Here is a charming story about a Temple student who overcame her fear of using the bike rack in front of a SEPTA bus.
It seems like it will be difficult, but it actually works really well!
(image credit: http://questional.com/3392-silver-bars-front-septa-buses/)
Speaking of trolleys, there’s a really neat video that’s been making the rounds on transit sites lately. It’s a 1940 video that tells the story of the end of trolleys in Seattle.
The site that the video comes from is well worth the read. According to public radio station KPLU, buses replaced the trolleys in Seattle for two reasons.
First, a “secret cartel involving General Motors and Standard Oil, among others, was buying up streetcar lines in other American cities, outside the northwest, and converting them to buses.”
Second, Seattle was broke and couldn’t afford the upkeep any more. Seattle Mayor Alfred Langlie “negotiated a federal bailout loan, which would retire the streetcar system’s debt if the city switched to buses.”
By April of 1941, Seattle had ripped up 230 miles of streetcar lines, melting them into steel for the war effort – and becoming the largest city in the country at that time to have no streetcars. Instead, the city got the electric trolley-bus system we still have today.
And now, seventy years later, we sure do miss those trolleys.
Wondering why the 15 trolley has been replaced by bus service these past few months?
It’s all part of the Girard Avenue Interchange project which involves ripping up the tracks between 2nd Street and Front Street. Eventually, they’ll be replaced with a nicer streetscape.
This will be nicer for the folks in Fishtown and–not coincidentally?–improve access to the Sugarhouse casino.
As for the 15? SEPTA says the trolley will be back by April 1.
(image credit.)
The Philadelphia Auto Show is coming up and SEPTA, a sponsor, has extended the hours for many of its ticket offices so that you can buy tickets to come down to the show.
According to its website, ticket office hours have been extended at the following stations: Market West, Melrose Park, Media, Villanova, … Wait. What? Market West?
Kind of an important error, no? Or perhaps SEPTA is planning on building a new station?
A trolley accident occurred on Thursday morning.
It happened at 57th & Chester involving the 13 trolley and a car.
2 people in the car reported minor injuries.
Earlier this week, SEPTA announced a new way to check the “system status.” The idea is that in one place, you can find out the delays, detours, alerts, and advisories for each line. Great idea, right?
But the user interface leaves a lot to be desired. The display looks like a circa-1990 website. Sure, it gives the information you’re looking for but the presentation? Meh.
In fact, it kind of reminds me of something from Faye Moore era: it works, but it’s not all that exciting. Which is odd, given the great advancements that SEPTA has made recently with technology and the rider experience.
A recent rider on the G bus in SW Phila went way over the line by groping the bus driver.
Not cool, and luckily there was video surveillance that shows pretty clear photos of the man.
The Philadelphia Police are now looking for tips to identify him and arrest him for sexual assault.
And some cities are putting up shields to protect their drivers from riders.
Would that help or hurt SEPTA’s perception?
I wouldn’t recommend doing this. But it reminded me of a very close call I had earlier this week.
I was biking down Chestnut Street yesterday morning when, just before 15th Street, hit a seam in the concrete, and went over.
Luckily, I hit the ground running.
Unluckily, a bus was less than 20 feet behind me.
Luckily, the very alert bus driver slammed on the brakes and brought the bus to a stop two feet before running over my bike.
I quickly got my bike up, thanked the driver, and rode on. If you’re reading this, bus driver. Thanks for being alert.
(image “credit.”)
A couple years ago, I poked fun at Tony Luke’s, the popular cheesesteak jawn, for sponsoring a healthy eating advertisement on the Regional Rail.
A couple days ago, the Inquirer reported that Mr. Luke has lost 100 pounds over the past year.
Instead of two or three meals a day plus snacks (in the past, he would regularly inhale multiple cheesesteaks at one sitting), Luke has five or six small-portion meals a day…. However, Luke claimed the key to staying on such a rigid diet is that he allows himself the occasional indulgence.
Maybe he was inspired by his advertisements, too.
(image credit.)
We’ve talked about rats in the SEPTA concourse before, but I don’t think we’ve ever talked about–or seen–creatures bigger than that.
But the New York Times last week was abuzz with not one, not two, but three stories of the case of Jerome the opossum who hitched a ride on the D train one evening.
(image credit.)