page_title: Reading Viaduct
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Reading Viaduct / History
caption_attribution_description: Reading Viaduct in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
context_page_description: The Reading Viaduct, also called The Rail Park, was originally an elevated rail line that was partly transformed into a rail trail. In 2010, the Center City District and the newly formed community organization Friends of the Rail Park began to evaluate options to convert the abandoned viaduct into an elevated park. Construction began on October 31, 2016 on the first phase of the plan dubbed Phase 1, a quarter mile section of the viaduct that extends from Broad Street to Callowhill Street. This project included the addition of a boardwalk, benches, landscaping, swings, and the reinforcement of the existing 13th street bridge. The first phase opened to the public on June 14, 2018.
context_section_description: The Philadelphia and Reading Terminal Railroad was incorporated on April 13, 1888, leased by the Philadelphia and Reading Railway on May 1, 1891, and soon began construction. The viaduct and terminal opened on January 29, 1893. In 1984, the Reading Terminal closed, and Philadelphia's Center City Commuter Tunnel opened. The trainshed was incorporated into the Pennsylvania Convention Center.
  The viaduct was built by the Reading Company as an approach to the new Reading Terminal.
  The viaduct heads north from Reading Terminal and at Callowhill Junction, forks, the 9th Street Branch formally merging with the current SEPTA line. Except for a gap caused by the construction of the Vine Street Expressway (I-676/US 30), and a few blocks at the north end, the viaduct still exists. At Callowhill Junction, the City Branch turns west to join the former Reading Company main line at Belmont Junction.
caption: Reading Viaduct before transformation
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