“The Hub” is a weekly round-up of transportation related news in the Philadelphia area and beyond. Check back weekly to keep up-to-date on the issues Clean Air Council’s transportation staff finds important.
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6ABC: SEPTA resumes Regional Rail morning express service; Center City T-trolley tunnel reopens – Regional Rail and Trolley riders began their week with increased service, from the suburbs to Center City. The T-trolley tunnel reopened Monday morning, once again connecting Center City to neighborhoods and communities throughout West Philadelphia . The tunnel has been closed since Mid-November for emergency repairs, and will have overnight closures for further repairs in February. Regional Rail riders also felt improvements this week, with express service resuming from the suburbs to Center city. Service has been gradually returning after Silverliner railcars were pulled from service, inspected, and repaired.
The Inquirer: Keeping seniors fit in Philly takes a citywide effort | Expert Opinion – 20% of Philadelphia are age 60 or older, and the senior population in the city has been growing for the past decade. Drexel Professor and physical therapist notes the importance of movement for longevity and health. It’s beneficial for mental and physical health, but 30% of seniors in Philadelphia report difficulty with mobile activities, such as walking or climbing stairs. Philadelphia’s walkability and access to green spaces are positives for seniors, with 95% of all Philadelphia residents living within a 10 minute walk of a public park. However, parks tend to be smaller and lower-quality for low-income neighborhood residents. Access and funding for green spaces, public transportation, senior community centers, and other lifelines, are critical for the health of seniors across Philadelphia.
Fox Philadelphia: Girard Point Bridge overhaul begins: 5-year traffic impact in Philly – Construction has begun on the Girard Point Bridge. The renovation will take five years to complete, and drivers need to know PennDot’s plans. Three lanes of traffic can be expected, but lane restrictions will occur as well. These restrictions will be focused on nights and weekends, but riders can find alternative commuting options here. Phase 1 of construction begins in February, and long-term traffic patterns will be installed in July of this year.
Other Stories
WHYY: ‘Going to make my life much better’: SEPTA trolley riders react to tunnel reopening
CBS Philadelphia: Person with measles traveled through Philadelphia airport, 30th Street Station, health officials say
The Philadelphia Tribune: Visit Philly expecting 500,000 visitors for World Cup
Philadelphia.Today: New $11.5M Project Aims to Beautify Philadelphia in Preparation for 250th Birthday Celebrations
The Inquirer: We debated the best ways to snuff out bad SEPTA etiquette. The best advice came from you
The Travel: One Of America’s Most Beautiful Amtrak Stations Is Getting A Makeover
“The Hub” is a weekly round-up of transportation related news in the Philadelphia area and beyond. Check back weekly to keep up-to-date on the issues Clean Air Council’s transportation staff finds important.
Join the Transit For All PA! campaign for sustainable transit funding to keep our state moving forward.
The Inquirer: SEPTA opens new $50M Wissahickon Transit Center in Manayunk – SEPTA finished the long-awaited Wissahickon Transportation Center, and it’s expected to serve 5,000 bus riders a day. The center is just down the street from the Wissahickon Regional Rail station, and construction on the $50 million project began in 2023. The transportation center is one of SEPTA’s busiest. The upgraded space was set to be the first of a wave of upgrades, many of which have since been paused due to a lack of funding.
Fox Philadelphia: South Philly street artist helps create signs displaying SEPTA bus arrival times – SEPTA bus signs are getting a makeover from a local Philly street artist known as “Mr. Bird.” Solar-powered signs display arrival times of buses on painted metal signs that connect to SEPTA’s website. The first route to get this unauthorized upgrade was Route 64 at Broad and Washington. Signs are also being installed along Route 47. Riders have reacted positively to the signs, and SEPTA has plans to upgrade bus signs in the next few years, but it’s unclear if a collaboration will occur.
Chester County: Chesco Connect Drives Into the Future with Propane Buses – A new fleet of buses is expected to hit the streets of Chester County by February. The fleet offers a way to cut costs for the County, and seven are already on the road. Chester County plans to add more propane buses in 2027, due to the significant price difference per gallon compared to gasoline or diesel. Montgomery and Lancaster Counties have both adopted propane bus integration to fleets, and it is a marginally ‘cleaner’ fuel source than gasoline. With a federal shift away from supporting electric vehicles, moving fleets to environmentally friendly alternatives is becoming more difficult.
Other Stories
6ABC: SEPTA reaches deal with SMART Local 1594 to avert strike
PhillyVoice: Delaware County trolley riders should plan for longer trips during weekends through May
6ABC: Philadelphia City Council votes to reopen Greyhound Bus Terminal
Bicycle Coalition: Bringing safety and joy at the 13th Annual Bike Light Giveaway
WHYY: Road salt remains in Pa., N.J. and Del. waterways months after winter storms, according to new data
CBS Philadelphia: NJDOT brings back holiday-themed highway signs to raise awareness about reckless driving
“The Hub” is a weekly round-up of transportation related news in the Philadelphia area and beyond. Check back weekly to keep up-to-date on the issues Clean Air Council’s transportation staff finds important.
Join the Transit For All PA! campaign for sustainable transit funding to keep our state moving forward.
CBS Philadelphia: SEPTA strike averted after workers’ union, transit agency reach new contract – SEPTA and Transport Workers Union Local 234 have reached a tentative agreement, as of Monday this week. This agreement avoids a strike with the largest union working in SEPTA currently, and would’ve impacted thousands of riders. TWU Local 234 members have been working without a contract for a month, and the agreement includes a two-year contract with a 3.5% wage increase each year, and other benefits. The union plans to ratify the new agreement later this month, with plans to present the contract to the SEPTA board on December 18.
Philly Voice: SEPTA receives MARC cars to ease Regional Rail disruptions, but a supply shortage is delaying Silverliner repairs – SEPTA is receiving 10 train cars from the Maryland Area Regional Commuter (MARC) Rail this week, to try and alleviate delays in the system. Regional Rail riders have been experiencing delays and crowded trains due to the ongoing inspection and improvements to the Silverliner cars. The MARC cars are being transported by Amtrak from Washington to 30th Street Station at the end of this week. SEPTA then will need to inspect the cars and train crews, which could take up to two weeks. The cars will be leased for one year, and will add capacity for riders across the rail system.
The Inquirer: Penn’s Landing cap over I-95 is 30% complete, with completion hoped in 2029 – Penn’s Landing Park, a 12-acre park over I-95, is about 30% completed. 2029 is the estimated completion year by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, with the park itself being installed the following year by the Delaware River Waterfront Corporation. Plans for the park include a net zero carbon building, skating rink, playground, water feature, and green space. The estimated cost of the project has increased from the 2017 estimate of $229 million to now $329 million due to rising costs of inflation. Construction efforts will continue by PennDOT, and motorists should check PennDOT’s website for closure updates.
Other Stories
6ABC: Construction project impacting Schuylkill Expressway set to begin
WMMR: Explore the Lesser-Known Bike Paths of Philadelphia
PhillyVoice: Tolls to drive over eight Delaware River bridges will increase next year
The Inquirer: SEPTA decks out buses in holiday decorating contest
Bicycle Coalition: ICYMI: Spring Garden Street Connector Open House
PhillyVoice: SEPTA to fully restore Regional Rail service by late December with $220 million boost from PennDOT
“The Hub” is a weekly round-up of transportation related news in the Philadelphia area and beyond. Check back weekly to keep up-to-date on the issues Clean Air Council’s transportation staff finds important.
Losing our state’s public transit infrastructure is a scary future! Join the Transit For All PA campaign for sustainable transit funding to keep our state moving forward. Happy Halloween!
Election day is Tuesday, November 4th. Find your polling place here!
CBS Philadelphia: City Council passes bill that could put Philadelphia’s bike lane safety project back on track – Last week, Philadelphia City Council passed a bill that gave the Streets Department the authority to establish loading zones in parts of Center City, including Spruce and Pine streets. This was part of an earlier initiative to protect cyclists, as loading zones would keep stopped cars out of bike lanes. Neighborhood group Friends of Pine and Spruce won a lawsuit in June, stopping the city from enacting this plan and to reverse work that had been completed. This bill overrides that decision and the Mayor has 10 days to sign the bill, making it effective immediately.
WHYY: More time? SEPTA asks for extension of federal deadline to inspect aging Silverliner railcars – The deadline given to SEPTA for the inspection of the Silverliner rail cars is Friday, October 31st. Now SEPTA has requested an additional 2 weeks in order to inspect the over 220 cars included in the order. Over 100 have been inspected so far with around two-thirds failing and only 35 cars returning to service immediately. According to SEPTA, most that have failed inspection only need minor repairs and then can be returned to service. A decision on the two week extension is expected by the end of this week.
The Inquirer: Greyhound bus terminal likely to reopen on Filbert Street after two years of tumult – The Philadelphia Parking Authority reached an agreement with City officials this week, and the former intercity bus terminal on Filbert could be getting a major renovation. The PPA will begin renovations and run the Greyhound bus station on behalf of the City, according to the agreement. Legislation to assess feeds and other items was introduced this week to City Council and the PPA board must agree to the lease. Spring Guard traffic issues have been haunting Philadelphia for over two years. This solution would address the problem, but would require cooperation from other entities such as the Streets Department, to direct traffic pattern changes around the Filbert depot.
Other Stories
PhillyVoice: Your guide to Philadelphia’s $91 million streetlight replacement project
BillyPenn: “On a scale of 1 to 10, we’re a negative-2”: Airport workers struggle amid shutdown
6ABC: I-76 westbound ramp to City Avenue to close for repairs
“The Hub” is a weekly round-up of transportation related news in the Philadelphia area and beyond. Check back weekly to keep up-to-date on the issues Clean Air Council’s transportation staff finds important.
Join the Transit For All PA campaign for sustainable transit funding to keep our state moving forward.
The Inquirer: SEPTA riders say Regional Rail trains catching fire ‘is what decades of disinvestment looks like’ – Last week advocacy groups held a press conference at Love Park urging leaders to properly fund mass transit. They said avoiding doing so over the last several years has created the host of problems currently being faced by SEPTA, and the state of Pennsylvania. Advocates say that without a set budget, SEPTA is forced to use capital funds to keep service running, rather than spend that money on capital improvements, and we are seeing the first example of the arising problems with the Silverliner IV car fires.
Transit Talent (Originally posted to the Inquirer): SEPTA is postponing hybrid bus purchases, accessibility projects to keep the lights on – Several improvement projects by SEPTA have been placed on hold due to lack of funding from the state. New hybrid or electric bus purchases, accessibility improvements to the Bristol Regional Rail station, and expansion of the Frazer train facility in Malvern are some of the projects pushed back. Projects that already have broken ground will continue, including the Market-Frankford Line and trolley car replacements, as well as the modernization of trolley systems.
PhillyVoice: Nighttime work on I-95 will close lanes in Northeast Philly for most of November – Weeknights in November will see lane closures approaching the Cottman Avenue Interchanges. This will be in effect from 8 p.m. until 5 a.m. from November 3rd until November 28th. Construction efforts are currently focused on the 8 miles between I-676 and Cottman Avenue. This is the final phase of the Cottman Avenue Interchange project. For more information on I-95 construction and closures, be sure to follow the Clean Air Council’s Facebook page.
Other Stories
6ABC: Sinkhole closes portion of Schuylkill River Trail in Center City Philadelphia
PhillyVoice: At 30th Street Station, deep cleaning is the ‘true artisan work’ of a $550 million renovation
6ABC: ‘South Jersey Girls Who Walk’ brings a social club to local women
WFMZ: SEPTA’s City Hall Station is getting a face lift ahead of America’s 250th birthday celebrations
Momentum Mag: Philly Bike Train is Upping the City of Brotherly Love’s Bicycle Commute Game
