(The following story by Tom Infield appeared on the Philadelphia Inquirer website on January 15, 2009.)
PHILADELPHIA — Barack Obama’s path to his inauguration will begin in Philadelphia on Saturday morning, but the public should not expect much of a glimpse of the president-elect – not here, anyway.
Obama will take a special train out of 30th Street Station shortly before noon as he starts a ceremonial journey to Washington, where he will begin three days of celebratory events leading up to his swearing-in on Tuesday.
An invitation-only group of 200 to 300 volunteers from the Obama election campaign – along with Gov. Rendell, Mayor Nutter, and several other top elected officials – will join the president-elect and his family in the North Waiting Room of the station starting at 10:05 a.m.
“It’s very flattering and satisfying that the president-elect is beginning his inaugural in Philadelphia,” said lawyer Mark Alderman, a key Obama supporter who will attend.
“Philadelphia was a significant contributor to his early fund-raising, which established his credentials as a candidate,” Alderman said. “And Pennsylvania was a key to his election.”
No open event is planned in Philadelphia, but the public will get a chance to see Obama when he stops at the Wilmington Amtrak station at 1 p.m. and then visits Baltimore later in the day, according to an announcement yesterday by the 2009 Presidential Inaugural Committee.
Police along the route are expecting crowds to gather on overpasses and in small stations to see Obama’s train pass by.
The trip partly replicates the path that Abraham Lincoln took to his inauguration in 1861.
Vice President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. will board the train in Wilmington. In Baltimore, the event at War Memorial Plaza will be at 4:15 p.m.
Passengers on the Obama train – mostly not big donors or VIPs – will be from all over the country.
David L. Cohen, an Obama donor and a key Democratic Party player in Philadelphia, said last night that he had not been invited to the 30th Street event.
Several other key Obama figures said the same thing.
“I don’t think this is an event for donors,” Cohen said.
Chris Mather, a spokeswoman for the Obama committee, described the 30th Street Station invitees as “the volunteers who worked really, really hard – the unsung heroes who didn’t get paid.”
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Expect Train Delays Saturday
The departure of the inaugural train of President-elect Barack Obama from 30th Street Station on Saturday morning will affect Regional Rail service.
Some delays should be anticipated throughout the system between 9 a.m. and noon. Because of restrictions at 30th Street Station, customers are advised to use Suburban Station instead.
The greatest impact will be on R2 service between Philadelphia and Wilmington. All R2 trains from Philadelphia to Wilmington from around 9:30 a.m. until around 1:30 p.m. will terminate at Marcus Hook. Train 4213, scheduled to depart the Market East Station at 11:29 a.m., will be canceled.
All R2 trains from Wilmington to Philadelphia, from around 10:30 a.m. until around 3:45 p.m., will originate at Marcus Hook. Train 4612, scheduled to depart Marcus Hook at 11:47 a.m., will be canceled.
The Wilmington station will be closed to the public from 10 a.m. until after the departure of the inaugural train.
All SEPTA parking lots at railroad stations along the southbound (outbound) side of the R2 tracks will be closed at 12:01 a.m. Saturday and reopened after the departure of the inaugural train.
For information, visit www.septa.org or call 215-580-7800.
SOURCE: SEPTA
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Stops on the Inaugural Train
Philadelphia
10:05 a.m., North Waiting Room, 30th Street Station.
Tickets are required and have been distributed to the public.
Wilmington
1 p.m., back of Wilmington Train Station, 100 S. French St.
Event is open to the public. Attendees are asked to bring a can of food for delivery to a local food bank. Doors open at 9:30 a.m.
Baltimore
4:15 p.m., War Memorial Plaza, 101 N. Gay St.
Event is open to the public. Attendees are asked to bring a can of food for delivery to a local food bank. Doors open at 1 p.m.