Wednesday, October 09, 2002
Monday, October 07, 2002
A transit police officer learned a lesson of another kind during the drill. The publication says that had it been a real gas attack he would have entered the "control area" too quickly to try to render assistance. An organizer of the drill walked up to him and said: "You're dead."
Nice to know that my fare dollars are going towards top of the line training of our transit police officers...
Saturday, October 05, 2002
Thursday, October 03, 2002
Tuesday, October 01, 2002
SEPTA's initial plan was to operate buses between 13 St and 33 St with tracklesses operating between Front and 23 St. Because of the tight turns onto 13 St, that proposal would not appear to be an option. Another option that was considered was to reroute the tracklesses on Tasker between 29 and 32 Sts, which would require (1) new overhead along 29 St between Tasker and Morris, (2) two-way operation along Tasker, which is one-way in the westbound direction, resulting in the loss of parking in that stretch (and if there's one thing people in South Philly get fired up over, it's the loss of even a single parking space) and (3) new overhead along Tasker on the eastbound side of the street. So far, neither of these options appear to be feasible.
The planned bus substitution would start as early as the February 2003 sign-ups, and last for at least 3 years. It's probable, given SEPTA's past history towards streetcars and trackless trolleys (see the 15/23/56 controversy), that this long-term "substitution" could spell the beginning of the end for electric trackless trolley service in the City of Philadelphia, if the "temporary bus substitution" in Northeast Philadelphia hasn't hastened this already. (ORIGINALLY POSTED SEPTEMBER 19)
Then, to make matters worse, switch failures at Newtown Junction caused further delays to Fox Chase and West Trenton line trains. The system was entirely halted at around 11:00am, when the Centralized Train Control system failed.
Instead of holding trains north of Melrose Park and diverting passengers to either shuttle buses or alternate transit lines (passengers could easily have been placed on shuttle buses at Jenkintown, or directed to the 22 bus at Glenside or 55 bus in downtown Jenkintown for connections to Olney Terminal and connections to the Broad Street Line). This resulted in delays of up to 3 hours throughout the entire system, with most of the delays focused on the Glenside-Center City trunk line. Service was restored to normal sometime before the PM peak period.
SEPTA's AGM for Operations Patrick Nowakowski called the September 9 fiascos "the worst day on the railroad in 20 or 30 years." He also noted that had maintenance done its job properly the night before, "most people would have been looking at one-hour delays." DUH! Maybe if SEPTA hired some REAL railroad professionals to manage the Regional Rail system instead of plucking people with "transit" experience, SEPTA's Regional Rail might not be the laughing stock of the industry. (ORIGINALLY POSTED SEPTEMBER 10/UPDATED SEPTEMBER 19)
Welcome to the newly restructured SEPTA News Page. As you may have noticed, the format for the news page has been altered a little bit. I'm experimenting with something called a "blogger", which is essentially a web log. SEPTA news and information will be posted here on a trial basis. Be assured that the guestbook will remain open during this time. Thank you again for visiting the Frankford Terminal web site!
Saturday, September 28, 2002
ARCHIVES - 09/28/02
After weeks of relative peace on the equipment front, there was yet another bus shortage encountered at Red Arrow on Thursday. This resulted in an absolute mess on the 4:05pm 104 to West Chester, which is supposed to be an express but instead ran as a local. This bus didn't even arrive at the terminal until 4:20pm to begin its run. The trip departed at 4:22pm, and arrived in West Chester well over a half hour late. It didn't help that the operator was stuck behind a tractor-trailer for a stretch between Delchester and Chester Roads and didn't even think enough to pass said truck. On a side note, the 2:45pm from West Chester was crowded yet again, and arrived about 15 minutes late yet again. If that doesn't send some red flags at 1234 Market about the need for PM peak express service from West Chester to 69 St, then I don't know what does.
The 92 and 104 buses are expected to be detoured away from the West Chester University campus next Saturday due to the annual WCU Homecoming Parade. With High Street expected to be blocked off, I would expect a lot of headaches on Saturday morning for riders on both lines.
Meanwhile, SEPTA is planning to display the first of 12 New Flyer DE40LF diesel-electric hybrid buses on Thursday between 9:00am and 2:00pm on 12 St near Arch, across from the Reading Terminal Market. These buses will be assigned to Southern, and will be numbered 5601-5612. One has to question the logic of this numbering plan as these buses will be decidedly different from the D40LFs currently on the road. The next batch of 100 D40LFs - which will be numbered 5613-5712 - are expected during the first part of next year. As noted earlier, the bulk of the buses (up to 85) will go to Midvale, with Frontier getting the rest.
SEPTA is apparently going ahead with a purchase of MCI D4500 cruisers, despite a long delay since the demos made their apperances on SEPTA property over the summer. The 15 cruisers (tentatively numbered 6000-6014) will be assigned to Red Arrow, and used on the 104 and 124/125 (though, I wouldn't be shocked if they slip one in on a Sunday 120 trip; between the large ridership on those trips and the amount of luggage carried, a cruiser would be perfect for some late Friday night and/or Sunday trips). No firm delivery date has been set, nor has it been determined if SEPTA will "piggy-back" onto New Jersey Transit's massive MCI order, as at least 30 other agencies around the country have done.
As a result of the arrival of the MCIs, SEPTA is planning to restructure the 124/125 service. Red Arrow would operate service from Center City to Gulph Mills and points north, bypassing Wissahickon, with Frontier operating service from Wissahickon to Gulph Mills and points north, using NABIs and New Flyers (when the arrive next year). Considering that express service between Center City and Wissahickon is provided by the 9 and 27 buses, this shouldn't prove to be a major issue.
The Bucks County TMA is at it again, as a fourth RUSH service is being planned for the Street Rd (PA 132) corridor in Lower Bucks. The planned "Street Rd RUSH" is tentatively slated to operate between Lower Southampton, Warminster, and Bensalem via PA 132, with buses to serve the Warminster, Trevose, and Cornwells Heights stations. For some reason, this sounds remarkably similar to SEPTA's planned Route 303 bus, which would also have operated along PA 132, but between PA 611 and Bustleton Pike, and which would have operated bewteen Doylestown and Neshaminy. In any case, the "Street Rd RUSH" could begin operating as early as next March.
In other LBC news (that's Lower Bucks County for those of you who don't speak "Lower Bucks-ese"), SEPTA is planning to rehab the Croydon and Levittown-Tullytown stations along the R7 Trenton line. SEPTA Board Chairman - and Bucks County land developer - Pasquale T. Deon, Sr. recently bragged to a local Bucks County newspaper that SEPTA had invested nearly $30 million in recent years to improve service. My question is when do the other counties get their fair share of the pie from SEPTA? I mean, some of the stations along the Marcus Hook line look as though they could use a little sprucing up...
The 92 and 104 buses are expected to be detoured away from the West Chester University campus next Saturday due to the annual WCU Homecoming Parade. With High Street expected to be blocked off, I would expect a lot of headaches on Saturday morning for riders on both lines.
Meanwhile, SEPTA is planning to display the first of 12 New Flyer DE40LF diesel-electric hybrid buses on Thursday between 9:00am and 2:00pm on 12 St near Arch, across from the Reading Terminal Market. These buses will be assigned to Southern, and will be numbered 5601-5612. One has to question the logic of this numbering plan as these buses will be decidedly different from the D40LFs currently on the road. The next batch of 100 D40LFs - which will be numbered 5613-5712 - are expected during the first part of next year. As noted earlier, the bulk of the buses (up to 85) will go to Midvale, with Frontier getting the rest.
SEPTA is apparently going ahead with a purchase of MCI D4500 cruisers, despite a long delay since the demos made their apperances on SEPTA property over the summer. The 15 cruisers (tentatively numbered 6000-6014) will be assigned to Red Arrow, and used on the 104 and 124/125 (though, I wouldn't be shocked if they slip one in on a Sunday 120 trip; between the large ridership on those trips and the amount of luggage carried, a cruiser would be perfect for some late Friday night and/or Sunday trips). No firm delivery date has been set, nor has it been determined if SEPTA will "piggy-back" onto New Jersey Transit's massive MCI order, as at least 30 other agencies around the country have done.
As a result of the arrival of the MCIs, SEPTA is planning to restructure the 124/125 service. Red Arrow would operate service from Center City to Gulph Mills and points north, bypassing Wissahickon, with Frontier operating service from Wissahickon to Gulph Mills and points north, using NABIs and New Flyers (when the arrive next year). Considering that express service between Center City and Wissahickon is provided by the 9 and 27 buses, this shouldn't prove to be a major issue.
The Bucks County TMA is at it again, as a fourth RUSH service is being planned for the Street Rd (PA 132) corridor in Lower Bucks. The planned "Street Rd RUSH" is tentatively slated to operate between Lower Southampton, Warminster, and Bensalem via PA 132, with buses to serve the Warminster, Trevose, and Cornwells Heights stations. For some reason, this sounds remarkably similar to SEPTA's planned Route 303 bus, which would also have operated along PA 132, but between PA 611 and Bustleton Pike, and which would have operated bewteen Doylestown and Neshaminy. In any case, the "Street Rd RUSH" could begin operating as early as next March.
In other LBC news (that's Lower Bucks County for those of you who don't speak "Lower Bucks-ese"), SEPTA is planning to rehab the Croydon and Levittown-Tullytown stations along the R7 Trenton line. SEPTA Board Chairman - and Bucks County land developer - Pasquale T. Deon, Sr. recently bragged to a local Bucks County newspaper that SEPTA had invested nearly $30 million in recent years to improve service. My question is when do the other counties get their fair share of the pie from SEPTA? I mean, some of the stations along the Marcus Hook line look as though they could use a little sprucing up...
Sunday, September 22, 2002
ARCHIVES - 09/22/02
Trolley service on the 11 was short-turned at 58 St due to a block party near 65 St/Woodland Av. Despite the printed timetables indicated 12 minute headways, there were, at points, 25 minute gaps between arriving trolleys at 58 St, which caused made for a lot of frustrated commuters between Darby and 58 St. The supervisor at 58 St was not only less than helpful in explaining why there was a 25 minute gap, he was, according to one witness, extremely rude. (If that supervisor gets taken off the road, he can always get a job as a SEPTA spokesman/apologist/liar - see Maloney, Richard.)
As expected, the 104 bus was detoured off Gay and High Sts due to the West Chester's annual Restaurant Festival (which seems to invite more arrogant drunks than a typical weekend night on off campus homes near West Chester University). Buses operated via Chestnut St to New St, then via New St, Market St and High St to the West Chester University routing before returning to High and Market and en route to 69 St. Amazingly enough, there were actually signs posted notifying passengers of the detour. That's almost a first for SEPTA as it relates to detours in West Chester.
On the schedule front, Frontier timetables are tentatively set to change on October 28. It's reported that all weekday and Saturday trips on the 92 and 133 will be through-routed, something that should've been done from the very beginning. This is being done presumably after numerous complaints from 92 passengers about missed connections at Exton Mall for the 133 (I've filed at least 3-4 of said complaints, particularly about 6019 block). The 92 will also be routed into the Main St at Exton complex currently served by the 207/Whirl and the TMACC Phlyer. There are also expected to be minor changes on the 124/125; weekend shuttle service between King of Prussia and Chesterbrook will be replaced by one-seat ride service from Center City to Chesterbrook. If there are any other changes on the Frontier routes, they may involve minor time adjustments.
Also set to change on October 28 is the 115, which will finally be routed to MacDade Mall in Glenolden. The routing will be via Delmar Village, Hook Rd, Primos Av, Chester Pike, and South Av to MacDade Mall. This is a change from the original proposal which sent all off Norwood into a histrionic fit of anti-transit rage (the 115 was to have been routed via Winona Av in Norwood).
As expected, the 104 bus was detoured off Gay and High Sts due to the West Chester's annual Restaurant Festival (which seems to invite more arrogant drunks than a typical weekend night on off campus homes near West Chester University). Buses operated via Chestnut St to New St, then via New St, Market St and High St to the West Chester University routing before returning to High and Market and en route to 69 St. Amazingly enough, there were actually signs posted notifying passengers of the detour. That's almost a first for SEPTA as it relates to detours in West Chester.
On the schedule front, Frontier timetables are tentatively set to change on October 28. It's reported that all weekday and Saturday trips on the 92 and 133 will be through-routed, something that should've been done from the very beginning. This is being done presumably after numerous complaints from 92 passengers about missed connections at Exton Mall for the 133 (I've filed at least 3-4 of said complaints, particularly about 6019 block). The 92 will also be routed into the Main St at Exton complex currently served by the 207/Whirl and the TMACC Phlyer. There are also expected to be minor changes on the 124/125; weekend shuttle service between King of Prussia and Chesterbrook will be replaced by one-seat ride service from Center City to Chesterbrook. If there are any other changes on the Frontier routes, they may involve minor time adjustments.
Thursday, September 19, 2002
ARCHIVES - 09/19/02
And then, there was one... Due to upcoming construction around the areas of the Tasker Homes projects in South Philadelphia where the 29 has it's western terminus, it's very possible that the only trackless line remaining in service for SEPTA would be the 79 along Snyder Av. The plan by the City of Philadelphia would be to run Morris St through the complex (there are presently two turns west of 30 St).
SEPTA's initial plan was to operate buses between 13 St and 33 St with tracklesses operating between Front and 23 St. Because of the tight turns onto 13 St, that proposal would not appear to be an option. Another option that was considered was to reroute the tracklesses on Tasker between 29 and 32 Sts, which would require (1) new overhead along 29 St between Tasker and Morris, (2) two-way operation along Tasker, which is one-way in the westbound direction, resulting in the loss of parking in that stretch (and if there's one thing people in South Philly get fired up over, it's the loss of even a single parking space) and (3) new overhead along Tasker on the eastbound side of the street. So far, neither of these options appear to be feasible.
The planned bus substitution would start as early as the February 2003 sign-ups, and last for at least 3 years. It's probable, given SEPTA's past history towards streetcars and trackless trolleys (see the 15/23/56 controversy), that this long-term "substitution" could spell the beginning of the end for electric trackless trolley service in the City of Philadelphia, if the "temporary bus substitution" in Northeast Philadelphia hasn't hastened this already.
Despite being about 2 weeks behind the rest of the routes, SEPTA has finally issued a new Route 108 timetable, dated September 15. Also recieving a new timetable with that date is the 28 bus between Fern Rock and Northeast Philadelphia, which is presently operating on a detour routing off of Rhawn St in Fox Chase.
SEPTA's initial plan was to operate buses between 13 St and 33 St with tracklesses operating between Front and 23 St. Because of the tight turns onto 13 St, that proposal would not appear to be an option. Another option that was considered was to reroute the tracklesses on Tasker between 29 and 32 Sts, which would require (1) new overhead along 29 St between Tasker and Morris, (2) two-way operation along Tasker, which is one-way in the westbound direction, resulting in the loss of parking in that stretch (and if there's one thing people in South Philly get fired up over, it's the loss of even a single parking space) and (3) new overhead along Tasker on the eastbound side of the street. So far, neither of these options appear to be feasible.
The planned bus substitution would start as early as the February 2003 sign-ups, and last for at least 3 years. It's probable, given SEPTA's past history towards streetcars and trackless trolleys (see the 15/23/56 controversy), that this long-term "substitution" could spell the beginning of the end for electric trackless trolley service in the City of Philadelphia, if the "temporary bus substitution" in Northeast Philadelphia hasn't hastened this already.
Despite being about 2 weeks behind the rest of the routes, SEPTA has finally issued a new Route 108 timetable, dated September 15. Also recieving a new timetable with that date is the 28 bus between Fern Rock and Northeast Philadelphia, which is presently operating on a detour routing off of Rhawn St in Fox Chase.
Wednesday, September 18, 2002
ARCHIVES - 09/18/02
SEPTA appears to be starting the phase out of the 3000-series Neos. At least two have been confirmed to be at Midvale scrap yard (3080 and 3094). This tends to tell me that either SEPTA is much closer to getting the 5600-series New Flyers or that those buses are falling apart.
A large number of accessibe Neos and NABIs were recently swapped from Frankford to Comly, with Frankford getting some 3100s from Southern and some 3000s from Comly in exchange. There seems to be no reasonable logic for this move, since only the 3 trackless routes (which are busing for at least the next 12 months) and the J & K buses are the only non-accessible bus routes which operate out of Frankford. On a related note, some 3300s are being swiped from Frontier and appearing on routes at Southern.
SEPTA announced that it will operate express trains on the Broad Street Line for Sunday's Eagles game against the hated Dallas Cowboys. Of course, there are no express trains to Pattison for tonight's Rolling Stones concert at the Vet, nor is there any mention of the fact that SEPTA offers direct service to the Tower Theater (across from 69 St Terminal at 69 St & Ludlow) for Sunday's concert, where about 3,500 Stones fans are expected to converge. On Sunday afternoon and evening, expect very heavy traffic along 69 St and Market St, which could cause lengthy delays on the 108 and 113 buses, and possibly on the El Shuttle, 21 and 65 buses, which reach 69 St Terminal via Market St.
Detours are also the order of the day in West Chester on Sunday as West Chester Recreation presents the Chester County Restaurant Festival. With the eastbound re-routing of the 104 bus via High St, I have not been made aware of any detour routing for westbound travel to West Chester University. If past history is any indication, I wouldn't expect SEPTA to go out of their way to help people in West Chester get around the festival site, which will have Gay St closed between Matlack and New Sts, and High St closed between Market and Chestnut. (See, the old 104 routing was much simpler in that westbound buses could simply detour via Chestnut to New St.)
And now, the Frankford Terminal web site is pleased to present the latest ridiculous statement from SEPTA's chief spokesman/apologist/liar Richard Maloney. Maloney recently told the Jewish Exponent newspaper an incredible whopper about the Schuylkill Valley rail project. "When it's in full service, it will serve approximately 50,000 passengers a day," he said. "That's about half [of what we currently serve] on our commuter-rail system, so it's a lot." 50,000 riders between Reading and Philadelphia? I have the gut feeling that SEPTA is just pulling numbers out of thin air in order to justify the nearly $1.9 billion price tag.
A large number of accessibe Neos and NABIs were recently swapped from Frankford to Comly, with Frankford getting some 3100s from Southern and some 3000s from Comly in exchange. There seems to be no reasonable logic for this move, since only the 3 trackless routes (which are busing for at least the next 12 months) and the J & K buses are the only non-accessible bus routes which operate out of Frankford. On a related note, some 3300s are being swiped from Frontier and appearing on routes at Southern.
SEPTA announced that it will operate express trains on the Broad Street Line for Sunday's Eagles game against the hated Dallas Cowboys. Of course, there are no express trains to Pattison for tonight's Rolling Stones concert at the Vet, nor is there any mention of the fact that SEPTA offers direct service to the Tower Theater (across from 69 St Terminal at 69 St & Ludlow) for Sunday's concert, where about 3,500 Stones fans are expected to converge. On Sunday afternoon and evening, expect very heavy traffic along 69 St and Market St, which could cause lengthy delays on the 108 and 113 buses, and possibly on the El Shuttle, 21 and 65 buses, which reach 69 St Terminal via Market St.
Detours are also the order of the day in West Chester on Sunday as West Chester Recreation presents the Chester County Restaurant Festival. With the eastbound re-routing of the 104 bus via High St, I have not been made aware of any detour routing for westbound travel to West Chester University. If past history is any indication, I wouldn't expect SEPTA to go out of their way to help people in West Chester get around the festival site, which will have Gay St closed between Matlack and New Sts, and High St closed between Market and Chestnut. (See, the old 104 routing was much simpler in that westbound buses could simply detour via Chestnut to New St.)
And now, the Frankford Terminal web site is pleased to present the latest ridiculous statement from SEPTA's chief spokesman/apologist/liar Richard Maloney. Maloney recently told the Jewish Exponent newspaper an incredible whopper about the Schuylkill Valley rail project. "When it's in full service, it will serve approximately 50,000 passengers a day," he said. "That's about half [of what we currently serve] on our commuter-rail system, so it's a lot." 50,000 riders between Reading and Philadelphia? I have the gut feeling that SEPTA is just pulling numbers out of thin air in order to justify the nearly $1.9 billion price tag.
Tuesday, September 10, 2002
ARCHIVES - 09/10/02
As a follow-up to yesterday's Regional Rail fiascos, SEPTA did issue a detailed (by SEPTA standards) statement about what had happened. The Melrose Park wire problems occured at 5:03am, delaying trains arriving into Center City on the Glenside-Airport, Warminster, West Trenton, and Lansdale-Doylestown lines, and causing residual delays on the Elwyn and Paoli lines. The wire problems were caused by a maintenance crew who failed to properly repair the wiring after complete work in that area. The wire problems were worsened after a Center City bound train's pantograph was caught in the catenary at around 9:00am.
Then, to make matters worse, switch failures at Newtown Junction caused further delays to Fox Chase and West Trenton line trains. The system was entirely halted at around 11:00am, when the Centralized Train Control system failed.
Instead of holding trains north of Melrose Park and diverting passengers to either shuttle buses or alternate transit lines (passengers could easily have been placed on shuttle buses at Jenkintown, or directed to the 22 bus at Glenside or 55 bus in downtown Jenkintown for connections to Olney Terminal and connections to the Broad Street Line). This resulted in delays of up to 3 hours throughout the entire system, with most of the delays focused on the Glenside-Center City trunk line. Service was restored to normal sometime before the PM peak period.
SEPTA's AGM for Operations Patrick Nowakowski called the September 9 fiascos "the worst day on the railroad in 20 or 30 years." He also noted that had maintenance done its job properly the night before, "most people would have been looking at one-hour delays." DUH! Maybe if SEPTA hired some REAL railroad professionals to manage the Regional Rail system instead of plucking people with "transit" experience, SEPTA's Regional Rail might not be the laughing stock of the industry. (Updated September 19, 2002)
SEPTA's "statement" was published in the Metro newspaper, but not posted on-line. Presumably, there were also seat drop notices on all Regional Rail trains.
The fire that put 5155 into the scrap yard at Midvale started in the wheel area before spreading into the interior of the bus. Another recent arrival into the Midvale scrap yard is 3133, which also suffered unrepairable fire damage.
The Red Arrow buses are finally starting to be retrofit with the new CARD control panels. Two of the first buses to get the new system were 3126 and 5298.
Then, to make matters worse, switch failures at Newtown Junction caused further delays to Fox Chase and West Trenton line trains. The system was entirely halted at around 11:00am, when the Centralized Train Control system failed.
Instead of holding trains north of Melrose Park and diverting passengers to either shuttle buses or alternate transit lines (passengers could easily have been placed on shuttle buses at Jenkintown, or directed to the 22 bus at Glenside or 55 bus in downtown Jenkintown for connections to Olney Terminal and connections to the Broad Street Line). This resulted in delays of up to 3 hours throughout the entire system, with most of the delays focused on the Glenside-Center City trunk line. Service was restored to normal sometime before the PM peak period.
SEPTA's AGM for Operations Patrick Nowakowski called the September 9 fiascos "the worst day on the railroad in 20 or 30 years." He also noted that had maintenance done its job properly the night before, "most people would have been looking at one-hour delays." DUH! Maybe if SEPTA hired some REAL railroad professionals to manage the Regional Rail system instead of plucking people with "transit" experience, SEPTA's Regional Rail might not be the laughing stock of the industry. (Updated September 19, 2002)
SEPTA's "statement" was published in the Metro newspaper, but not posted on-line. Presumably, there were also seat drop notices on all Regional Rail trains.
The fire that put 5155 into the scrap yard at Midvale started in the wheel area before spreading into the interior of the bus. Another recent arrival into the Midvale scrap yard is 3133, which also suffered unrepairable fire damage.
The Red Arrow buses are finally starting to be retrofit with the new CARD control panels. Two of the first buses to get the new system were 3126 and 5298.
Monday, September 09, 2002
ARCHIVES - 09/09/02
Not a good day to be a Regional Rail commuter today. Delays over anywhere from 20-40 minutes were the norm on all Regional Rail lines due to (1) a downed wire south of Melrose Park station along the RRD Main Line; (2) a disabled train at University City station; and (3) a computer outage affecting the control of interlockings systemwide. Passenger services at both Market East and Suburban were less than forthcoming in explaining to passengers why the trains were delayed. Customers at least are owed an explaination tomorrow by RRD management as to why their commutes were as long as an hour behind schedule (as it was on one particular R7 train returning from Trenton).
As a result of the delayed trains, an R8 Chestnut Hill West train was annulled and put into service as an R3 to Elwyn. Passengers who were en route to Chestnut Hill were ordered off the train in Center City and forced to wait for the next R8.
There are STILL no new 108 timetables anywhere in the system, even though there were only the addition of school trippers. The only timetables available are dated from June and being distributed at the 69 St Customer Service office.
As a result of the delayed trains, an R8 Chestnut Hill West train was annulled and put into service as an R3 to Elwyn. Passengers who were en route to Chestnut Hill were ordered off the train in Center City and forced to wait for the next R8.
There are STILL no new 108 timetables anywhere in the system, even though there were only the addition of school trippers. The only timetables available are dated from June and being distributed at the 69 St Customer Service office.
Tuesday, September 03, 2002
ARCHIVES - 09/03/02
On Friday night, Frankford 5513 was involved in an accident on Roosevelt Blvd at Summerdale. There was no further information available about the cause of the accident or the damage sustained.
Frontier 3474 suffered rear damage while on the Schuylkill Expressway near Conshohocken on Monday. 3474 caught fire while deadheading on the expressway sometime Monday afternoon. Most of the interior was undamaged, but about 80 percent of the rear exterior of the bus was damaged.
Two days after SEPTA schedules changed, there are no 108 timetables anywhere in the system. There are no timetables dated from June or from either August or September.
Wednesday, August 28, 2002
ARCHIVES - 08/28/02
Schedules will change on all City Division routes and on Red Arrow route 108 on Sunday. As part of the schedule change, trolleys will return to the full 36 route after a 3 month rail rehab project. The changes in Andorra approved as part of the Annual Service Plan will also take effect on Sunday (on a side note, the 35 timetable is no longer a simple schedule card, but a regular timetable like nearly all other SEPTA bus routes). Additionally, more routes have been added to the wheelchair accessible route network, and all routes will be wheelchair accessible on weekends and holidays. More details will be posted within the next few days.
As of yesterday, new CTD timetables were available at 1234 Market for all routes, except for the 58, 108, and L. As Suburban Station, the June timetables for the Red Arrow routes were still in the schedule racks, despite the fact that the new schedules have been in effect for the past two weeks. Timetables for several Northeast Philadelphia routes are also available at Frankford Terminal's Frankford Av/Bridge St headhouse near the El entrance and info booth.
SEPTA is starting to add the CARD system radio control panels on buses operating out of Frontier, Comly, and Frankford. Within the next few weeks, Red Arrow should have their new radios installed. Isn't it odd that in most cases, the suburban depots are at the end of the line when it comes to equipment upgrades?
A public meeting to discuss the proposed P&W extension to King of Prussia and Port Kennedy is scheduled for September 19 at 7:00pm. The hearing will take place at the Holiday Inn/King of Prussia, Wanamaker Room A, located at 260 Mall Blvd in Upper Merion, across the street from the mall.
A public hearing to make the Route 94 Express routing changes to serve the Abramson Center for Jewish Life (formerly known as the Philadelphia Geriatric Center) will take place at the Abramson Center, located at 1425 Horsham Rd, Montgomery Twp. The October 2 hearing will begin at 10:00am, mainly to accomodate the employees of the Abramson Center, since the last AM bus from Chestnut Hill arrives there at 8:36am, with the last bus from Montgomery Mall arriving at 9:25am.
West Chester University isn't the only major university to see improved transit access this fall. Starting on Saturday, NJ Transit's 412 bus will be re-routed to serve Rowan University in Glassboro.
As of yesterday, new CTD timetables were available at 1234 Market for all routes, except for the 58, 108, and L. As Suburban Station, the June timetables for the Red Arrow routes were still in the schedule racks, despite the fact that the new schedules have been in effect for the past two weeks. Timetables for several Northeast Philadelphia routes are also available at Frankford Terminal's Frankford Av/Bridge St headhouse near the El entrance and info booth.
SEPTA is starting to add the CARD system radio control panels on buses operating out of Frontier, Comly, and Frankford. Within the next few weeks, Red Arrow should have their new radios installed. Isn't it odd that in most cases, the suburban depots are at the end of the line when it comes to equipment upgrades?
A public meeting to discuss the proposed P&W extension to King of Prussia and Port Kennedy is scheduled for September 19 at 7:00pm. The hearing will take place at the Holiday Inn/King of Prussia, Wanamaker Room A, located at 260 Mall Blvd in Upper Merion, across the street from the mall.
A public hearing to make the Route 94 Express routing changes to serve the Abramson Center for Jewish Life (formerly known as the Philadelphia Geriatric Center) will take place at the Abramson Center, located at 1425 Horsham Rd, Montgomery Twp. The October 2 hearing will begin at 10:00am, mainly to accomodate the employees of the Abramson Center, since the last AM bus from Chestnut Hill arrives there at 8:36am, with the last bus from Montgomery Mall arriving at 9:25am.
West Chester University isn't the only major university to see improved transit access this fall. Starting on Saturday, NJ Transit's 412 bus will be re-routed to serve Rowan University in Glassboro.
Saturday, August 24, 2002
ARCHIVES - 08/24/02
Late night service on the 104 was impacted following a serious assault in West Chester on Thursday night. The 11:00pm to 69 St Terminal was held by West Chester Police at Market & Worthington Sts after a black male passenger literally threw a hispanic male passenger off 5307 (4232 block) at around 11:10pm. The two passengers boarded the bus a few blocks earlier at Market & Matlack. The victim was transported to Chester County Hospital; the suspect was arrested about two blocks away after attempting to flee the scene.
Wednesday, August 21, 2002
ARCHIVES - 08/21/02
Just another fun day on West Chester Pike yesterday, as traffic was detoured in Havertown due to an accident east of the former Mercy Haverford Hospital. The incident occured at around 6:45pm yesterday. At least one bus was unable to complete it's run, while others were stuck in traffic for about 1 mile, stretching back to the Blue Route interchange.
And then, there was yesterday's incident on the 2:45pm 104 to 69 St Terminal (Bus 3235/4244 block). For the second straight day, according to a couple of passengers, that particular trip was overcrowded to the point of hazardous, as passengers were standing in the front doorway, while other standees refused to move to the back of the bus. The incident reached a head when the bus operated through Havertown as an arguement and near brawl broke out. Four SEPTA police officers were at the platform when 3235 arrived and fortunately, cooler heads prevailed, with no arrests coming out of it.
Adding to the confusion on the 104, is that the 6:35pm trip to West Chester that was listed as an express is actually a local trip, thanks to a "mistake" by scheduling. Hmmm, the run sheets printed out before the schedule change say express, the timetable says express, but the 6:35pm is a local? Just another day in the life of the geniuses at 1234 Market.
And then, there was yesterday's incident on the 2:45pm 104 to 69 St Terminal (Bus 3235/4244 block). For the second straight day, according to a couple of passengers, that particular trip was overcrowded to the point of hazardous, as passengers were standing in the front doorway, while other standees refused to move to the back of the bus. The incident reached a head when the bus operated through Havertown as an arguement and near brawl broke out. Four SEPTA police officers were at the platform when 3235 arrived and fortunately, cooler heads prevailed, with no arrests coming out of it.
Adding to the confusion on the 104, is that the 6:35pm trip to West Chester that was listed as an express is actually a local trip, thanks to a "mistake" by scheduling. Hmmm, the run sheets printed out before the schedule change say express, the timetable says express, but the 6:35pm is a local? Just another day in the life of the geniuses at 1234 Market.
Monday, August 19, 2002
ARCHIVES - 08/19/02
As a follow up to the controversy over the 115 extension through Norwood, SEPTA held a public meeting on August 7, bringing an ElDorado to the meeting for display purposes, mainly to alleviate concerns from residents about what kind of bus would be used on the line. During the meeting, some angry residents went so far as to threaten to throw rocks at the buses as they passed by on Winona Av. According to some sources, the Norwood Borough officials at the meeting didn't seem to discourage that idea. When the meeting ended, the tires on the bus were slashed. The suspects were not caught, and apparently, Norwood Police couldn't be bothered to investigate. Additionally, residents have posted home-made signs along some streets in Norwood which could pass as official government issued signs. (I have yet to see said signs, but that wouldn't really surprise me.)
An added thumbs down goes to Pa. State Rep. Ron C. Raymond (R-162) for backing the residents of Norwood in the fight against extending the 115. While foolishly backing the borough's actions, Raymond may have suffered a bit of a brain lock. His actions basically was a slap in the face to his other constituents in the 162 District, including those living in Darby Borough, Collingdale, Sharon Hill, and Folcroft - all of which are in the 162 District (as is Glenolden, where MacDade Mall is located, though I'm not sure if that part of Glenolden is in the 162 or 163 House District).
If anybody wants to protest Rep. Raymond's short-sighted actions against the Route 115 extension, you can send snail mail to:
District Office:
The Hon. Ron C. Raymond
1337 Chester Pike
Sharon Hill, PA 19079
Capitol Address:
The Hon. Ron C. Raymond
Room 209
Ryan Office Bldg
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2020
You can also call Rep. Raymond's office in Sharon Hill (610-534-1002) or Harrisburg (717-787-3742).
On a more service related note, subway-surface cars were diverted during the mid-day due to overhead problems. In an unusual tactic, the 10, 11, and shortened 36 were diverted to the 40 St El station as per normal diversion, however, the 13 and 34 operated to the 40 St Portal, where passengers were forced to board buses between 40 St Portal and 40 St El Station. Reportedly, there are some power issues (electrical, not political - we hope) that prevented all five lines from operating over the diversion route. Either that, or Rep. Raymond got involved...
Meanwhile, the new Red Arrow changes went into effect today. There were few problems observed, except for the 111 operator en route to Chadds Ford on the 4:00pm departure from 69 St (4453 block, though I don't recall of the very top of my head) who bypassed Penn State completely after leaving Riddle Hospital, and had to backtrack to Penn State after serving Franklin Mint first. The end result was a 20 minute delay arriving into Chadds Ford, resulting in a barely made connection with the last 314 bus back to West Chester.
Between the X-Games at the First Union Complex and the Phillies game at Veterans Stadium on Sunday, approximately 100,000 people were around the Sports Complex in South Philadelphia. Shuttle buses between the Navy Yard and First Union Complex (buses were signed "FIRST UNION SPECTRUM") were mainly Neo artics (half from Midvale with 312x blocks, half from Allegheny with 525x blocks, and Southern 5494 tossed in for good measure). Passengers boarded and alighted from the inner lanes on Broad St at Pattison. From brief observation after the Phillies game (okay, after the 6th inning), the artics were running about every 5 minutes, with standing loads in both directions.
On the Broad Street Line side, service wasn't quite as good. At around 4:45pm, when the ball game ended, there was about a 10-15 minute wait for trains to even arrive at Pattison Station. The platform was crowded and continued to fill until the next Fern Rock local arrived at 5:02pm. One would think that SEPTA could run 6 car trains on the Broad St Line or schedule trains every 6-8 minutes instead of tossing a couple of extra trains here and there over a 10 minute headway, but SEPTA doesn't seem to have that much foresight. (Yet another arguement for express buses from outlying areas to the sports complex, a la Baltimore.)
An added thumbs down goes to Pa. State Rep. Ron C. Raymond (R-162) for backing the residents of Norwood in the fight against extending the 115. While foolishly backing the borough's actions, Raymond may have suffered a bit of a brain lock. His actions basically was a slap in the face to his other constituents in the 162 District, including those living in Darby Borough, Collingdale, Sharon Hill, and Folcroft - all of which are in the 162 District (as is Glenolden, where MacDade Mall is located, though I'm not sure if that part of Glenolden is in the 162 or 163 House District).
If anybody wants to protest Rep. Raymond's short-sighted actions against the Route 115 extension, you can send snail mail to:
District Office:
The Hon. Ron C. Raymond
1337 Chester Pike
Sharon Hill, PA 19079
Capitol Address:
The Hon. Ron C. Raymond
Room 209
Ryan Office Bldg
Harrisburg, PA 17120-2020
You can also call Rep. Raymond's office in Sharon Hill (610-534-1002) or Harrisburg (717-787-3742).
On a more service related note, subway-surface cars were diverted during the mid-day due to overhead problems. In an unusual tactic, the 10, 11, and shortened 36 were diverted to the 40 St El station as per normal diversion, however, the 13 and 34 operated to the 40 St Portal, where passengers were forced to board buses between 40 St Portal and 40 St El Station. Reportedly, there are some power issues (electrical, not political - we hope) that prevented all five lines from operating over the diversion route. Either that, or Rep. Raymond got involved...
Meanwhile, the new Red Arrow changes went into effect today. There were few problems observed, except for the 111 operator en route to Chadds Ford on the 4:00pm departure from 69 St (4453 block, though I don't recall of the very top of my head) who bypassed Penn State completely after leaving Riddle Hospital, and had to backtrack to Penn State after serving Franklin Mint first. The end result was a 20 minute delay arriving into Chadds Ford, resulting in a barely made connection with the last 314 bus back to West Chester.
Between the X-Games at the First Union Complex and the Phillies game at Veterans Stadium on Sunday, approximately 100,000 people were around the Sports Complex in South Philadelphia. Shuttle buses between the Navy Yard and First Union Complex (buses were signed "FIRST UNION SPECTRUM") were mainly Neo artics (half from Midvale with 312x blocks, half from Allegheny with 525x blocks, and Southern 5494 tossed in for good measure). Passengers boarded and alighted from the inner lanes on Broad St at Pattison. From brief observation after the Phillies game (okay, after the 6th inning), the artics were running about every 5 minutes, with standing loads in both directions.
On the Broad Street Line side, service wasn't quite as good. At around 4:45pm, when the ball game ended, there was about a 10-15 minute wait for trains to even arrive at Pattison Station. The platform was crowded and continued to fill until the next Fern Rock local arrived at 5:02pm. One would think that SEPTA could run 6 car trains on the Broad St Line or schedule trains every 6-8 minutes instead of tossing a couple of extra trains here and there over a 10 minute headway, but SEPTA doesn't seem to have that much foresight. (Yet another arguement for express buses from outlying areas to the sports complex, a la Baltimore.)
Thursday, August 15, 2002
ARCHIVES - 08/15/02
Market-Frankford El service was disrupted between 52 St and Spring Garden after an unknown substance forced work crews to clean up the westbound tracks, casuing massive delays during the AM peak period. Service was restored at around 10:00am.
The proposed extension of the 115 from Delmar Village to MacDade Mall via Norwood is on hold for at least 3 months due to opposition from residents in Norwood. The complaints stem from SEPTA's failure to notify Norwood Borough officials about the extended 115 routing along Winona Av. Service was to have begun on Monday, with weekday and Saturday service operating to MacDade Mall. New timetables will be issued soon. Service between Ardmore and Brookline will still be eliminated, however.
Several SEPTA employees were distributing new timetables and brochures featuring the new changes on the 103, 104, 110, 111, and new route 122 today. New timetables are slowly being distributed at 1234 Market, Chester TC, and 69 St Terminal. This is highly unusual, since SEPTA was notorious for not releasing the timetables until a day or two before schedules change.
The proposed extension of the 115 from Delmar Village to MacDade Mall via Norwood is on hold for at least 3 months due to opposition from residents in Norwood. The complaints stem from SEPTA's failure to notify Norwood Borough officials about the extended 115 routing along Winona Av. Service was to have begun on Monday, with weekday and Saturday service operating to MacDade Mall. New timetables will be issued soon. Service between Ardmore and Brookline will still be eliminated, however.
Several SEPTA employees were distributing new timetables and brochures featuring the new changes on the 103, 104, 110, 111, and new route 122 today. New timetables are slowly being distributed at 1234 Market, Chester TC, and 69 St Terminal. This is highly unusual, since SEPTA was notorious for not releasing the timetables until a day or two before schedules change.
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