The SEPTA subway stations at Broad and Spring Garden Streets and at Girard Avenue and Broad Street haven't been renovated since they were built originally in 1928.

That changed last week.

Utilizing more than $30 million in federal funds received through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act - commonly known as the "federal stimulus package" - SEPTA started a project that will revamp the long untouched stations and add elevators to make the stations wheelchair-accessible for the first time.

During a news conference held Wednesday, Aug. 12, SEPTA officials, joined by local politicians, announced the groundbreaking, which SEPTA believes will create more than 200 construction, contractor and support jobs.

"The Broad Street Line has served Philadelphia for over 80 years," said SEPTA general manager Joseph Casey. "By investing in this revitalization project, SEPTA hopes to invest in these communities."

The project - the most expensive of 32 that SEPTA will undertake with $191 million in federal stimulus funding - is set for completion by fall 2011.

"It's time they had a rebirth," said U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah (D-2nd dist.), noting that the revitalization is long overdue. "Starting today, you're going to see these stimulus dollars at work. This is where the nation started, this is the right place to start the economic rebound."

City Councilman Darrell Clarke (D-5th dist.) said determining the needed updates and additional amenities came as the result of community meetings held earlier this year.

"We has so many meetings that the people stopped coming because we had so many," he joked.

Along with elevators connecting the street level to the mezzanine and platform levels, the stations will also be outfitted with new staircases and cashier lanes.

Concrete restoration and column repairs will come along with new tiling and artwork placed throughout each station.

Most importantly, said SEPTA's Casey, the transportation agency is installing new lighting, signage and fire alarm systems that he believes will help provide the stations with increased safety for the estimated 10,000 passengers that the Broad Street Line serves daily.

"Lighting is very important from a security standpoint," said Casey. "As we do stations, it's also important that we make them" compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Thaddeus Robson, a wheelchair-reliant member of SEPTA's advisory committee for accessible transportation, said he believes SEPTA will meet the needs of so many disabled Philadelphians who rely on the subways.

"It really is about time," said Robson. "We are part of the riding public."

Robson said that wheelchair-bound and otherwise handicapped individuals already struggle with mobility, as they often need to rely on alternative transportation modes when public options aren't available.

"This is the most important improvement they could make," he said. "Transportation is the number one concern for the handicapped."

During the meeting, SEPTA representatives and elected officials dug into a symbolic bucket of dirt to herald the beginning of the construction project.

At the conclusion of the event, Councilman Clarke said that he was glad to see the stimulus funds going to local agencies such as SEPTA.

"This is essentially the blueprint for how the federal stimulus should work," he said. "We have to make an investment in our infrastructure. It was sorely needed. Without this money, this project wouldn't happen for another five to ten years."

Final art installations and designs for the Girard Ave. and Spring Garden Street stations have yet to be determined. SEPTA is currently accepting submissions from interested artists.

The artwork will be placed along the mezzanine and stairwells. The application deadline is September 18. For more information contact Marsha Moss, SEPTA Public Art Consultant at marshamoss@aol.com.

Reporter Hayden Mitman can be reached at 215-354-3124 or hmitman@phillynews.com