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cathyr19355 at 12:34am on 17/06/2005
cathyr19355 at 12:34am on 17/06/2005The SEPTA system, that is. (The title of today's entry is a tag line from one of SEPTA's old advertising campaigns.)
In case you've never heard of it, SEPTA is the SouthEastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. It's a quasi-governmental agency that operates the public transportation options (trains, subways, buses) in Philadelphia and the surrounding five-county area. Since I commute to work by train, I deal with them five days a week.
SEPTA has had a (well-deserved) reputation for providing inefficient, breakdown-prone, and overpriced train service for the nearly 20 years I've used it to commute to work. This summer, it's been worse than usual. There have been three or four nearly system-wide power outages this spring. Usually, power outages occur in the winter, when snow and ice concentrations lead to broken high-voltage lines. This year, however, we had little snow--and an amazing number of power problems as the weather has warmed up.
Around 5 p.m., I learned that SEPTA had just had yet another power outage and, as a result, train service was cancelled until further notice. Fortunately, I had been planning to stay at work until 7 p.m. anyway.
By 7 p.m., when I left work, power had been restored, but service was "sporadic" and trains were "running with substantial delays." What this meant, for me, was that I had to wait until 8 p.m. before a train that was going to Malvern arrived at the platform. That train was crowded and operated at about 1/4 speed for the entire trip. I finally got home about 9:30 p.m. The train trip from Malvern to Philadelphia typically takes about 45 minutes if the train makes all the local stops.
If you're wondering "Why do you keep using SEPTA?" the answer is, "Because it's cheaper, less of a hassle, and usually quicker than commuting from Malvern to Philadelphia by car."
Sigh.
In case you've never heard of it, SEPTA is the SouthEastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. It's a quasi-governmental agency that operates the public transportation options (trains, subways, buses) in Philadelphia and the surrounding five-county area. Since I commute to work by train, I deal with them five days a week.
SEPTA has had a (well-deserved) reputation for providing inefficient, breakdown-prone, and overpriced train service for the nearly 20 years I've used it to commute to work. This summer, it's been worse than usual. There have been three or four nearly system-wide power outages this spring. Usually, power outages occur in the winter, when snow and ice concentrations lead to broken high-voltage lines. This year, however, we had little snow--and an amazing number of power problems as the weather has warmed up.
Around 5 p.m., I learned that SEPTA had just had yet another power outage and, as a result, train service was cancelled until further notice. Fortunately, I had been planning to stay at work until 7 p.m. anyway.
By 7 p.m., when I left work, power had been restored, but service was "sporadic" and trains were "running with substantial delays." What this meant, for me, was that I had to wait until 8 p.m. before a train that was going to Malvern arrived at the platform. That train was crowded and operated at about 1/4 speed for the entire trip. I finally got home about 9:30 p.m. The train trip from Malvern to Philadelphia typically takes about 45 minutes if the train makes all the local stops.
If you're wondering "Why do you keep using SEPTA?" the answer is, "Because it's cheaper, less of a hassle, and usually quicker than commuting from Malvern to Philadelphia by car."
Sigh.
tired
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SEPTA's outages are usually confined to the track area, and result from downed high-tension wires and stuff like that. That is what caused the problem yesterday.
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Rob
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SEPTA costs me $160 or so for a pass each month, compared to $200 for parking in a Philly parking garage for a month of business days. That's not really an issue, because the firm pays for my train pass, and it would pay for my parking fees instead if I chose to drive.
But it's still rational for me to take SEPTA for other reason. One is that I'm usually not very awake at the time of day I have to head to work, and it's much safer for everybody else if I'm not behind the wheel then. The other factor is time. It takes me about 50 minutes to get to work, door to door, taking SEPTA on a normal day when they're almost on time. Driving always takes me more than a hour--40 minutes to get to the City and the rest to find a parking space in a parking garage not too far from my office.
Arrgh.
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As the Schuylkill is a nightmare to drive, and parking downtown isn't fun, I agree that SEPTA is the best way to go. Mostly it works, although it's a crap shoot as to whether you'll get a reasonable ride or one that encounters ground-level "heavy turbulence."
I leave a wide safety margin (timewise) and always have something to read. I just know, though, that one of these days I'll end up spending the night in my office.
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By the way, it is possible to get a cab from Philadelphia to Malvern, but it's expensive--it cost me about $80 the last time I tried it. That's what I do when SEPTA really screws up and I need to get home.
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Getting to 30th Street is no big deal for me--it's a 10-minute walk from my office. When the trains get messed up, I often walk there to wait because it's a more interesting and comfortable place to wait than Suburban Station, especially at night.
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I took that bus only once, from 69th Street, on 911, because I couldn't figure out a way to get closer to home and Amtrak had shut down all train service because of fear that the trains might be attacked.
Back then, I'm not sure #124 stopped at Chesterbrook, and I know that I didn't know of a cab alternative. (I have one now, though). Fortunately,
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So why don't I take SEPTA? My usual commute by car is 25 minutes, parking at work is easy and free, and it would involve driving to the R5, parking, taking the R5 for 15 minutes, waiting for the company shuttle (which is timed to meet trains going the other direction). Total about an hour, and dependent on a shuttle which stops about 6PM. So on the average it's cheaper, less hassle, and much quicker than commuting by SEPTA. But I don't work downtown.
Sympathy, anyhow.
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