The Travelin’ Grampa Touring the U.S.A. without an automobile

Focus on safe, fast, convenient, comfortable, cheap travel, via public transit.

Vol. 11, No. 3  礪 March 2018

Photo credit: Bruce Neumann, WPVI Channel 6 ABC .

t Eagles players wave from Big during Super Bowl victory parade. See a report by WPVI reporters Rick Williams, Cecily Tynan and Jeff Skversky at: http://6abc.com/sports/eagles-honored-with-phillys-first-super-bowl-parade/3053345/

Most folks walked or rode to Eagles victory parade More than two thirds of spectators at the big Super Bowl victory parade and subsequent event in Philadelphia did not drive there. They walked or/and rode public transport. Even drivers ended up riding public transportation or/and often walking considerable distances*. Grampa includes as public transport: SEPTA, PATCO, NJ Transit, DART, , Greyhound, Trailways, Uber share ride, Lyft share ride, taxicab share ride, commercial passenger airlines, CCT*, Community Transit*, TransNet*, Rover*, and charter bus services charging fare per passenger. The two-thirds number is based on an attendance estimate of around 700,000 by crowd counting experts hired by The Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Daily News. The experts evaluated photos of crowds along the parade route and at the Art Museum climax event area. See story on p.3. * Grampa includes arrivals days before parade, and day or night before, camping-out in cars or slept in homes of friends, in Airbnb accommodations, hotels and motels, and in office buildings along the parade route. * Call-for share ride services: CCT, Philadelphia County; Community Transit of Delaware County; TransNet Network Inc., Montgomery County; Rover Community Transportation, Chester County.

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

SEPTA subway and ‘el’ big winners on Eagles parade day Southeastern Transportation Authority subways, railroads, and trolley cars transported perhaps 500,000 riders round-trip to/from the Thursday Feb. 8 Eagles victory parade and spectacular ceremony/entertainment at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.*. Subway and ‘el’ trains collected no fares that day. Instead, Independence Blue Cross, a health insurance provider, paid SEPTA $300,000. “The Market-Frankford and Broad Street lines are the workhorses of our system,” said Jeff Knueppel, SEPTA general manger. “We knew we would be able to transport 65,000 riders per hour on those lines with four- to six-minute headways.” The ‘el’ and subway are city-dweller mainstays. They also bring into Philly many riders from its suburbs, transferring from dozens of SEPTA bus routes from Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties, two Delaware County routes, and Montgomery County’s Norristown railway, not to mention the Route 66 trackless trolleys from/to the Bucks County border. * Total parade day SEPTA trips: about 1.1-million; Market-Frankford subway-el 231,721, Broad Street subway 163,388; regional railroad about 135,000. SEPTA CCT Connect carried an unknown number to the parade/event.

Photo credits: Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority; B T Asbury, I SEPTA PHILLY.

Left: Trolley and bus riders at SEPTA 69th Street Transportation Center transfer to Market-Frankford subway-elevated line to center city and the Eagles victory parade. Right: First SEPTA Regional Rail train from Ardmore station that day.

SEPTA regional railroad system also played a big role SEPTA railroads transported about 67,000 fans round-trip parade day. “We knew we could successfully carry 70,000 riders across our Regional Rail network,” Jeffrey Knueppel, general manager, told metro, a tabloid newspaper circulated in and near SEPTA terminals, stations and stops. “With many businesses, including city offices closing for the day, we estimated 20,000 of our regular weekly and monthly TrailPass holders would use the system,” he said. “We made having a pass required to ride the trains, so that we would be able to accommodate the additional 50,000 riders.” SEPTA RR had about 135,000 passenger boardings that day. For more: www.metro-magazine.com/blogpost/728702/how-to-host-a-super-travel-day-for-fans

Photo credit: Betsy Manning, Temple Now, Temple University.

Owls cheer Eagles at Cecil B. Moore/Temple University station of the Broad Street subway.

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

Photo credit: Matthew Gambino, CatholicPhilly.com

Nineteen mostly open-top double decker buses carrying Philadelphia Eagles players, coaches and officials along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Right: Vine Street Expressway (I-76) tunnel and Free Library of Philadelphia building.

Eagles ride double decker buses in victory parade Players, coaches and officials waved from 19 green Big Bus* double decker buses up South Broad Street, around City Hall, and along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, in a Super Bowl victory parade that drew what some claim was at least a million spectators. Maybe two million? Led by the comical Eagle mascot waving from a National Lift Equipment flatbed trailer, each open-top Big Bus prominently advertised at least four times the name and logo of a paid sponsor. * * Big Bus Tours supplied the buses. For more: https://www.phillytour.com/ * AAA Mid-Atlantic, Acme Markets, American Airlines, Axalta Coating Systems, Bud Light, Children’s Hospital, Coca- Cola, Lincoln Financial, NovaCare, Rothman/Jefferson, Toyota, Xfinity, WIP-FM radio.

Attendance: 700,000 to 3.5-million; take your pick Everyone doesn’t agree 700,000 was the parade attendance. “There’s no way only 700,000 people attended the Eagles parade,” scoffed Joe Trinacria, Philadelphia magazine. Dan Bradley, city emergency operations chief, supposed the crowd was larger than that, but lower than multi-millions. “Around 2-million,” said MC Traxx at Railroad.net. “Easily over 3-million and I think over 3.5 million,” supposed Howard Eskin, WIP radio sports commentator. “I've read 750K is pretty solid,” said Chrisin Abington, a crowd estimator who attended the parade. “Two million is pretty difficult to quantify. You'd need crowds well down cross streets all the way up Broad Street.” But that seems what happened, based on photos of crowds in cross streets, around City Hall, and on Broad Street and the Parkway. Organizers said they were set to handle up to 2-million along the parade route. “SEPTA Great job with transporting millions of us to the Eagles Parade!” a whit named Whit tweeted the morning after parade day.

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

NJ Transit 21 bus lines, two railways to/from parade Transit has 21 bus routes into Philly, from nearby suburbs and far away as Trenton, Atlantic City, Wildwood and Cape May. On Eagles parade day, until 7 pm, all skipped using the big intercity bus terminal at 10th & Filbert, stopping instead near 6th & Race streets, a long walk from the parade route. NJT buses that usually stop at 30th Street Amtrak station, also used 6th & Race. Typical was a #551 bus at Avondale Park & Ride, Sicklerville. At 5:26 am, this was completely filled, leaving 30 riders standing outside waiting for the next #551. Two NJ Transit railroads serve Philadelphia: ● runs between Lindenwold, N.J., adjacent to the PATCO station, and 30th Street Amtrak/SEPTA station, and ● a City line that runs between Penn Station in Manhattan and a NJ Transit/SEPTA station in Trenton, N.J. Zoned one-way senior NJT bus fare to Philly: 85¢ to $11.15. Regular adult: $1.95 to $24.75.

Maybe 6 rode NJ Transit Access Link to parade that day Prior to Eagles parade day, NJT said its Access Link call-for-ride system “will cancel all trips to and from Philadelphia” for that day. In response to Grampa asking whether any seniors rode any Access Link vehicle to any NJT RR train or bus, PATCO train or River Line into Philadelphia that day, Adam Katz, Director of Policy, Planning & Analysis, ADA Services, NJ Transit, replied, “According to our records, the count of riders utilizing Access Link from New Jersey to Philadelphia on February 8, 2018 was six. However, we would not have any information as to their trip purpose or intention to attend the parade.”

Photo credits: Clavon Nedd, Philadelphia Metropolitan Area Transit Scene; Vincent Thompson, I SEPTA PHILLY.

SEPTA Norristown High Speed Line train packed with Eagles fans en route to the Eagles parade.

Amtrak Keystone trains booked solid days ahead Amtrak trains between Harrisburg and Philly were booked solid two days before the Eagles parade. They included nine-car Keystone trains #640, leaving at 5 am, #642 at 5:55 am, #600 at 6:45 am, #644 at 7:55 am and #646 at 9 am. Next train out was Keystone #648, which left at 10:05 am and arrived about an hour after the parade began. At 5:35 am, a large contingent boarded at Lancaster. Many from York.

Eagles fans packed Amtrak Northeast Corridor trains Eagles fans heading to Philly outnumbered commuters boarding Amtrak trains at BWI Airport near and at Penn Station in . Eleven Amtrak trains from New York City arrived in Philly by 9:35 am, including five , three express, one , plus the from Savannah, Ga., and the from Charlotte, N. Car. Except for the latter pair, their passengers all disembarked at . “The 7 am Acela out of New York was full of Eagles fans,” wrote New Yorker magazine’s John Seabrook. One passenger, Peter Knox from Brooklyn, tweeted at 4:09 am from Penn Station: “My entire Amtrak train is full of Eagles fans, including me.” Another rider from New York City, name Brennan, tweeted at 8:16 am: “Just landed in the Eagles Nest at 30th Street Station Amtrak in Philadelphia.”

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

Photo credit: Joseph, Twitter, Philadelphia Bike Coalition.

After the Eagles parade/event, hundreds of New Jersey fans returned home by walking across the Benjamin Franklin Bridge over the Delaware River. John Boyle of Bicycle Coalition of Philadelphia called it as a “5 block long pedestrian traffic jam on the bridge.” For more: https://twitter.com/twitter/statuses/961595830464589825

Many walked to parade and Eagles ceremony/entertainment “Be ready to walk,” the Reading Eagle advised its readers who planned to go to Philadelphia for the Eagles victory celebration, warning that “a potentially unprecedented crowd is going to put stress on public transit systems.” “Bundled up against freezing winds, not a few New Jersey fans walked across the nearly 2-mile-long Benjamin Franklin Bridge just to get into the city,” ESPN reported. Just before 5 pm, pedestrians heading home filled the bridge’s walkway all the way from Philadelphia to Camden. A Harrisburg bus/limo service promised to get passengers “within five blocks of the museum” where the Eagles event climaxed. “They’re gonna have to walk a bit, but that’s part of the fun of going to a Super Bowl parade,” said Tracy Salinger of Unique Limousine.

SEPTA parade day pro & con Doug Black Jr., of Philadelphia, tweeted at 3 pm parade day.: “Hey! Solid work today SEPTA! Lots of people, and few issues. Thank you!” Barb M, from Ardsley, Pa., at 3:01 pm tweeted: “Thanks SEPTA for making us stand outside in the freezing cold for 2 hours waiting for a train at 30th Street .” Tina, from Mullica Hill, N.J., at 2:56 pm said: “My mom drove up from Florida just for the Eagles Super Bowl parade & we had the BEST time! Shout out to the awesome fans, Philadelphia government & SEPTA for making everything from the trains, to the walking, to the standing & waiting, easy & fun!” Mickey Maley, of Philadelphia, tweeted SEPTA at 2:02 pm: “If you all are taking feedback, the morning set up I felt worked great. Lots of helpful info. Afternoon set up leaves a lot to be desired. Not enough info, unclear directions for departure, and the line needs more trash cans.”

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

Cash no good for SEPTA RR train ride to Eagles parade For a SEPTA Regional Rail train ride, seniors usually show a plastic SEPTA Key Senior Fare Card and pay with $1 cash or a pre-purchased senior single-ride ticket ($1 each, 10 for $8.50). SEPTA has issued more than 90,000 of these photo ID fare cards. They replace non-photo Senior Citizen yellow and blue paper fare cards issued by other Pennsylvania public transit systems, and still accepted by SEPTA. Fares of these card users are paid by the Pennsylvania Lottery.* On Eagles parade day cash was unacceptable. To ride on a SEPTA Regional Rail train that day, a would-be rider needed either: (a) $10 SEPTA special parade day only pass, (b) $30 parade-day family pass, (c) weekly SEPTA TrailPass ($28.25 to $55.75), (d) monthly TrailPass ($105 to $204.00), (e) pre-purchased disability rider half-fare ticket, or (f) aforementioned pre-purchased senior ticket. Thus, a Senior Key Card user paid $18 less round-trip than a $10 parade day pass holder. * Not applicable for trips to/from Delaware or New Jersey. Instead, seniors pay half fare.

Photos credit: SEPTA; Pennsylvania Lottery; Chuck Purnell, WPVI-TV ABC Channel 6 Philadelphia.

To ride on a SEPTA Regional Rail train on Eagles victory parade day, a senior needed, left to right, either a SEPTA Senior Key Fare Card or Senior Citizen Lottery Funded Transit card (yellow or blue) and a pre-purchased $1 ticket, or a special $10 Eagles Parade Day Independence pass. SEPTA sold 54,000 of the $10 special passes.

Pennsylvania fans cross river to Trenton to ride SEPTA trains Three SEPTA trains ran to the parade from Trenton. First train was standing room only, filled with fans who had stood in “a line that stretched from the Track 4 and 5 entry point to an entrance on Walnut Ave.,” wrote L. A. Parker in The Trentonian newspaper. “Trains departing at 6:15 am and 6:55 am were less crowded.” Many came from across the Delaware River, i.e., Yardley and Langhorne, Pa. SEPTA trains from West Trenton also were crowded.

Trenton area fans ride River Line to PATCO to parade On parade day morning, packed NJ Transit’s River Line light rail cars ran 15-minutes apart from Trenton to Camden. From there, riders transferred to PATCO trains to Philly. Unable to buy tickets for sold-out SEPTA trains, many Trenton area fans did this. River Line weekday ridership is about 9,000.

Minnesota public transit system honors Super Bowl lost bet with SEPTA

Left: To honor a lost bet that the Vikings would win the Super Bowl, Metro Transit in Minnesota pictured a SEPTA bus as its Twitter cover photo. Right: Earlier, the New Orleans RTA transit system likewise pictured a Metro as its Twitter cover photo, after the Minnesota Vikings beat the New Orleans Saints.

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

Left: 12 Broad Street Subway stations open on Eagles parade day and the usually open 22 stations. Right: 37 SEPTA regional railroad stations open that day. Of its 157 regional railroad stations, 120 were closed that day.

Many SEPTA railroad, subway, el stations shut; bus detours On Eagles parade day, SEPTA Regional Rail limited its train service to just 37 of its 154 stations. Only 12 of the 22 Broad Street subway line stations were open. Of the Market-Frankford subway-el’s 28 stations, only 15 were open. Significantly, City Hall and 5th Street subway stations were closed, as were *, University City and Temple University railroad stations. For a while, Walnut- Locust subway station was closed. *Despite its name, it’s not in the suburbs, but in center city. Regional Rail trains all ran inbound in the morning and all outbound after the parade. Delaware County routes 101 and 102 trolleys and Norristown high speed light rail line trains stopped at all stations, the latter about 15 minutes apart. During the day, at least 27 of 118 SEPTA bus routes hit detours, including routes: 2, 4, 7, 9, 12, 16, 17, 21, 27, 29, 31, 32, 33, 37, 38, 40, 42, 43, 44, 45, 48, 64, 68, 79, 124, 125 and G. Subway-surface routes 10, 11, 13, 34 and 36 skipped 15th Street station. Long lines in the afternoon at 19th and 22nd Street stations. Late afternoon/early evening, they had delays due to overcrowding.

Parade Day train tickets sold out rapidly SEPTA printed 54,000 special $10 one-day Independence Passes. Of these, 50,000 sold out within a few hours two days before the parade. The other 4,000 were sold at outlying stations the next day*. No tickets were sold on parade day. After waiting in line at since 4 am, “They told us they were sold out,” a disappointed Chester County fan told a WPVI-TV news reporter. “Waited in line for over an hour, and then they announce they're sold out,” lamented a Bucks County* fan. Philly Voice writer Brian P. Hickey griped: “Nothing like dragging your son out of bed at 6 am, heading to the regional rail station and hearing that they’re sold out of passes to get to Center City tomorrow.” * Cornwells Heights station 1,000 passes; Media, Langhorne, Lansdale, Philmont and Doylestown stations 500 each; Chestnut Hill East and Fox Chase stations 250 each. * Bucks County is served by four SEPTA RR lines and 22 SEPTA bus routes, including: 1, 14, 18, 20, 22, 24, 50, 55, 58, 66, 94, 96, 98, 127, 128, 129, 130, 201, 301, 302, 310 and 311, says Transportation Management Assn. of Bucks County.

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

Coach fare to/from Eagles parade $30 to $60 round-trip Numerous non-transit buses brought Eagles fans to/from the Super Bowl victory parade. Many dropped off at 30th & Market streets, adjacent to the main railroad station; others at a SEPTA subway or el stop, from where they rode fare free to downtown. Many parked in lots near the South Philadelphia sports complex, within walking distance of the parade’s start, also near the AT&T Broad Street Subway station. About four dozen parked in a lot dedicated to buses on Callowhill between Front and 2nd streets. Starr Bus Service, a Trenton, N.J., charterer, quickly sold out seats on 35 of its 56-passenger motor coaches. Round-trip fare $49.95 to/from: Trenton, Hamilton, Mt. Laurel, and Cherry Hill in New Jersey, and Bensalem, Yardley, Newtown, and Northeast Philadelphia in Pennsylvania. in Amity Township, Berks County, ran seven 54-seat buses, each with about 400 fans, to/from the parade and celebration. Announcing the $30-each seats at 7:45 am Monday, all were sold by 8 am Tuesday. Buses departed from: Douglassville, King of Prussia, and Wyomissing. Rally buses regularly go to Lincoln Financial Field, the Eagles home stadium. For this event, however, its drop-off and pickup point was the SEPTA el train station at 46th & Market Street, except its buses from Cherry Hill and Egg Harbor Twp., N.J, that dropped off and picked up at the National Constitution Center at North 6th & Arch streets. JZ Tours, based in Scranton, ran five buses from Luzerne and Lackawanna counties, reports the Times-Leader. JZ offered the rides Monday on Facebook. Within 24 hours all seats were sold. Fare $49. Two pick-up locations: Birney Plaza in Moosic, a Scranton suburb, and Sam's Club in Wilkes-Barre. At 8:13 pm Tuesday, JZ Tours tweeted: “We apologize if we missed any phone calls during the past two days. We tried to get to everyone who has contacted us, but the response has been overwhelming.” Paulson Tours, Hanover Township, owner Greg Paulson told station WNEP 16 reporter Peggy Lee the 225 seats on its four buses went quickly. “Sold out in 12 hours,” he said. He supposes he could have sold out “10 buses or more,” if he had had them. Unique Limousine, Harrisburg, at 7:34 am parade day tweeted: “3 Buses and 3 Shuttles filled with proud Philadelphia Eagles fans off to the Eagles Parade!” Fare: $50. “We’re offering a service that will get them within five blocks of the museum. They’re gonna have to walk a bit, but that’s part of the fun of going to a Super Bowl parade,” Tracy Salinger of Unique Limousine told WHTM Channel 27. A.J. Limo Coach buses from Berwick, Bloomsburg and Danville, Pa., booked solid. Fare: $49. Premiere #1 Limousine Service, Harrisburg, departed 6 am. Fare: $40. Conestoga Tours, based in Lancaster, Pa., had at least one bus going. Fare: $49. Coach USA ran buses from Monmouth County, N.J., and the University of Pittsburgh, Pa. Fare: $35. Bailey Coach, York, Pa., buses left at 4 am. Fare, including lunch: $60.

Not exactly what you might think of as a limousine, coaches such as this carried many fans to the Eagles parade.

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

Illustration credits: SeClip9, YouTube; Miller Lite; Claudia Vargas, Penn Live.

Left: Some rode a CCT Connect minibus like this to the Eagles parade/event. Center: Area where $10 Miller Lite Uber rides valid. Right: Bud Lite free beer and free Lyft rides proclamation.

Miller Lite pays for Uber rides; Bud Light for Lyft rides From 8 am - 4 pm parade day, Miller Lite, official beer of the Eagles, paid up to $10 of each Uber ride – within an area encompassing many SEPTA bus/subway facilities (see map) – up to a total of $130,000. Otherwise, “a ride out of Center City cost about 3½ times as much as it typically would,” said Philly.com. Bud Light offered free rides on Lyft to folks “who partake in its free beer during the parade,” wrote Julia Hatmaker at Penn Live. Promoters gave out tokens redeemable for the free beer, stamping each recipients hand, so that nobody could get more than one beer. Bud Light gave out 38,000 free beers on Eagles parade day, reported Michael Tannenbaum of Philly Voice. Many Uber and Lyft drivers didn’t work that day but went to the parade/event instead.

Some seniors ride CCT Connect to Eagles victory parade CCT Connect’s shared ride program provides Philadelphia residents age 65&+ call-for-in-advance transport. It’s a usually door-to-door service for those who (a) either cannot readily use SEPTA standard fixed-route public transport or who (b) ride CCT Connect to/from such public transport. As are other such paratransit systems in the state, CCT’s shared ride program is funded by the Pennsylvania Lottery. Some senior citizens rode CCT Connect to the Eagles victory parade/celebration, Donna Sessions, SEPTA customer service specialist, told Grampa. CCT Connect carries seniors to/from destinations in the city, and suburbs within 3 miles of the city. To use it, seniors must register with SEPTA. Riders can bring along one non-senior person, even a grandchild, at the same reduced fare.* Senior one-way: $4.25. Regular adult: $28.33. * State law requires each child rider under age of 8 to be in an approved child safety seat, which an adult rider must provide. No child rider in a paratransit vehicle is allowed to sit upon an adult rider’s or driver’s lap.

Everything didn’t go perfectly “Cynwyd, Chestnut Hill and Doylestown Regional Rail lines were suspended in the early hours of the morning due to train overcrowding from parade attendees,” public broadcaster WHYY reported. Early afternoon, the Broad Street Subway’s Walnut-Locust station was closed, due to overcrowding. Later, for the same reason, the subway’s Cecil B. Moore station closed temporarily. SEPTA warned days before this could happen. Dave Galp tweeted at 6:46 am: “ is now closed due to it’s past capacity and will be bypassing stations. That was the exact problem 10 years ago during the Phillies parade.” Some folks figured they’d buy a weekly TrailPass and use it only on parade day. “You cannot buy a weekly pass to use tomorrow,” warned Fox 29’s Bob Kelly day before the event. “The weekly passes being sold now are for NEXT WEEK.”

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

70,000 PATCO round-trips 3½ times usual for weekday PATCO trains carried at least 70,000 passengers across the Delaware River to the Eagles parade and homeward bound afterward, or a total of 140,000 trips. Usual weekday ridership is around 39,000 trips, reported the Camden Courier-Post. Eagles fans lined up before dawn at four stations, some early as 3 am. To optimize operations, five of the railway’s nine New Jersey stations were closed that day. Morning trains all ran westbound; afternoon trains all eastbound. Only one of three Philly station was open. PATCO parking lots were full by 8 am. Many fans were dropped-off or walked to stations. By 10 am trains no longer were so crowded. Shortly before the 11-am parade start, westbound ticket sales resumed. They had been halted around 5 pm the day before, after 70,000 pre-pay tickets completely sold out. “We safely moved more than 70,000 passengers to the parade,” said John Hanson, president of Port Authority Transit Corp. (PATCO) and CEO its parent, the Delaware River Port Authority.

Photo credits: Mickey ODonnell, Facebook; John Boyle, Twitter, Bicycle Coalition of Philadelphia.

Rail transit, such as this PATCO train from Lindenwold, was packed before and after the parade. During parade time not so much, as this scene from a River Line car at Beverly-Edgewater Park at 11 am attests.

Wheelchairs and strollers okay; bicycles mostly banned To safely make room for the maximum number of passengers, PATCO allowed no bicycles on its trains during Eagles parade express service hours. Likewise, SEPTA prohibited bikes on its regional railroads, Broad Street subway, Market-Frankford subway-el, and Norristown High Speed Line trains, and on routes 10, 11, 13, 34, 36 trolleys (streetcars) and 101 and 102 light rail cars. SEPTA bus drivers, however, seemed to have the option of allowing or disallowing bicycles. When feasible, NJ Transit River Line allowed bicycles. When feasible, all allowed strollers, wheelchairs and walkers.

Transit rush hours were quite different that day Weekday rush hours for SEPTA travel typically are around 6 am to 9:30 am and 4 pm to 6:30 pm. On Eagles victory parade day, they were different. While total number of trips by riders was around the usual 1.1-million, they were “highly concentrated to the 3 to 4 hours before the parade, and the 2 to 3 hours afterward,” Andrew Busch, SEPTA Chief Press Officer, told Grampa. Fans began returning to PATCO’s 9th/10th & Locust station before the parade’s end and 1-pm victory ceremony’s start at the Art Museum, said spokesman Kyle Anderson. So, from 1:20 pm, all PATCO trains went toward New Jersey, stopping only at Broadway, Ferry Avenue, Woodcrest, and Lindenwold. “When parade-weary passengers gathered a bit early at 9th/Locust, we modified our service plan to accommodate them,” said John Rink, PATCO general manager. Originally, trains were to begin running eastbound in mid-afternoon. Regular both-ways service resumed at 7 pm, an hour earlier than had been expected. “It went extremely well,” proclaimed John Hanson, PATCO president.

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

Getting to parade via PATCO took him 1 hour 5 minutes Trains were fast enough. Waiting to board was what took hours. Bill Ritzler of the Assn. of Rail Passengers arrived at Woodcrest station shortly after 6 am. “Long lines had already formed,” he wrote in a “parade public transit post mortem” report. After 45 minutes, he was on the boarding platform. A six-car train came 5 minutes later. Boarding so many riders took another 5 minutes. Around 25 minutes later, the non-stop express pulled into PATCO’s 9th/10th & Locust streets station in Philadelphia. The trip should have taken 15 minutes, he said.

Getting home via PATCO took him 2½ hours After riding the Broad Street Subway and viewing the parade, DVARP’s Bill Ritzler returned to the 9th/10th & Locust PATCO station “just after 1 pm,” he said. After standing in line “nearly 30 minutes with no movement,” he left, seeking an alternate entrance. He found an “ADA access elevator” and rode it to the station platform. Five minutes later, Ritzler was on a train to New Jersey. It stopped at Broadway and Ferry Avenue stations, then roared express to Woodcrest, arriving about 2:30 pm.

PATCO Pro and Con, but mostly Pro Feedback via email, Facebook and Twitter “was overwhelmingly positive,” says John Rink, general manager. He cites these examples: ● “Hats off to PATCO for handling yesterday's parade as well as they did. Massive crowds but getting in and out of trains pretty painless. Also, transit police really helpful!” ● “You guys really nailed it. What looked like long lines moved pleasantly and quickly.” ● “Took PATCO to and fro. Smooth both directions. Great work today PATCO! ● “PATCO SEPTA and Phila OEM did a terrific job.” ● “We just did a "P-A-T-C-O PATCO" chant. ● Ben Cornelius tweeted: “Great plan and great execution by PATCO… just like the Eagles!” ● David Searles tweeted: “Tremendous job today! Like our Eagles...championship performance!” ● Joe Cleary tweeted: “A great game plan well executed. Let's do this again next year .” ● “PATCO really had its act together,” a rider told Courier-Post reporter Carol Comegno. “Although we had to wait in line both ways, it only took us 30 minutes to ride over and 30 minutes to ride back.”

Photo credit: Rose Quinn, I SEPTA PHILLY..

These fans were at Marcus Hook bright and early, 3:58 am, boarding SEPTA Train 418 to Philadelphia. For more on SEPTA Regional Rail parade day service: http://septa.org/eagles/regional-rail.html

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

Photos credits: Casper Milktoast, I SEPTA Philly; Keith Forrest, Facebook.

Left: Eagles fans walk down to subway-el train platform at 69th Street terminal. Right: Typical Eagles parade watchers.

Crowds fill 69th Street terminal en route to parade To prevent vehicle traffic gridlock, police asked Eagles parade fans using 69th Street Transportation Center in Upper Darby to be dropped-off or picked up a few blocks away from that terminal. Hundreds entering from 69th Street were herded into the main hall, where they joined hordes transferring from numerous buses, trolley cars and a light rail trains. Virtually all entered turnstiles and walked – or rode an elevator – downstairs to a Market-Frankford subway-el train platform. “Crowded but no huge backup of people. Lots of SEPTA people directing things,” remarked one fan. Jennifer Joyce of TV Fox 29 tweeted a nifty short video of Eagles fans at this busy multi-mode transportation center. See it at: https://twitter.com/twitter/statuses/961595683143929856

Flew in from London and LA to see the parade in person  Shannon Santangelo, alumna of Cabrini College, flew in from London, England. “As long as I can remember, I’ve been an Eagles fan,” she said. After staying the night at a friend’s house, she met other Cabrini alumni and rode the Broad Street Subway to center city to attend the parade/event.  “Ended up standing behind a young man who got into the city at 7 am from Los Angeles,” wrote Wilkes Barre Times Leader reporter Brigid Edmunds. “He grew up in Philly and said he didn’t want to watch the parade on TV.” Edmunds rode a bus from Wilkes Barre.

NJ Transit adds Atlantic City trains for parade day NJ Transit quickly sold out all tickets for its Eagles parade-time trains between Atlantic City and Philadelphia, despite adding cars, seven cars instead of the usual three, plus an eight-car train. All ticket vending machines along the Atlantic City Rail Line were shut down much of the day.

Amtrak police officer ousts women from RR station men’s room At 6:55 am at 30th Street Amtrak/SEPTA station, about 100 women stood in a line for the Ladies Room. A few women even were in the line for the Men’s Room, until an Amtrak police officer showed up. “Any woman in here is going to get arrested!" he yelled as he entered the Men's Room. “About seven or eight women quickly found the exit,” says Philly Voice reporter Frank Burgos, who seems expert on the subject. He said parade/event organizers “only set up 837 porta-potties for 3.5- million people.”

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

Photo credit: Randall Grunden, First State Update; Quincy Allen, Twitter.

Eagles fans in line at Wilmington RR station. Video screens at Wilmington RR station.

Thousands from Delaware rode trains to parade Getting from Delaware to the Eagles parade was a challenge. About 5,000 boarded trains at Wilmington Amtrak/SEPTA-NJ Transit station from 6 to 9:30 am.* Some Delawareans drove to Marcus Hook or Ridley Park in Pennsylvania, the only two inbound SEPTA train stops that day en route to Philly’s 30th Street Amtrak-SEPTA RR station. Returning trains left there between 2 pm and 9 pm. Stations at Churchmans Crossing, Claymont and Newark were closed that day. Due to limited parking space near Wilmington RR station, many rode DART buses there, such as a Route 16, 22, 46 or 59 bus from Newark or intermediate points, Route 33 or 39 bus from Churchmans Crossing, or Route 31 bus from Claymont. Free overflow parking was available at Frawley Stadium, about a mile from the station. DART Route 12 bus is a 6-minute trip stadium-area-to-station. Delaware Transit Corp., aka DART First State, subsidiary of DelDOT, the state’s transportation department, contracts with SEPTA to provide intercity/interstate railroad train service. A few brave souls might have ridden a DART Route 13 or 61 bus to Tri-State Mall in Claymont, then a SEPTA Route 113 bus to Darby, Pa., and then a SEPTA Route 11 or 13 trolley car to the parade. Grampa actually once rode a #113 from Pennsylvania to Tri-State Mall and a #61 from there to Wilmington. But that was ’way back when Wilmington Dry Goods was the mall’s anchor store. * According to Mark Fowle’, WDEL radio reporter, Delaware Transit Corp. spokesperson Julie Theyerl said an estimated 5,000 passengers boarded six trains between 6 and 9:30 am and that an estimated 500 people were already in line at 5 am.

All ages in line in Wilmington; some rode Amtrak to Philly Before dawn, thousands stood in lines from the Wilmington RR station into a riverfront park and back again. All had tickets bought days before. “There's baby carriages covered with blankets and folks around last time the Eagles won a championship in 1960,” remarked WDEL radio reporter Mike Phillips. Not all were Delawareans. Some came from Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Two women fans from Delaware said they rode Amtrak into Philly, after seeing “a mile-long line of people” waiting for SEPTA trains at the Amtrak/SEPTA Wilmington station. Michael Bronstein of Moorestown, New Jersey, accompanied by wife and three kids on an Amtrak train from Wilmington, said previous experience steered them away from PATCO. Wilmington Public Library welcomed those who couldn’t catch the train to see the parade and ceremony on a big screen TV in a room it calls “The Commons.” Ironically, DART #12 buses that go to the RR station stop near this library. As do a dozen other DART bus route buses.

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

Many arrived on planes, trains and buses days before Not a few Eagles fans arrived in Philadelphia days before the parade; many the day or night before, camping out in cars or sleeping in homes of friends or relatives, Airbnb accommodations, or motels and hotels within walking distance of the parade, or close to public transport to/from it. Not a few slept in office buildings along the parade route, from where they viewed the passing buses carrying their heroes. Afternoon and night before the parade, many arrived on SEPTA or Amtrak trains, Greyhound, Trailways, Peter Pan, Bieber, or other intercity bus.

Hotels along hotel route solidly booked days in advance Hotels along and near the South Broad Street and Benjamin Franklin Parkway parade route were solidly booked almost immediately after the Eagles won the Super Bowl on Sunday Nov. 4.

Bucks County fans rode in night-before on trains SEPTA trains leaving Doylestown, Bucks County, at 10:07 and 11:14 the night before the Eagles parade were filled with fanatical fans. They arrived in Philadelphia’s 30th Street station an hour and a half later. En route, trains #589 and #591 picked up more fans at Lansdale, Montgomery County, and other stations along the way. Nearly 12 hours before parade start, all four cars of #589 were “packed with young fans,” wrote Bob McGovern, Philly Voice reporter. “Most had a backpack, bag or luggage at their feet or on an overhead rack. A few looked like already dressed for bed. Many exited at Temple University station, apparently destined for floors and sofas of family and friends around campus.” Other public transport at : SEPTA Route #55 bus, Trans-bridge Lines bus from/to New Hope, Pa., and New York City, Fullington Trailways from/to Allentown, Quakertown, and Sunbury, and the Doylestown DART bus pictured on next page.

Fans ride Krapf’s A bus to overcome closure Diehard fans got from Downingtown to Philly on parade day morning despite its RR station being shut that day. They rode a Krapf’s Route A bus either to Thorndale RR station or, in the opposite direction, to West Chester Transportation Center, transferring there to a SEPTA #104 bus to 69th Street Transportation Center, transferring there to a SEPTA Market-Frankford subway-el train. Line. A higher-fare but faster alternative was a Krapf Route A bus to Coatesville RR station and an Amtrak train to Philly from there. Amtrak senior fare: $9.90. SEPTA senior fare: $1. Krapf's A bus also connects with SCCOOT buses, Coatesville LINK buses, and SEPTA #92 and #204 buses. Krapf’s Transportation manages SCCOOT and LINK buses for Transportation Management Association of Chester County, aka TMACC. * SCCOOT runs Mon.-Fri. between Oxford & West Chester, where it t connects to SEPTA buses & Krapf's A bus.

Left to right: Rover Community Transportation logo; New ChescoBus SCCOOT and Coatesville LINK passes and tickets introduced Feb. 5; TransNet Suburban Transit Network logo; Upper Merion Township Rambler minibus.

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

Bieber Trailways revamps bus service to suit parade Bieber Trailways, based in Kutztown, Pa., ran three full buses from Allentown to 30th Street station in time for the parade’s start. Fares ranged from $31 to $36. It cancelled buses with arrivals too late to suit most Eagles fans, as well as a bus that usually leaves 30th Street at 12:30 pm, which likely would have departed almost empty. Instead, Bieber had three buses leaving 4:30 pm, arriving Allentown 6:10 pm

Berks County had ‘possibly thousands’ at the parade “Hundreds, possibly thousands, of Berks County residents woke up hours before dawn and made the trek to Philadelphia to help the Eagles' celebrate their first Super Bowl victory in 52 years,” reported the Reading Eagle, one of Grampa’s favorite newspapers. Klein Transportation buses loaded with fans from the Reading area “departed Wyomissing at 4:30 am and arrived in Philadelphia at about 6:30 am,” the newspaper said. “Revelers had to hike about a mile to reach the Philadelphia Art Museum, the parade's destination,” it said.

Left: provides senior call-for shared transit. Adult fare: $20 to $45. Senior fare: $3 to $6.75. Fare based on miles traveled. Right: Dart bus provides public transport in the Doylestown area. Connects to SEPTA Regional Rail station and Route 55 Bus. Adult fare: $1, age 65&+ free. About 3,720 fans rode trains from this station to Philly to attend the Eagles Super Bowl victory parade.

Upper Merion Rambler connects with SEPTA rail and buses Upper Merion Township’s Rambler bus system aims to provide public transportation for residents to area shopping centers, malls, medical facilities, senior center, and the township HQ building. Each bus is wheelchair-accessible. Two Rambler routes – a blue line and a green line – run 9 am - 4 pm Mon.-Sat. They connect with SEPTA Regional Rail and seven SEPTA bus routes.

Chester County shuttles were busy hauling Eagles fans Krapf’s buses were “all-hands-on deck for the Eagles parade,” said the Transportation Management Association of Chester County’s web site. “All of their shuttles were taking guests to the parade.” TMACC and the ChescoBus system offered Eagles fans a few tips on getting to the parade without driving or riding on a SEPTA railroad train. Most of the county’s rail stations were closed Eagles parade day. “You can take Krapf's A Bus – connects with Coatesville Link and SCCOOT – to the Exton train station to catch the train into Philly,” they suggested. ChescoBus has three routes: ● SCCOOT between Oxford and Kennett Square, with limited service to/from West Chester. ● Coatesville Link between Coatesville and Parkesburg. ● Evening LINK between Coatesville and Exton Square Mall.

Chester County Rover goes anywhere reasonable ROVER Community Transportation isn’t just for trips to the doctor or to the grocery store. This call-for-a-ride shared-ride minibus service provides Chester County seniors with transport to any destination within the county, whether church, shopping, a club meeting, the train station, to visit a friend, or any other reasonable destination. Ride must be requested at least two business days ahead.

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. Eagles Super Bowl  礪 Victory Parade Report .

Photo cedits: left SEPTA; center GVF; Facebook; right SEPTA.

Left: Trash littered stairs at 13th & Market streets SEPTA station after Eagles parade. Center: Crowd at station entrance. Right: Same stairway after cleanup. All stations were completely clean by 4 am next day, for service restart.

Cleanup crews unsung heroes of this & other parades/events “With no time to spare, the maintenance custodians had every station cleaned by 4 am the following morning for the next day’s train service,” SEPTA official Michael R. “Mike” Liberi told METRO newspaper sometime reporter Heather Redfern*. An hour before its 11-am kickoff, 250 city Streets Department workers began cleaning up around the parade’s South Philly origin point at Broad & Patterson. As the double-decker bus motorcade headed up Broad Street toward City Hall, the cleanup folks followed, restoring pavements and streets along the route to its original almost cleanliness. Cleanup continued as the parade headed up Benjamin Franklin Parkway toward the Museum of Art area, where, after the events ended about 3 pm, the sanitation crews spent many hours scoring a winning touchdown. They swept-up and picked-up about 70 tons of litter, streets commissioner Carlton Williams told Kristen Johanson, KYW radio reporter, or about 54-tons more than after the 2015 parade for Pope Francis, the last big Philly spectacle, and about 11-tons more than after the 2008 Phillies World Series parade. Trash included: confetti, cans, bottles, blankets, folding chairs, coolers, backpacks, tents, and pretty much any other kind of junk you can imagine. For more: www.phillymag.com/news/2018/02/09/philly-trash-eagles-parade/#prvpD1Wk1kYxgCOP.99 And more: http://6abc.com/sports/massive-cleanup-effort-after-eagles-parade/3055500/ And more: www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXemRcdx-vU * Heather Redfern also is SEPTA Public Information Manager.

Peter Pan $5 bus fare Boston or New York to Eagles parade advertised two days before the event: Travel from Boston or New York City to Philadelphia “for as LOW as $5 to be a part of The Philadelphia Eagles Super Bowl Parade.” Peter Pan’s 300+ common carrier coaches serve about 100 communities in the USA’s northeast corridor. Its NYC- Philly express is especially popular.

Porta potties in short supply on parade day It’s amazing the parade route was only as dirty as it was after the parade spectators left. Darren Rovell, ESPN Sports business reporter, had tweeted: “There are 850 Port-A-Pottys along the Eagles parade route in Philly today. If three million people show up, that's one for every 3,529 people.” “Some porta potties caved in when fans climbed on top of them” wrote Michael Boren, Philly.com. For more: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TERlNhx6lIo ______© 2018, all rights reserved. The Travelin’ Grampa is published monthly by John A. Moore Sr., journalist, P. O Box 636, Clifton Heights PA 19018-0636. One-year (12 issues) by email: $75. Special discount to U. S. residents ages 62&+.

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