station SEPTA Following station Terminus Paoli/​Thorndale Line Downingtown toward Temple University

This station is 35.2 track miles from Philadelphia's Suburban Station. In 2017, the average total weekday boardings at this station was 427, and the average total weekday alightings was 374.^[6]

History

The R5 line (now Paoli/Thorndale Line) originally ended further west in Parkesburg, but service was cut back to Downingtown in 1996. Thorndale station opened on November 22, 1999 as an extension of the R5 service from Downingtown. The station was built to serve the rapidly growing population of Chester County and reduce congestion on area roads.^[4]

Station layout

There is no ticket office at this station. There are 447 parking spaces at the station for daily parking as well as SEPTA permit parking. The station is equipped with bathroom facilities, however, they are locked and only for the use of train crews.

This station is wheelchair-accessible. There is a low level platform with a short high level section for accessibility on one side and a fully high level platform on the other. The platforms have bridge plates which allow a wheelchair to cross the gap between the platform and the train when it is stopped at the platform.

As a result of Thorndale being the line's terminus, trains terminate and depart from both platforms.

Services

In SEPTA's current weekday schedule, 13 trains depart from Thorndale and 11 trains arrive. On Saturdays, 5 trains depart from Thorndale and 4 trains arrive. All of SEPTA's trains terminate at Malvern on Sundays and therefore don't serve Thorndale among other stations not served on Sundays.^[7] Due to Thorndale being the final stop of the line, trains are often forced to crossover to the platform on the other side of the tracks. Trains at and near Thorndale also spend a significant amount of time waiting for other trains to pass.

References

1. (PDF). Federal Railroad Administration. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 21, 2011. Retrieved January 9, 2013.
2. "Thorndale Station". Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. Retrieved July 20, 2023.
3. "Paoli/Thorndale Line Timetable" (PDF). Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. April 16, 2023. Retrieved July 20, 2023.
4. Schogol, Marc (November 21, 1999). "SEPTA extends the R5 line to Thorndale". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 31. Retrieved February 22, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.  
5. "Fiscal Year 2021 Service Plan Update". SEPTA. June 2020. p. 24. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
6. "Fiscal Year 2020 Annual Service Plan" (PDF). SEPTA. p. 43-46.
7. "tho.pdf" (PDF). SEPTA. (PDF) from the original on January 15, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022.

External links

• SEPTA – Thorndale station
• Bailey Road entrance from Google Maps Street View
• Lincoln Highway entrance from Google Maps Street View