🚍 Planning your post-cuts commute | Morning Newsletter
And a dreary end to Shore season.
The Morning Newsletter
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Morning, Philly. The city will see clouds and possibly showers today, while Hurricane Erin’s fly-by impacts are forecast to bring flooding in Jersey beach towns.
That weather is making for a dreary end to the summer — especially for vacationers who spent big on a last beach trip before school starts. How do the end-of-season storms fit with our 2025 Shore summer predictions?
But first: SEPTA’s plan to cut overall service by 20% is set to go into effect this Sunday. See how the changes will impact your local lines, plus our guide to navigating other forms of Philly transportation.
— Julie Zeglen (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
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You’ve heard the alarm SEPTA has been sounding for months. You know service cuts are coming. Do you know how the lines closest to home are changing come Sunday?
🚍 Almost all SEPTA services will be impacted, either with reduced service, a shorter or altered route, or outright removal from the network.
🚍 Within a half-mile of my West Philly house, for instance, two bus routes will be shortened, and five routes total will arrive less frequently. I’ll see a 21% reduction in service in my neighborhood on an average weekday.
Enter your address and we’ll tell you how services in your area will be affected by upcoming cuts.
🚍 Consider other ways to get around the city, too, such as PATCO, NJ Transit, and park-and-rides. Indego bike share now has more than 200 stations, and the purple PHLASH shuttle loops through Center City.
Check out our roundup of non-SEPTA transportation options.
Plus: There is diminishing hope that lawmakers in Pennsylvania’s divided legislature will be able to reach a deal to prevent the service cuts as top legislators and Gov. Josh Shapiro remain at an impasse over how to fund mass transit. Meanwhile, in New Jersey, Gov. Phil Murphy announced an expansion of transit offerings, including eight new electric buses for Camden and expanded “microtransit” ride-sharing services.
Somehow, there’s just one month left of summer 2025 — and a mere 11 days until the unofficial end of summer, Labor Day.
In May, Shore reporter Amy Rosenberg made 10 predictions about what this season would hold. Here’s a sample of how she did:
✅ Atlantic City renewed as a tourist hotspot
✅ Flat real estate and rental prices
🤏 Fewer Canadians
Rosenberg has more on the trends of the summer.
Further reading: From flood warnings to swimming bans, Shore visitors are making the most of their Erin-spoiled week. One family from Northeastern Pennsylvania even took refuge from the storm under Lucy the Elephant on Wednesday.
What you should know today
Police on Wednesday said they have made arrests in two domestic-related homicides, including the fatal shooting of the 48-year-old co-owner of an East Germantown spa.
A South Street pawn shop sold more than $19 million worth of stolen goods, prosecutors say. Two other shops were allegedly part of the scheme.
A former Philly judge who took $90,000 to bow out of a race against U.S. Rep. Bob Brady in 2012 had his law license reinstated this week, ending a sanction imposed after his conviction.
The U.S. Department of Education has launched an investigation into Haverford College over its handling of antisemitism complaints.
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. demanded that a scientific journal retract a vaccine study. Its Philly-based editor refused.
As the school district decides which buildings to close, the Preservation Alliance of Greater Philadelphia wants to see historic buildings modernized instead of torn down.
Upper Darby School District has completed its purchase of the shuttered Delaware County Memorial Hospital.
Following more than two years of controversy, the Mütter Museum has adopted a new policy on collecting and displaying human remains.
Quote of the day
Philly-area singles, including this Delaware County resident, say dating here is “bleak.” Netflix’s Love Is Blind could change that: The reality show is casting now in the city.
🧠 Trivia time
Actress and Wilmington native Aubrey Plaza watched a WNBA game wearing a shirt that repped Philly. Now, it’s close to selling out. What did the shirt say?
A) “Philadelphia Rage, Est. 2030″
B) “Philly is a Women’s Sports Town”
C) “Coming Soon: Watch Party PHL”
D) “Dawn Staley 2028”
Think you know? Check your answer.
What we’re...
📚 Reading: A Philly Bookstore Crawl guide to the best books of 2025 so far.
🐟 Greeting: The familiar faces at Media’s Hill’s Quality Seafood, turning 50 this year.
📺 Watching: What ESPN’s new direct-to-consumer service means for Philly sports fans.
🚗 Driving at: How tariffs are impacting car prices.
🗳️ Considering: This pitch for an independent redistricting commission in Pennsylvania.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
Hint: Food-hall chain preparing to open its first Delco locations
DOWNER
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here.
Cheers to Pat McCabe, who solved Wednesday’s anagram: Art Alliance. The building looks little changed six weeks after a damaging fire, but owner Curtis Institute of Music says remediation inside is underway.
Photo of the day
Wishing you a dry Thursday. I’ll be back with you tomorrow morning to close out the week of news.
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