SEPTA's Crunch Time

Annual Fall Effort to Remove Compressed Leaves from Tracks is Underway

October 19, 2007 

PHILADELPHIA, PA - SEPTA is using three powerful high-pressure washers six nights a week on its regional rail system to remove leaves and debris from the tracks. The leaves are a major cause of service delays at SEPTA and a troublesome occurrence at transit systems throughout the world during what is known as “slippery rail season.”

Slippery rail season occurs in the fall when leaves are crushed against the rails by passing trains. The crushed leaves create a slick coating on the rails particularly when moistened by dew or light rain. This often leads to reduced friction between the rail and train wheels, with less friction it takes longer distances to brake and accelerate trains.

The use of the high-pressure washers has allowed SEPTA to significantly reduce the number of slippery rail delays. Since first using a single 5,000 PSI high-pressure washer four years ago, slippery rail train delays have decreased significantly every year from a high of 2,352 in 2002 to 1,344 last year. SEPTA now employs three 10,000 PSI high-pressure washers that are specially mounted atop flatbed cars to blast away dead leaves and debris in an effort to reduce slippery rail delays even further.

As SEPTA continues to undertake nightly maintenance efforts to reduce delays to its Regional Rail, Norristown High Speed and trolley lines, passengers are advised to listen to radio and television reports for SEPTA updates or delays.

Passengers may also call the SEPTA Customer Service Department at (215) 580-7800 or visit SEPTA online for service information.