SEPTA approves $125 million for KOP rail project’s final design

The King of Prussia rail line moved closer to construction on Thursday, as the SEPTA board of directors approved a $125 million contract with HNTB Corp., an architectural and engineering firm, for final design work.

“This is certainly a project that’s been studied for decades so it’s a really large milestone to see it move forward to final design,” said engineer Anna Hooven, project manager for King of Prussia Rail.

To SEPTA and business leaders, extending light rail service to King of Prussia means access to jobs for riders and a ticket to economic growth.

Many transit advocates in the city say the $2.9 billion project wastes money better spent on more urgent needs.

The project would extend the Norristown High Speed Line four miles to King of Prussia, with five stations, ending with a stop near the Valley Forge Casino Resort, which has a convention center.

It would link the region’s three largest employment centers — King of Prussia, University City, and the rest of Philadelphia via 69th Street Transportation Center, where passengers can transfer to the Market-Frankford Line, trolley lines, or dozens of bus routes.

“We’re so convinced that this rail project will … really be a great catalyst for regional competitiveness,” not only transform the Philadelphia region in terms of dramatically improving its productivity,” Jerry Sweeney, chief executive at Brandywine Realty Trust, said at a 2019 public hearing.

The KOP rail extension would carry about 10,000 daily riders, according to SEPTA’s projections. Opponents of the project say the money would grow ridership more if it were spent for new El cars, reorganizing Regional Rail service to make it more frequent, faster progress on trolley system modernization, or advancing the proposed Roosevelt Boulevard subway.

SEPTA still needs to secure federal funding for the project. The final design is needed before the agency can compete for construction grants from the Federal Transit Administration, Hooven said.

Formal planning for the rail extension began in 2012. Federal paperwork, a detailed environmental review and local opposition delayed the project, as did SEPTA’s redrawing the path of the line to minimize neighborhood impact.

HNTB Corp. will design the elevated guideway that will carry the track, the third-rail power system, five stations and two parking garages. Hooven said construction could begin in 2025.

KOP rail “should be put on hold for a few years in order to secure funds from surrounding municipalities,” Cameron Adamez, a transit advocate for the 5th Square urbanist political action committee, said during the public-comment portion of Thursday’s SEPTA board meeting.

“Until I see Upper Merion demonstrate half of the enthusiasm that [State Rep.] Jared Solomon has for Roosevelt Boulevard subway, I would rather SEPTA focus on all of these other projects,” Adamez said.

Continuing to develop KOP Rail “won’t result in useful transit service, just more vacation homes for consultants,” said Daniel Trubman, a SEPTA rider and transit activist.