West Chester U | |||||||||||||
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 The former West Chester University station sign in 2017. | |||||||||||||
| General information | |||||||||||||
| Location | Nields Street West Chester, Pennsylvania | ||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 39°57′24″N75°35′36″W / 39.9567°N 75.5934°W /39.9567; -75.5934 | ||||||||||||
| System | FormerSEPTA Regional Rail station | ||||||||||||
| Owned by | West Chester Railroad | ||||||||||||
| Lines | Pennsylvania Railroad, SEPTA R3 West Chester Line | ||||||||||||
| Platforms | 1side platform | ||||||||||||
| Tracks | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Construction | |||||||||||||
| Structure type | metal shelter | ||||||||||||
| Platform levels | 1 | ||||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||||
| Opened | 1968 | ||||||||||||
| Closed | September 19, 1986[1] | ||||||||||||
| Electrified | December 2, 1928[2] | ||||||||||||
| Previous names | Nields Street | ||||||||||||
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West Chester University station is a former railroad station inWest Chester, Pennsylvania. It was a stop on thePennsylvania Railroad's (PRR) West Chester Line, and later became a part ofSEPTA Regional Rail'sR3 West Chester line before being closed in 1986. TheWest Chester Railroadheritage railway leased the line, but does not use West Chester University station.
Students and professors at the State Normal School as well as local residents had pleaded with the PRR to construct a station at East Nields Street to avoid walking six blocks north to theMarket Street station. The PRR refused to do so, though trains stopped at Nields Street occasionally afterWorld War I. As late as 1962, residents were still urging the financially ailing PRR to build a station at Nields Street, and by 1965, the PRR offered to do so in exchange for permission to demolish the Market Street station.[3] However, West Chester Borough Council opposed that plan in the hope that Market Street station would become a downtown transportation center. The Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission allowed the PRR to vacate the dilapidated Market Street station. It was only after the station was demolished in 1968 that PRR's successor,Penn Central, constructed a small metal passenger shelter at the location, initially namedNields Street and laterWest Chester University station.[3]
SEPTA later took over the station as part ofSEPTA Regional Rail'sR3 West Chester Line. SEPTA discontinued regular passenger service in September 1986, due to deteriorating track conditions and Chester County's desire to expand facilities atExton station on thePaoli/Thorndale Line. In 1997, theWest Chester Railroad (WCRR), a privately owned and operatedheritage railway, restored the line between Glen Mills and West Chester for weekend recreational use. It does not use the West Chester University station. The shelter remains in derelict condition. Though it has not been regularly maintained since its 1986 closure, WCRR volunteers paint the station site on occasion. SEPTA signage also survives.[3]
