PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — SEPTA has done an about-face and removed some of the unpopular "leaner" rails it installed at the 69th Street Transportation Center last year, after riders said they wanted the traditional benches back.
“We did get some strong reactions from people. There’s no doubt about that,” SEPTA spokesman Andrew Busch told KYW Newsradio. “So we were responsive to that.”
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Several weeks ago, SEPTA removed three of the 12 leaner rails installed at the 69th Street terminal last October. The leaners — angled rails that people can lean against but can’t sit on — were replaced with benches.
“We did bring back some traditional benches there to mix in with the leaners,” Busch said. “Moving forward, we’re going to see how that works, having a mix of the leaning benches and traditional benches.”
Thirteen leaners were also installed at the Frankford Transportation Center, but Busch said SEPTA didn’t receive as much feedback about them. He added there are currently no plans to replace the leaners there.
The benches replacing the leaners at 69th Street have arm rest dividers to discourage people from sleeping on them.
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“There’s a number of different styles of benches that we could go with, so we’re looking at all those options,” Busch explained.
“If somebody’s laying on a bench, those are spaces that somebody who may have a disability or who needs that space for a minute while they’re waiting for a bus. That’s taking space from them.”
The leaner rails have a smaller footprint and allow for greater pedestrian flow and more access for cleaning, Busch said.
“We don’t have any additional locations at this time where we’re adding leaning benches,” Busch said. “But as we go forward with reconstructions of customer facilities, bus loops are another area where they might make sense.”
In addition to collecting riders’ reactions from social media and email, SEPTA staff at 69th Street will be asking riders in person for their opinions on the leaner rails, Busch said.
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