SEPTA loses legal fight on lifts

SEPTA lost a six-year legal battle in federal court on Friday, with a federal judge ordering the authority to install elevators for disabled passengers at two Center City stations.

U.S. District Judge Gene E.K. Pratter ordered that SEPTA build elevators in the courtyard at the center of City Hall and at 15th and Market streets in a case brought by Disabled in Action of Pennsylvania under the Americans with Disabilities Act.

SEPTA had argued that disabled passengers could access the City Hall and Suburban Station by taking an elevator at 16th Street between Market Street and JFK Boulevard, but the group had contended that the authority should have built elevators closer to platforms when it refurbished the area in 2002 and 2003.

SEPTA has said that installing the elevators would cost about $2 million.

Posted by Anthony Campisi. Contact him at campisi.anthony@gmail.com