SEPTA To Vote On King Of Prussia Rail Extension Thursday

KING OF PRUSSIA, PA — SEPTA will hold a meeting on Thursday and it's expected that they will vote to approve the proposed route for the extension of the Norristown High Speed Line into King of Prussia.

The project, which has been in the works for years, gained steam recently, with a draft environmental impact statement being released last fall.

The proposed route would stop once at Henderson Road before following the Pennsylvania Turnpike into the King of Prussia Mall. There would be two stops at the mall, another in the KOP business park, and a final stop at the Valley Forge Casino.

Should SEPTA approve the route at their meeting Friday, it would not represent the final go-ahead for the project. Organizers would still need to put together a final environmental impact statement, and public hearings and subsequent votes would need to be held following the publication of that statement.

>>Group Mobilizes To Bring SEPTA Rail To King Of Prussia

Proponents of the line say it would reduce traffic while improving walkability and sustainability in the region. Supporters of the project are being asked to publicly endorse it here.

Opponents, meanwhile, point to concerns regarding impacts to residents during construction and noise pollution, among other issues. The citizen group "NoKOPRail" says that SEPTA did not involve Upper Merion residents enough in the planning. "At the very least, we feel residents of Upper Merion should vote on the extension," the group stated. They have launched a petition against the rail, which has 883 supporters.

Should the route be approved Thursday, initial estimates from those involved have the final environmental impact statement coming out at some point in 2019.

Images courtesy VisitKOP.com