SEPTA Watch

Entries in 34 (2)

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

7:30AM

Even SEPTA could clear a tree within five hours

Posted by

Michael at

7:30 AM under

34,

trolley

Saturday around noon I was waiting for the 34 trolley. There was a light rain. 20 minutes later, a bus came by to pick us up. A tree limb had fallen down on the wire up ahead. He was shuttling people around it.

"Come on in!" The driver greeted us with his hand over the fare box. "This ride's on me!"

"How long has that branch been down?" I asked him as we took a detour around the blocked block.

"It's been blocked since before 7am," the driver replied.

Up ahead, a city crew was just arriving and setting up to take care of the limb--five hours after the tree had apparently fallen.

"You know what SEPTA should do?" the driver went on, unprompted. "SEPTA should have their own tree crew that goes out when trees fall blocking the subways or the buses. Then SEPTA can bill the City for it."

Sounds like a reasonable idea. And a potential revenue generator for SEPTA.

He left us off at the 40th Street portal, and we all got onboard a waiting 36 trolley for the ride through the tunnel.

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Friday, January 30, 2009

7:30AM

Delaying the 34 trolley without explanation

Posted by

Michael at

7:30 AM under

34,

bsl,

trolley

Last Friday, I got to my Baltimore Avenue corner to wait for the 34 trolley at 8:10am. It was close to 9am before I gave up on the trolley, crossed the street, and caught a 64 bus to the 46th Street El station. It was the third 64 bus that had passed as I was waiting.

The 34 trolley is usually more reliable so I'll accept a delay every so often. But it would have been nice to have SEPTA staff come by to tell those of us who were waiting the cause of the delay and when the trolleys were expected to roll again. On my corner alone there were over 30 people by the time I left.

When the BSL was delayed an hour last week because of signal problems, SEPTA informed the riders.

Jerome Carey, 28, of Germantown, was waiting for a southbound train at the Girard Avenue station around 2:30 p.m. He said a SEPTA officer came down to the platform and “told us something was wrong with the signals and the tracks.” At first the crowd was directed to the street to catch a shuttle, but Carey said another worker then told passengers that trains were operational. “I went up and down the steps twice,” he said, before getting final word that the trains were not operating.

Couldn't they do something similar for us trolley riders during rush hour?

(image credit.)

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