Stranded by SEPTA (or: SEPTA really sucks!)

[giza]

Flashback to the evening fo Monday, July 3rd.

I had just gotten out of work and was looking to get home so I could relax for the 4th of July Holiday. I was in Market East station waiting for the westbound R5 when suddenly the following announcement is made:

Attention all passengers. Due to downed wires, the R5 train to Bryn Mawr, Malvern, and Downingtown is not in service. Please find alternate transportation.

And that's it. No offer to help find a bus, pay for taxi fare, or any of that. Sorry folks, you are on your own. We don't care that you pay 106 dollars a month for a pass, we're still going to screw you with no notice whatsoever and not provide you with another way home.

Now, I was fortunate. I live just a few stops down the road, and was able to find a bus that evetually took me where I wanted to go. But for people who live out in zone 3, 4 or 5, they were totally screwed. I have no idea how they managed to get home, or if they were even able to get home that night.

And this is why the senior leadership at SEPTA needs to be sacked. Right now.

Comments

[unclekage.livejournal.com]

Septa has a long history of doing that sort of thing. "Please find alternate transportation."

A number of years ago when I was living in Bridgeport, I used to take the R6 line. The train headed out of the station as usual, but at one critical switch we noticed that the train headed north instead of west. It went to a very ugly station in an even uglier section of North Philly, and then we were all told to get off. "Sorry," the conductor said. "Flooding on the tracks going to Norristown. You're going to have to find another way home." The train then left, continuing north to become another R-line train.

We all stood there, dozens of us, open-mouthed in horror. They actually drove us up to North Philadelphia and kicked us off the train, and then had the nerve to tell us, "Now find your way home." It was like some twisted episode of "Survivor."

I opted to wait for the next southbound train to come along, which it did eventually, and had it take me back to Center City. I did not have a pass then; just a single-ride ticket. The conductor got an earful when he asked me for my (already-used) ticket, and he let me go without paying anything additional. I wound up taking the Market-Frankford line to 69th street, and then the Route 100 trolley out to Bridgeport, which I decided I liked much better anyway.

[susandeer.livejournal.com]

*tsks and shakes her head* Ahh, impetuous youth...

Sacking is not the answer. Being prepared is always the answer. Always have a backup plan. I had no less than three methods to get to and from my college in Center City. Hence, I was never stranded.

[giza.livejournal.com]

I have a backup plan NOW.

I'm mostly pissed because 1) I'm paying them money, and 2) They did not offer any assistance to those of us who were stranded. Heck, even airlines go to some effort to help people with canceled flights.

[susandeer.livejournal.com]

'cross town is a bit easier to navigate yourself than 'cross country. You don't use airlines everyday, do you? Of course not! So, they help you when shit happens. You use Septa everyday, right? Those that do usually have a pretty good idea of what goes where and, if you're in a big station like Market East, there are schedule booths to look at alternative means of getting places.

The money spent on monthly passes gets you unlimited ridership, not someone to hold your hand and wipe your nose. If you're -really- stuck, use your damn cell phone to call their information line!

C'mon, dude. You're better than all this whining.

[giza.livejournal.com]

Okay, point taken on the airlines thing.

But I'm going to have to disagree to the rest of your comment. I don't think it's "whining" to be a little pissed off when SEPTA just shuts down a line with no prior warning. And it's not like they couldn't run busses from station to station along the R5 -- they've done this already with the northbound route while some sections of track were under construction.

[susandeer.livejournal.com]

Alright, think about this for a moment...

We've had a shit load of rain lately and there's still stuff under construction. Their drivers are pretty taxed right now. To call in more and set things up is going to take time so, yeah, those immediately caught in the lurch will have to fend for themselves.

Be pissed. That's cool. But then pull yourself together and use your head.

Now Kage's situation... THAT was something to be really pissed about. They should have turned around and gone back to a different station, not taken them to N.Philly. Unless it was a hub.

[irbisgreif.livejournal.com]

Actually, try and navigate from airport to airport. With the exception of a few small areas (basicly wherever the president happens to be jacking off), you can go straight from point A to point B. Even if you're not a pilot, it only takes a few minutes to find a flight going where you need to get.

Now, look at a city map, remember traffic, construction, and tell me how to get from point A to point B, in fact, find me three routes from Grand Central Station in Manhattan to 'your' home in at the tip of Long Island, (this is not an unreasonable commute). You don't have a car, and you can't fly.

Done? Good,

Now, Amtrack is down (this is not an unreasonable state of events :P). How do you get home?

Now, just so you know, I honestly don't care about typical mass transit woe's. Just watch yourself before you call air travel 'difficult', it's people like that that allow the Airlines to charge so much.

[susandeer.livejournal.com]

Just watch yourself before you call air travel 'difficult', it's people like that that allow the Airlines to charge so much.

Oooookayyy...

I never said air travel was difficult, just that most people aren't as lilely to be able to figure stuff out for themselves when there's a problem. You do still need the person at the ticket counter to help you out. It's not like using an all-purpose rail pass.

It should also be noted that Giza and I live in the same city/suburb/area (that city/suburb/area being far easier to navigate than Manhattan.) and that I am his "Mom", so I'm well within my rights to swat his bum when I think he's being a whiny cry-baby.

[giza.livejournal.com]

Sue speaks the truth about being my "Mom", BTW.

There's a story behind that.

[furahi.livejournal.com]

That happens a lot here in Mexico.
If it's a schedules down time of the subway, they'll ususally have busses following the subway's road, but if it's something else, it's "get off now and good luck getting whewre you're going".

Of course we only pay $2 pesos each way to travel wherever we want in the subway, that's under $0.20 ...