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How to navigate SEPTA if a strike shuts down city buses, trolleys and subways

Brace for a mess. Regional Rail is probably your best bet if there's a city transit strike.

A long line extends the main concourse at 30th St. Station as a SEPTA employee checks Regional Rail passes and tickets on the first day of Philadelphia's last transit strike, November 1, 2016.
A long line extends the main concourse at 30th St. Station as a SEPTA employee checks Regional Rail passes and tickets on the first day of Philadelphia's last transit strike, November 1, 2016.Read moreClem Murray / File Photograph

>>UPDATE: SEPTA strike averted as tentative deal is reached

SEPTA issued guidance for riders Wednesday on what to expect if a Transport Workers Union strike shuts down bus, trolley, Market-Frankford Line and Broad Street Line transit services in Philadelphia next week.

Regional Rail, buses, and trolleys in the four suburban counties and the Norristown High Speed Line would continue running as usual in the event that members of TWU Local 234, SEPTA’s largest bargaining unit, are walking picket lines on the morning of Nov. 1.

Local 234 represents transit operators, mechanics and other employees and its two-year contract expires at 11:59 p.m. Oct. 31. Negotiators for the union and SEPTA management began an intensive round of talks in a Center City hotel Monday; both sides have expressed a strong desire to avoid a work stoppage.

“My intentions are to work it out and, and come to some resolve or come to a fair contract,” said Brian Pollitt, president of Local 234. ”It’s an inconvenience for so many people. … If we have to, we have to, but I’m gonna do everything in my power not to.”

SEPTA spokesperson Andrew Busch said the agency is “hopeful” that the intensified talks will produce a breakthrough that prevents a strike. “There has been progress in the negotiations,” he said.

If a strike happens, businesses, government agencies, and other institutions all around the city also would have to make adjustments. Temple University said it would remain open and offer extra shuttle services and free parking for students and employees who are affected.

SEPTA advises:

  1. Regional Rail is the “best travel option during a service interruption.” Many of the commuter-rail lines serving the 51 stations within the city of Philadelphia also connect with suburban transit bus and trolley routes.

  2. Some suburban buses cross the city line to stops in Philadelphia, but routes would be adjusted and service in the city would be suspended.

  3. Regional Rail lines would operate on the current schedule. Riders should check SEPTA’s website or app for up-to-date information on delays or service adjustments on Regional Rail and suburban transit. Or people can call SEPTA Customer Relations (215-580-7800), which will be staffed for extended hours.

  4. The call center would open at its normal time at 7 a.m. on Tues., Oct. 31 and would go straight through, working a 24-hour day on Wed., Nov. 1, spokesperson Andrew Busch said. On Nov. 2 and Nov. 3, representatives would be working from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. SEPTA plans to staff the center on the weekend for the normal hours of 8 p.m. to 5 a.m., but Busch said that could be extended based on call volume.

  5. Regional Rail riders cannot yet pay fares with credit cards and smartphone wallets such as Apple Pay and Google, unlike transit customers. For rail, people must have funds loaded to the travel wallet on their SEPTA Key card or hold a valid pass. They also can buy Quick Trip tickets from a station kiosk or sales office.

  6. During evening peak hours, riders would have to queue on the concourse level at Center City Regional Rail stations and follow the directions of SEPTA ambassadors, to avoid dangerous overcrowding on platforms. The change would be in effect from 2:45 to 7 p.m. at Temple University, Jefferson, Suburban, William H. Gray III 30th Street, and Penn Medicine stations. LUCY Green and Gold Loop service to University City destinations would continue to operate from 30th Street Station.

“When the word comes the union is calling a strike, operators who are out at that time are instructed to immediately finish the remainder of their run and take their vehicle to a depot or rail yard,” Busch said.

For SEPTA’s complete guidance on how to navigate the city in the event of a transit strike, go to septa.org.

Patco would still be operating trains between New Jersey and Philadelphia, but its service in Center City is limited to a route between Eighth and Market Streets to 16th and Locust Streets (RidePatco.org).