Levittown SEPTA Station to Get Makeover

Echoes of the past met ideas of the future as the Levittown Train Station in Tullytown Friday afternoon as officials announced the station would undergo a roughly $30 million overhaul.

Lt. Governor Jim Cawley’s voice resonated throughout the stations ticket office and waiting room as he described the much needed transformation to happen at the station.

Officials said the project is much needed and will proceed as a result of funding from the state’s recently passed Act 89 transportation funding bill will be used to re-model the station.

The 1950s-era station building will get new, high-level boarding platforms, improved traffic patterns and entrances off Fallsington Avenue and Route 13  and will also be made fully Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) accessible. Officials from SEPTA said the station will get about 70 new parking spaces and a pedestrian overpass above the tracks.

“The renovation of Levittown Station is an important milestone for SEPTA as we move to address some of our most critical needs, including vital infrastructure upgrades and equipment replacement,” SEPTA Chairman Pat Deon said, adding the rebuilt station will help move the transportation system forward.

The current Levittown station serves about 1,200 commuters daily, officials said.

The structure is dilapidated with  birds nests  inside the roof  as Friday’s rainfall showed the many leaks in the station has.

Previous funding efforts were  stalled by recession and reconstruction efforts of the station were defunded.  Lawmakers and SEPTA officials praised the passage of Act 89 and the increased funding.

Cawley pointed to the need for improved transportation systems throughout the state. He said the improvements will bring more businesses highlighting efforts to rebuild the infrastructure of the commonwealth that is ongoing.

SEPTA General Manager Joe Casey said the Levittown station project was “critical.” He added that getting the funding for the station “took a lot of hard work and leadership in Harrisburg.

SEPTA Deputy General Manager Jeffrey Knueppel told LevittownNow.com the project is expected to start in late fall and will take about three and a half years. He said the project will take so long because there are some many factors involved, including the track constantly being used by Amtrak trains.

Congressman Mike Fitzpatrick said between the station the Route 13 overhaul and I-95-Turnpike connector, the transportation picture in Lower Bucks County is looking bright.

“I have pushed for this since I was elected,” State Rep. John Galloway said. The eight-year state representative said the station would improve the area, which features the recently completed Levittown Town Center and under-construction Route 13 project.

Galloway, who grew up in the area and often played ball and fished on the land prior to it becoming the second busiest regional rail line on the SEPTA system, has seen the work that has to be done and said the station is a key element in the revitalization of Levittown and Lower Bucks County.

“When this work is completed it’s going to mean a lot for this area,” Galloway said days prior to the press conference.