(The following story by Paul Nussbaum appeared on the Philadelphia Inquirer website on September 16.)
PHILADELPHIA — When Tina Hill drove into SEPTA’s Elwyn train station from her Glen Mills home last week at 7:30 a.m., there were still a handful of parking places left in the 233-space lot.
But parked cars were already scattered along the shoulder of the access road and crowded onto grass abutments, as commuters grabbed any space they could find. By 9, the line of illegally parked cars stretched a quarter-mile back to New Middletown Road.
“One day, there was even a car parked on a pile of construction dirt, like this,” Hill said, holding her hand nearly vertically. “I would have loved to see him get in his car.”
As high gas prices drive new riders to SEPTA’s trains in record numbers, the transit agency is learning to be careful of what it wishes for. With the end of summer vacations and the return to workaday commutes, the growing ridership is straining SEPTA’s ability to keep up with demand.
Rail ridership is up 12 percent from a year ago, to its highest point in 25 years of SEPTA rail operations, and many rush-hour trains are packed with standing passengers. Some trains are too crowded for conductors to collect tickets.
So SEPTA is resuscitating mothballed railcars, buying used cars, and adjusting schedules to provide more seats. It is trying to create more parking by building garages, buying land for lots, and changing bus routes to bring commuters to train stations.
And, chronically short of rail crews, it is looking to hire more engineers.
Other regions are facing similar crunches.
Eighty-five percent of U.S. public transit systems are reporting capacity problems, according to the American Public Transportation Association.
Last year, Americans took more trips on public transit than they had in 50 years, and the trend has continued in 2008. In the second quarter this year, public-transportation ridership was up 5.2 percent from the previous year.
“The gas definitely increased ridership,” said Bob Calderone, who rides the R3 into Center City from Morton. “And school’s back in session. It’s definitely more crowded. But when I catch the express, I usually get a seat.”
For SEPTA rail riders, the biggest relief will start to arrive in late 2009, when the first of 120 new Silverliner V railcars are to be put into service.
In the meantime, SEPTA has added about 1,700 seats during peak periods by adjusting schedules, allowing for an increase of 13 morning cars and two evening cars to crowded trains.
Three cars have been restored to service from long-term storage. Some car inspections have been shifted to weekends to free cars during peak hours, and some car maintenance has been consolidated to minimize movements to shops.
Together, those changes made seven additional morning cars and five additional evening cars available starting Sept. 7.
And, late next month, SEPTA will press into service eight used cars that it bought from NJ Transit. They’ll be used to lengthen trains on the R2 Wilmington/Newark, R3 Media/Elwyn, R3 West Trenton, R5 Paoli/Thorndale, and R7 Trenton lines.
“We’re trying to stay ahead of the ridership,” said Harry Garforth, SEPTA’s manager of rail planning. “We’re trying to get maximum utilization of our equipment.”
Higher gas prices and the costs of parking in Center City have brought SEPTA new riders, such as Hill, and now the challenge is to keep them. Hill, who works in a Center City law office, has been riding the R3 for about six months, and even if gas prices fall, she said, she’s in for the long haul.
“I’m not going back to the car; I’m committed now,” she said. “It’s cheaper. There’s no wear and tear on the car.”
But, like veteran riders, she wishes SEPTA could make some changes. “More trains. More parking. Cleaner trains,” she said. “My seat is like a bucket; it’s like I’m sitting in a hole.”
Her seat mates chimed in:
“They don’t open all the doors.”
“Fix the public address system.”
“The air-conditioning doesn’t work on hot days.”
“The conductors could be a little more courteous.”
“More parking.”
Short on land and hemmed in by neighbors who don’t want more parking or traffic, SEPTA is unable to meet the parking demand.
In the last five years, the agency has added 1,925 parking spaces, including 500 at the Frankford Transportation Center, 380 in a garage at Norristown, 305 at Fort Washington, 265 at Warminster, and 115 at Trevose. By the end of 2009, SEPTA plans to add 300 spaces at the Exton station.
Eventually, the agency says, it hopes to extend the R3 Media/Elwyn line to Wawa, where it could build another large lot to take pressure off the crowded Elwyn lot. And it has plans to build a parking garage at Jenkintown, though that proposal has drawn neighborhood opposition.