Handling all of Friday's Phillies Fans Just Wasn't Possible, SEPTA Says

by KYW's Al Novack

Septa distributed an apologetic message on Wednesday from general manager Joe Casey about last Friday's problems on the Regional Rail lines, prompted by that massive outpouring for the Phillies' victory parade (see related story).

All Septa rail riders were supposed to get the handout, with Casey's explanation of last Friday's situation -- which included a ridership three times that of normal peak service.  But not every rider  received the handout, and those that did still felt Septa and other transit agencies in the area could have done more:

"It was heartfelt, but they should've prepared a little better for the parade, knowing that it was going to be that big. I mean, it wasn't just Septa. It was Amtrak -- everyone was taken aback."

Septa says it had to make many difficult operational decisions in a short span of time and they regret any inconvenience.

(Photo by KYW's Dennis Abdul-Jihad)

Here is the full text of Casey's message:

A Message to SEPTA Regional Rail Riders from General Manager Joe Casey

On any given weekday, our Regional Rail system carries about 135,000 customers. As regular riders, you already know that we operate every available train car for normal weekday service and some of these trains are "standing room only."

Friday was anything but regular, with approximately 215,000 additional customers trying to join you on our AM peak service trains. With upwards of three times more than our normal, full capacity service, there was simply no means to carry everyone. We regret if we disappointed anyone that couldn't attend the parade and especially our loyal SEPTA customers. It just wasn't possible to make the service work any other way and keep riders safe.

Although it was difficult to accomplish, we placed trains where the largest number of people were expected and made every effort to run them as often as possible. Had additional cars been available, they would have been in operation on Friday as well as every day to accommodate our capacity service needs.

With the conclusion of the events at the Sports Complex coinciding with the start of our regular afternoon rush hour, we saw huge increases in the number of people arriving at Suburban and Market East Stations and many passengers experienced substantial delays, but by early evening
most of our riders were safely on their way home.

Some of these operational decisions were difficult to make, but never before have so many people safely ridden the SEPTA system in such a relatively brief period of time. I wish that we had been able to accommodate everyone on Friday and I regret any inconvenience regular commuters experienced traveling in or out of Center City.

I am extremely proud of the hundreds of dedicated, customer focused SEPTA employees - including many office workers - who left their daily tasks to offer you assistance; and our Operations staff who made the most of available resources and delivered the best service possible under very trying conditions.

I also want to say thank you for your patience while sharing your journey with a great many excited Phillies fans and for your understanding.

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