PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The inconvenience for SEPTA trolley riders is going to continue into next week, as crews repair damage caused by a newly-installed part.
The transit agency replaced 3-inch sliders that connect trolleys to the overhead wires with 4-inch sliders, believing they would need to be replaced less often. However, SEPTA spokesman Andrew Busch said a carbon insert in the slider wasn't as durable as hoped.
“The carbon that was on that piece was barely making it through one trip in the tunnel, where it was supposed to last for at least a couple of weeks,” he explained.
Not only that, but the 4-inch sliders were damaging the overhead infrastructure. SEPTA then switched back to the 3-inch sliders and closed the trolley tunnel for a week. But when it reopened on Nov. 13, crews found more issues related to the damaged wires, so later that day, the tunnel was closed again.
Busch said crews are now burnishing the wires to try to smooth out the damage, while the transit agency tries to find out what went wrong. The tunnel will remain closed until at least Sunday, and 60,000 daily riders will have to transfer to the Market-Frankford Line between 13th and 40th streets.
“The intention was to install a part that was going to be less maintenance and more efficient to maintain,” he said. “We want to make sure we know all the reasons why it didn't work out that way.”