PHILADELPHIA — Pop Up Metro has another potential customer, this time in Philadelphia.
KYW Radio reports the Delaware River Waterfront Corp. is considering the concept of operating Pop Up Metro’s battery-electric trainsets along existing tracks on Columbus Boulevard, paralleling the Delaware River.
Karen Thompson, DRWC director of planning, policy, and engagement,told KYW the exact route has not been determined, but would be roughly between Race Street and Queen Street, a distance of about 1.2 miles. It would use tracks of the Philadelphia Belt Line Railroad, which has about 6.5 miles of track and another 10 miles of trackage rights to serve the Port of Philadelphia.
Pop Up Metro, an affiliate of Railroad Development Corp. — whose properties include the Iowa Interstate Railroad and rail operations in Peru, Germany, France, and Belgium — offers a low-cost rail transit package including remanufactured, battery-powered British railcars, modular station platforms, electrical charging equipment, and other infrastructure and operational features. It looks to lease the entire package, and suggests the low cost makes it ideal for trying actual operation for less than the cost of a full feasibility study. The concept has been studied at several locations, most recently in the Iowa City, Iowa area, but is still seeking its first lease [see “Proposal for Iowa City commuter rail service stalls,” Trains News Wire, Feb. 5, 2025].
Delaware River Waterfront Corp. has posted an online survey asking questions including what locations or activities they would visit using such a service, how they would reach it (by rail, bus, or car, for example), and how often they visit the waterfront. The survey closes Feb. 10; based on results, the DRWC will determine whether to proceed with further planning.
Noting that improving transit along the waterfront is a DRWC priority, but is difficult “in the current funding environment,” the company says it was approached by Pop Up Metro about an operation. DRWC says it is working with the Federal Railroad Administration, the city of Philadelphia, other railroads, and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation about the prospect.
Because of the early stage of the planning process, no price tag or timeline for the project has yet been determined, Thompson told KYW.
DRWC will need to work very hard to convince the world this is a priority, must-have project.
I don’t know anything about Philadelphia’s waterfront. What I do know is that there is a very long list of very expensive projects nationwide already in the pipeline scrambling for funding.