SEPTA Route 23

SEPTA Route 23
Tracks for the former Route 23 trolley line on 11th Street.
Overview
Status	Out of service, restoration pending
Operation
Opened	1877 (First) TBD (Second)
Closed	1992
Operator(s)	SEPTA
Character	Street running
Technical
Line length	25.5 mi (41.0 km) single track
Track gauge	5 ft 2 1⁄4 in (1,581 mm)
Electrification	600 V DC, overhead lines

1877 (First)

SEPTA's Trolley Route 23, the Germantown Avenue-11th & 12th Streets Line, is a former streetcar line now operated by bus. It is operated by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The line runs between the Chestnut Hill and South Philadelphia neighborhoods via Germantown Avenue, 11th, and 12th Streets. Route 23 was Philadelphia's longest streetcar route, and was one of three suspended by the SEPTA board in 1992. The two others, routes 15 and 56, were then also operated by buses, although light-rail service on Route 15 was restored in 2005. To make the route more manageable, in 2015 the shorter and more densely travelled southern segment of the route (Broad and Oregon to 11th and Noble) was separated and renamed Route 45.

Route 23 begins in South Philadelphia. The southern terminus is at the intersection of Broad Street and Oregon Avenue, on the block that also consists of 10th Street and Packer Avenue. From Oregon Avenue the line runs north on 11th Street and south on 12th Street. North of Tasker Street, the straight path of 11th Street is briefly interrupted at Passyunk Avenue (due to the former presence of Moyamensing Prison, demolished in the 1960s), which Northbound Route 23 moves to until it turns west onto Reed Street before getting back to 11th Street. After running through Center City, northbound Route 23 turns east to Susquehanna Avenue and then north again to 10th Street, and southbound Route 23 moves from 10th Street west to Huntingdon Street to and south again to 11th Street. North of Cecil B. Moore (formerly Columbia) Avenue, Route 23 then continues northwest on Germantown Avenue through North Philadelphia, which includes a six-way intersection with Erie Avenue, which carries SEPTA Routes 53 and 56 and Broad Street all of which are over Erie Station on the Broad Street Subway Line. Routes 53 and 56 are two other former street car lines that were converted into bus routes. Another major connection along the route is the Wayne Junction commuter railroad station. As Route 23 transitions from North Philadelphia to Northwest Philadelphia, it runs through Germantown and Mount Airy into Chestnut Hill. The northern terminus is located at the intersection of Germantown Avenue and Bethlehem Pike Loop, which is located in between SEPTA's Chestnut Hill West and East regional railroad stations.