COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA PUBLIC MEETING BEFORE THE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION and PUBLIC UTILITIES - - - Room 400, City Hall Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Tuesday, September 30, 1997 9:15 a.m. - - - RESOLUTION 970532 - Calling on the Committee on Transportation and Public Utilities to conduct hearings to investigate SEPTA's timeline for restoring trolley service to Routes 15, 23, and 56. - - - PRESENT: COUNCILWOMAN HAPPY FERNANDEZ, Chairwoman COUNCILMAN FRANK DiCICCO, Vice-Chair COUNCILMAN W. THATCHER LONGSTRETH COUNCILMAN ANGEL ORTIZ COUNCILWOMAN MARIAN B. TASCO - - - VINCENT VARALLO ASSOCIATES, INC. Registered Professional Reporters Eleven Penn Center Plaza, Suite 600 Philadelphia, PA 19103 (215) 561-2220 2 I N D E X RESOLUTION 970532 John K. Leary, Jr., General Manager, SEPTA------ 8 Richard Voith, Vice-Chair, City Representative, SEPTA Board---------------------------------- 17 Benjamin Foster, SEPTA Employee, Trolley and Bus Operator------------------------------------- 32 Janet Potter, Representative, Chestnut Hill Community Association------------------------ 37 Jenny Newkirk, City Representative, SEPTA Board- 59 Vukan R. Vuchic, Ph.D., Professor of Transportation Engineering, Univ. Of Pennsylvania----------- 63 Juanita Hatton, President, Citizens Congress of Nicetown------------------------------------- 76 Linda Corsover, Board Member, Germantown Business Association---------------------------------- 79 John Herrick, President, Chestnut Hill Business Association---------------------------------- 81 Susan Bushu, Rep., Mt. Airy Business Assoc.----- 83 Alice Foley, Chairperson, Transportation & Transit Committee, West Mt. Airy Neighbors Assoc.---- 89 Thomas Sigrue, President, West Mt. Airy Neighbors Assoc.----------------------------- 91 Catharine Franklin, Rep., Penn-Knox Neighborhood Assoc.---------------------------------------- 93 Kathleen Paulmier, Director, Community Involvement, Germantown Friends School-------------------- 97 Bernice Roberts, Rep., Nazarene Church---------- 102 Carl Dahlgren, Rep., Friends of Hunting Park---- 108 Susan Petrone, Rep., East Passyunk Neighbors Civic Assoc.--------------------------------- 118 Steven A. Vaughan, Chief of Staff, Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller---------------------------- 120 Thomas Deahl, Board Member, Historic Rittenhousetown------------------------------ 122 Anne Roller, Public Relations Coordinator, Clivedon; Vice-Prez, Historic Germantown Preserved----- 126 Howard Kittel, Executive Director, Chestnut Hill Historical Society--------------------------- 129 Don Nigro, Representative, DVARP---------------- 131 Dennis R. Winters, Environmental Policy Analyst, Phila. Office, Clean Air Council------------- 135 Lorraine Brill, Chairperson, Delaware Valley Citizen's Transportation Committee----------- 139 Rev. Michael Murray, President, North Catholic High School for Boys------------------------- 144 3 I N D E X RESOLUTION 970532 James Moody, Citizen---------------------------- 146 Douglas Deahl, Representative, Tri-State Transit 21----------------------------------- 149 James Royal, Representative, Noble Group-------- 156 - - - 4 P R O C E E D I N G S CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Good morning. My name is Councilwoman Happy Fernandez. I am the Chair of the Transportation & Public Utilities Committee. And I would like to convene a public meeting of this Committee to consider Resolution No. 9 970532. I'd also like to welcome and introduce other members of the Committee. Vice-Chair of the Committee, Councilman Frank DiCicco, to my right. And to my left is Councilman Angel Ortiz. And staff to this Committee is Nicole Seitz, to my left. Miss Seitz, would you read the resolution, please.
Resolution No. 19 970532, Resolution calling on the Committee on Transportation & Public Utilities to conduct hearings to investigate the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority's timeline for restoring trolley service to Routes 15, 23, and 56 by purchasing new light rail cars and upgrading existing trolley infrastructure. 5 RESOLUTION 970532 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: I would like to make just a few comments to make sure the record is very straight on this. The resolution calling for these hearings was introduced into Council this past June. There have been some developments, very positive developments, in terms of restoring, or plans to restore, some service on Route 15, which SEPTA will discuss. But I want the record to be very clear that the reason we called these hearings was to get an update from SEPTA on a commitment that was made in 1992, when SEPTA faced very serious financial problems. And at that point the SEPTA Board voted to remove the light rail cars from Routes 15, 23, and 56, but promised in that public meeting that they would restore those cars as soon as their budget problems eased a bit. And I'd like to read, so it is clearly in the record, from of the minutes of the regular Board meeting of SEPTA on July 23, 1992. Mr. Undercofler, Clayton Undercofler, 6 RESOLUTION 970532 was the Chair of the Board at that time. Regarding the PCC cars and trolleys, Mr. Undercofler said that there had been discussion and a proposal that SEPTA could run a historic route from Gorgas Lane up through Chestnut Hill on approximately a 20-minute headway on weekends that would preserve the historic character of the trolley while SEPTA is in the transition period, while waiting for new trolley vehicles for the system, at which time modern trolley cars would assume -- they probably meant resume -- service on the three routes in question. Then it goes on to say, Mr. Gambaccini said that there had been a perception by some that, based on past history, that when SEPTA discontinues trolley service, they never return it. He said assertions had been made to the city that there is a program to return trolleys. And to assure that result, there is a plan to purchase new light rail vehicles to be available in approximately two or three years. This was from the 1992 Board minutes. This was followed up with a letter from Mr. Gambaccini, who was the head of SEPTA at that 7 RESOLUTION 970532 point, a letter to the Mayor restating SEPTA's commitment to restore service. It is now 1997. And, so, in June of this year, in response to concerns of many people concerned about public transit in this city, we did introduce this resolution into City Council calling for hearings. And as I stated earlier, I think we will hear there have been some steps to make good on this commitment at a summer SEPTA Board meeting, but it is still very unclear what is happening to Routes and 56. 14 So the purpose of these hearings is 15 to get an update from SEPTA, to get a status report 16 on where we are, and then also to hear from 17 community people and other people to testify about 18 their concern and reason for wanting this commitment 19 from SEPTA to be kept. 20 Are there any comments from any other 21 members of the Committee? 22 Okay. I'd like to call our first 23 witness, who is Mr. Jack Leary, who is now the General Manager of SEPTA. And with him, Richard Voith, who is one of the city's representatives to 8 RESOLUTION 970532 the SEPTA Board. Could you come forward, please. And, again, I would like to welcome all the people who are here today, either to testify or listen to the hearings. When you come forward to testify for the record, if you could identify yourself and your title, for any of the younger people or perhaps people who have not been to public hearings in City Council before. There is a public verbatim record kept by the stenographer, so there is a written record.
I didn't know if they had new fancy terms these days for what used to be called a stenographer. So there is a written record, and we need a clear record of who is testifying and what their title is. So welcome, Mr. Leary, and Mr. Voith. And I think with you is Francis Jones.
Good morning. My name is Jack Leary, and I am the General Manager of SEPTA. And, again, good morning, Chairwoman Fernandez. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Do you want to 9 RESOLUTION 970532 pull the mike up close, so that everyone can hear you loud and clear.
Chairwoman Fernandez and members of the Transportation and Public Utilities Committee, good morning. Thank you. I appreciate the opportunity to join you this morning and provide testimony on SEPTA's plans for restoring trolleys, better known today as light rail service here in Philadelphia. Before I begin, though, I would like to introduce some of the key people from SEPTA that are with me. And of course you know Vice-Chair of the Board Dick Voith. And Board Member Jenny Newkirk will be joining us very shortly. Francis Jones is our Manager of Government and Community Relations. I also have with me this morning Michael Burns, our Chief Operations Officer; Bernard Cohen, our Assistant General Manager for Strategic Business and Ridership Development; and Kim Heinle, Director of Office 10 RESOLUTION 970532 Business Development. And we will all be available to answer any questions that the Committee might have at the conclusion of my statement. At the outset, let me say that I have a strong familiarity with light rail through my work in Boston and St. Louis, in both the operation and the construction of trolley lines, as well as the modern-day version known as light rail transit. In fact, while in St. Louis, I had the privilege of what is known in the transit industry as a new start. We were able to introduce modern light rail service to the entire Metropolitan St. Louis region. Now, just recently the SEPTA Board approved perhaps what is the most aggressive capital budget in the Authority's history. For Fiscal Year 1998, we presented to the SEPTA Board a $426 million capital budget proposal, set in the context of a six-year capital program. Included in the 1998 budget are such signature projects as the Frankford Transportation Center, the Market Elevated Reconstruction Program, new and renovated Broad Street stations, Schuylkill 11 RESOLUTION 970532 Valley Metro Light Rail which will connect with service to Center City Philadelphia, the acquisition of new buses and trains, and the reintroduction of light rail service on Girard Avenue. While I am proud of the comprehensive capital program we passed and the regional impact that will result, as you know, the issue of trolley restoration figured prominently in the budget discussions. While it was at times a very difficult process, it was also a useful one, in that it brought various constituencies together, allowing us to comprehensively address the issues. While I have only been in the region for a relatively short time, it was apparent from the beginning that trolleys not only have a historic importance, they also facilitate a great sense of community pride. For these reasons, and for the future of our region's public transit service, I am pleased to provide today you with the details on SEPTA's plans to introduce a new rail service, a project now known as Girard Avenue Light Rail, formerly the Route 15 trolley, and our plans to invest in other 12 RESOLUTION 970532 light rail programs throughout the city. A week ago we began a 48-month construction cycle, to conclude in the Year 2001. The total cost of the program is estimated at $48 million, with the bulk of the funding to be secured through state-dedicated funds. And I have before you an implementation schedule of this Girard Avenue Light Rail Program. 8 million will cover critical infrastructure renewal such as track, traction power upgrades, overhead improvements, and Transit First initiatives. 5 million will cover the cost of renovating our Callowhill depot, from which the Girard Avenue light rail service will originate and be maintained. The rest of the money is targeted to engineering, design, and construction support costs. Now, in addition to the $48 million construction cost, we will spend another $45 million to acquire new, low-floor, articulated light rail vehicles. 13 RESOLUTION 970532 The new vehicles will operate primarily on our existing subway surface lines, which carry today about 90,000 customers daily.
The vehicles currently running on those lines will be renovated to like-new condition and placed in service on Girard Avenue. All of this work, including vehicle procurement, will take place concurrently. I would also like to make it clear that the result of this project will not be the restoration of Route as it has been known. 13 In fact, as I mentioned at the 14 outset, the new service will be called Girard Light 15 Rail, and it will be a substantial upgrade to the transportation service in this corridor. While it will travel the same route of the old 15, it will represent a new, modern light rail system, the kind of system that symbolizes the future of transit and more closely reflects systems in Dallas, Denver, St. Louis, Portland, and San Diego, just to name a few. You should also know that this is an extremely complicated undertaking because of the physical constraints involved. 14 RESOLUTION 970532 Although part of the corridor involves wide streets and part will be on reserve right-of-ways, other areas along the route involve narrow streets. And in some locations the line will operate where there is also automobile traffic. Where possible, the city and SEPTA will have to create a dedicated right-of-way along Girard Avenue to separate the light rail cars from general traffic. We expect selected secondary cross-streets to be closed, traffic preemption technology installed in carefully selected station locations, and far-side station stops established. These upgrades, along with the heightened enforcement of existing traffic regulations and support of Transit First initiatives, will bring us new light rail service that is faster, more reliable, more comfortable, more attractive, and with greater capacity for current and future customers. In order to be truly successful, however, there must be -- and I have every reason and every reason to believe will be -- a strong partnership between SEPTA and the city throughout 15 RESOLUTION 970532 the construction and the implementation phases of this project. As I mentioned, not every section of the routing will have private right-of-way, making it not light rail in the purest sense. However, almost every new light rail system built throughout the world in the past two decades includes some street running and mixed traffic. In fact, the Schuylkill Valley Metro concept includes a section of street running in Center City. And this is not necessarily a drawback, but it is one of the myriad of issues that must be addressed prior to implementation. In terms of Routes and 56, while 17 they are included in the long-range capital program, 18 the SEPTA Board has not yet specifically committed 19 to any capital expenditures beyond Fiscal Year 20 1998. 21 Our plan right now is to focus on 22 efforts on Girard Avenue light rail and make it an 23 unqualified success. In closing, I would just like to say that I am confident that the Girard Avenue Light 16 RESOLUTION 970532 Rail Project is the result of thorough analysis, both in terms of cost and feasibility, and that the decision to move ahead is a good transportation decision and a good business decision. An outside organization, Granary Associates, was engaged to conduct an independent, comprehensive study of the proposal. And, in fact, they showed us that it could be accomplished for significantly less money than we originally estimated. Restoration of any rail service must be viewed alongside other competing capital investments. And the list is very long and very compelling. In this regard, we are developing the agency's first Strategic Business Plan, which will govern how we spend capital funds, to ensure sound, practical, results-oriented investments. Members of the Committee, I am excited about this program and about what it means for the future of transit here in Philadelphia and the region. Your support and that of area residents as we have gone through the process, has 17 RESOLUTION 970532 been beneficial.
And I am glad to have this opportunity to publicly thank you and the others that have participated. We look forward to continuing to work closely with you as our plans move forward. Again, thank you for asking me to be part of today's proceedings. Thank you. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Are there any comments from Mr. Voith?
Very briefly. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Pull the mike way up, please.
I am Dick Voith, the Vice-Chairman of the SEPTA Board. I am the city representative. Over the summer, we have in the city pursued some amendments to the SEPTA capital budget. And there was a great deal of debate about light rail restoration, the 15, 23, and 56. The outcome that we had in the SEPTA Board in September was that we have, essentially, adopted a plan and a set of goals to go forward with one of those three projects, with the other two 18 RESOLUTION 970532 being pushed back into what we call the out years of the budget. From a personal point of view, I am very much in support of restoration of all three routes, and have argued that very strongly throughout the proceedings and debates about the capital budget. These debates are very healthy, in the sense that they have brought people's knowledge levels up a great deal within the Board. And the bottom line was, though, that there was a great deal of difference in opinion about the relative merits of projects. Not just light rail projects, but many projects within SEPTA's capital budget. And those things will, I am sure, be on an going debate as we move forward this year and in future years. I think it is really important that the SEPTA Board is aware of the community's interest in projects like reinvestment in light rail and trolleys. So I am actually really delighted to be here, and to participate and hear the community's 19 RESOLUTION 970532 interests in these projects. And thank you very much for having me here. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Mr. Voith, can I ask you, were you on the SEPTA Board when this commitment was made in 1992?
No, I was not. I joined in September of 1992, so I was not. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: So the decision had been made in the summer prior to you joining the Board?
That's correct. That's correct. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: And could you state for the record, why is it that you support the restoration of all three lines?
I think that light rail vehicles represent a real, tangible, immovable, if you will, investment in communities that reduces people's uncertainty about what kind of service there is going to be in the next couple of years. I am a SEPTA rider; I am not just -- I am a SEPTA transit rider. I ride the Route 23 bus all the time. My daughter is at Germantown Friends 20 RESOLUTION 970532 School. We have service, we have a lot of service, on the Route 23. And a lot of route service on the Route 56, for that matter. But these services are, I think, fairly crowded. I would say very crowded. The quality and the level of amenities of those services are not what I would like to see on those systems. I also, in years past, was a frequent user of the West Philadelphia trolley lines, when I was a student at the University of Pennsylvania. And I watched the transition -- because I was a student during the transition period -- from when we went from the PCC cars to the new Kawasaki cars, and the dramatic difference it made to riders' perception of their service. And I think I am accurate in suggesting that ridership went up about 45 percent when we did that. People like new, high-quality vehicles. Light rail is an investment in the community that brings a higher level of amenities to the community. There is no question about that. And I think, as we move into the 21 RESOLUTION 970532 '90s, people demand more in terms of what they expect of how nice their service is going to be. And people have options. Never mistake that fact. So my desire is to provide the best service that we can and the highest quality of service. And I think trolleys, in many cases, represent that. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: One of the issues we face is that Mr. Leary, as the general manager, was not here in 1992. So, essentially, there is an issue of holding to commitments that were made by a previous general manager. And then a number of the people who were on the Board in 1992 are not there now, and you have new people there. So I just want to state clearly for the record, I think it is very important for people in public life and public service to give special attention to keeping commitments. And I think the sections I read from what had been said at that July 1992 meeting, where Mr. Gambaccini went out of his way to try to reassure people who felt that once they let the 22 RESOLUTION 970532 service go from trolley to bus, that they would in fact never see it again. And I think this is an important issue. So I would hope that members of the Board and management of SEPTA, even if they weren't there in '92 and did not make that commitment, that we'll find ways to take it very seriously. Because I think there is this issue of public trust and confidence in people who are entrusted with public dollars, to make tough decisions. And I certainly understand the decisions, how tough it is to try to meet all these needs, when the funds are limited. But also keep in mind, many of us fought to get the money from the state that makes this capital program possible. We fought to get it. So I think keeping commitments that have been made in previous years is very, very important. Councilman DiCicco, did you have any comments? COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Yes. Thank you, Madam Chair. Good 23 RESOLUTION 970532 morning. Mr. Leary, in your testimony on 9, you testified that in terms of the Routes and 5 56, while they are included in the long-range 6 capital program, the SEPTA Board has not yet 7 specifically committed to any capital expenditures 8 beyond Fiscal Year 1998. 9 I'm a little bit confused as to that 10 statement. I mean, on one hand you are saying it is 11 part of the capital improvement program, but yet 12 there is no money. 13 Don't you have to at least talk about 14 where and how much you intend to spend, if any? 15
Yes. Each year we submit 16 and annual element to an overall capital program to 17 the SEPTA Board. And that is the official vote and 18 the official adoption of the capital program. 19 This year it was $426 million. Each 20 year they will approve the next annual element of 21 that program. 22 We present the program to the Board 23 in the context of both a 6-year window and a 12-year window. 4 billion designed as the future program. In the Years through 12, we 5 included the next element of the program. And we 6 had included Routes 13 and 56, in the order of some 7 $350 million. But the official approval -- I just want to be sure -- the official approval is done annually on an annual element, even though the program is looked at in the context of a full 12-year window. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: From a personal observation -- and I may have had this conversation with you in the past. I know Miss Jones and I have had some conversations this past summer -- I have lived on the 1100 block of Federal Street the better part of my 51 years. I was there before the Route 64, I believe, was on Federal Street. And I have since purchased a home, built a home, actually, on the 1200 block of South 11th, which is directly where the passes. 23 I was curious as to whether or not SEPTA receives any complaints, any lawsuits, regarding what is alleged to be structural damage to 25 RESOLUTION 970532 persons' properties as a result of the buses. And Miss Jones knows where I am going with this. I have had Air Management out, and they have had this contraption in my house for the better part of three weeks, up until about a week or so ago, because of the vibration. And let me be perfectly clear. Being in the business that I am in, we often get complaints from people. And sometimes when they're on the other end of the phone, we kind of think that people may be exaggerating a little bit as to what the problem is. But I can tell you that I literally shake in my bed -- by the way, I am a single man -- I literally shake in my bed from the vibration that is caused by both the 64 and the line, but more 20 particularly the 23 line. 21 I can hear that bus rolling. And 22 normally it is during off-peak hours, especially in 23 the early morning hours, when very little need for service -- and I don't mean to cut the service -- but there aren't many people out there waiting for a RESOLUTION 970532 bus. And I can hear that bus coming from Wharton Street, traveling north. And I almost have it timed perfect as to when my bed will begin to shake. And, again, I have a concern for that. Because if you haven't received complaints and you haven't been faced with any lawsuits, it surprises me. And I am not suggesting, because I don't want to start that, but I have to put that out for the record. And I know that when the trolley goes by -- and this Saturday afternoon, what I refer to as the old PTC trolley drove by -- there was such excitement in my street. I mean, you would think the president was coming down. Little kids who have never seen a trolley, they were very excited about it. I was in my house; I felt no 22 vibration. So I have a personal vested interest in this, by the way, and, obviously, it is a concern for me. And just another personal 27 RESOLUTION 970532 observation. And I think I may have brought this to Miss Jones' attention -- and I think Miss Goran, we spoke about this during the week -- it is rare, even during peak hours, that the 64 line is either full to capacity or maybe even half full to capacity. My observation of that line is that probably five to ten people is a lot of people on that line. And I wonder, just from a budgetary position -- and again offering this from someone who has lived there all these years and sees this bus go by constantly -- why do we need, maybe, such a large bus?
Is there any way that if we would reduce the size of the bus, that, if there is a savings, that those savings couldn't be put into restoring the line and the other lines that SEPTA 19 operates? 20 And, again, this is a lay person 21 talking. I don't know what the budget is and how 22 that all works. But it just, to me, doesn't seem to 23 make any fiscal sense. And one other thing. I do these independent surveys in my community when I talk to 28 RESOLUTION 970532 people about different issues. And I am always encouraging people to shop in Philadelphia, and don't take their money outside the municipality for a lot of different reasons. And believe it or not, it is actually working. Some people are actually now coming into Center City, and they shop. But they still drive from 11th and Federal, which is only nine blocks away. And I asked them why. They haven't used public transportation for years. " South Philadelphia is a very close, tight-knit neighborhood, and you can walk to public transportation. Within a block or two you have it. And they all tell me -- almost all of them do -- that they don't like buses, they are intimidated by buses. And, again, I don't know how that all fits into what the strategy and the future planning is. But these are regular folks who live in the neighborhood. And maybe it is nostalgic, because we are, the Baby Boomers, all in the 40 or 50 year old 29 RESOLUTION 970532 range, and we were so accustomed to the trolley. But I wanted to pass that on to you as an independent survey that I have done, and they would prefer to be on a trolley. Now whether that increases ridership, I don't know. But I just thought it was important that I pass that on. Thank you. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: You mentioned the noise and the weight of the buses. I'd say the other issue is, long-term, air pollution. And certainly trolleys are not polluting the air in the same way that even our cleaned-up buses are doing. ) COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: And I just want to pick up on that. My mother, who is a cleaning fanatic -- and has caused me to become the same kind of person, which is not a bad thing -- I always remember, you know, in the summer my father didn't like air conditioning, the windows were always open. And from the time the buses came, my 30 RESOLUTION 970532 mother always complains about the soot that is on the windowsill. And she goes, "Look at this," with the wet cloth. ) COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Now, I am not suggesting it is all SEPTA's problem and it is all bus related. I mean, there are many more cars on the street and other pollutants in the air. But it is part of the problem. I think it is part of a concern. And as the Chairwoman pointed out, that is something, I think, that we really need to be concerned with and pay much more attention to. Thank you. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: I would like to welcome to our hearings Councilwoman Marian Tasco. Councilwoman, did you have any comments? And also I see Jenny Newkirk, who is also the other city representative for the SEPTA Board. I don't know if you wanted to come forward with any comments. And, also, I would like to recognize 31 RESOLUTION 970532 Denise Goran, who is the Deputy Mayor for Transportation for the City Administration. Mr. Leary, if you could be around for the rest of the testimony in case other questions come up, we would really appreciate it.
Yes, we are planning on staying. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: You are welcome to sit right there, or wherever you feel comfortable. Can I now move to a series of panels, of people clustered together in a panel situation, instead of the more traditional way of just each person coming up, in case there is an opportunity or a need for any kind of conversation among the people on the panel. So the first panel would be Benjamin Foster, who is a SEPTA employee, a trolley and bus operator; also Janet Potter of the Chestnut Hill Community Association; and Vukan Vuchic, Professor of Transportation Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania. Could you come forward, please. Good morning, and would you identify 32 RESOLUTION 970532 yourself for the record, please. Why don't we start with Mr. Foster.
Thank you. My name is Benjamin Foster. I am a rail bus operator out of Midvale District. I have been with SEPTA for ten years.
My name is Janet Potter. I am the Chairman of the Trolley Subcommittee of the Chestnut Hill Community Association. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Probably just to be clear, it is helpful if before you testify, you give your name for the record. Do you want to begin, Mr. Foster, and then we will come to Mr. Vuchic.
Thank you. I personally believe that SEPTA should bring the trolleys back to Route 23, 56, and 15. A couple of things, being an operator, that I really enjoy. Number one was the many people from around the world that would come to Philadelphia just to ride our lines. I mean, many times I met people from England and Australia and Budapest. And it really 33 RESOLUTION 970532 just was interesting that of all the places that they could go in America, when they come to Philadelphia, they would ride the 23. Also, when we were coming down on the trolley today, the one thing that I saw in many people's eyes was -- it was a difference. It was, when they saw the trolley coming down, they were amazed. Children definitely are amazed. Many times they will be up with me, and I will explain how the trolley operates. And it was fascinating to see, to them, to hear the trolley, and I'm not steering. And they would ask you so many questions. And so many people would get on. Couples would get on and talk about the times that they would have on Route 23. They may start in South Philly and just take a trip. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Do you have people get engaged on the trolley?
A lot of things happen on the trolley; that was not one of them. A lot of good things, though. Mr. Voith said that the Route 23 34 RESOLUTION 970532 right now is very crowded, and he is absolutely right. For some reason, when they replaced the trolleys in 1992 -- well, we know that trolleys hold 100 people, and buses hold 70. And it just seems as though all the buses were packed, and the service just wasn't there for the people. And it was a real shame that many people had to wait. I think that to bring the trolleys back would help in that problem, picking up people. And at least they would not have to wait so long for the next vehicle. In 1993, we had -- in October of '93, we had a Trolley Fest. It was very interesting to see an LRV come down Erie Avenue, and a bus would be directly behind it. When we stopped at Chelten, there was a crowd of people. They had a choice; they could have either got on that bus or got on that trolley. I would say we picked up at least 30 people, and they all got on the trolley. Most of the comments were, it was different, it was comfortable. And other than the 35 RESOLUTION 970532 fact that we got delayed, that was the only bad thing about it. But I believe if the city and SEPTA were to work together, we could alleviate that problem of delays along that line, as well as 56 and 15. And if SEPTA is committed to bringing those three lines back, I would ask you to be totally committed. Don't be hearing just say what you plan on doing; and then when Mayor Rendell leaves, you go back on your word. I mean, there are many of us who believe in quality of good air, and clean air, and would like to see the trolleys back. And I do believe it can work on those three lines. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you, Mr. Potter. I do note -- and again you want to be very careful of statistics -- but my information says that daily riders on the 15, 23, and 56, when there was trolley service, was about 56,000 riders. And on the bus, when there was a bus, it was down to 39.5. So there was a decrease. Now, 36 RESOLUTION 970532 we have to be careful and make sure that's not a decrease in riders overall. But that's an issue. And I know it is a concern of the SEPTA management, and the city, how do we continue to increase the numbers of people who choose to use public transit in the city.
The number one thing, the number one thing SEPTA must do, they must increase service. right now is unbelievable. It 11 is -- the service is constantly getting cut. 12 I am seeing more and more 13 ex-passengers in automobiles. They're not going to 14 stand out there and wait 30 minutes. 15 Prior to being hired in SEPTA in '87, 16 I gave up. I worked very hard in the summer of '86, 17 I purchased an automobile, because I was not going 18 to stand out there after I got off of work and wait 19 for SEPTA. And many of these people are feeling 20 that same way. 21 So if we are going to increase 22 ridership on those three lines and throughout the 23 city, we must increase service. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you, Mr. Potter. 37 RESOLUTION 970532 Shall we go to our next witness?
We didn't get married yet. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: But once the trolley is back. Excuse me, Mr. Foster. Janet Potter. Again, if you identify yourself for the record and proceed with your testimony.
My name is Janet Potter. I am from the Chestnut Hill Community Association. And I would like to wish good morning to Chairwoman Fernandez, members of the Transportation and Public Utilities Committee, and other esteemed members of City Council, and to SEPTA General Manager Leary. The Chestnut Hill Community Association has 3,000 member households. As part of the Northwest Philadelphia community, we are concerned about the fate of three interrelated trolley routes, 15, 23, and 56, currently operated with temporary diesel buses. These three lines carry nearly 40,000 38 RESOLUTION 970532 riders a day, the equivalent of 50 percent of all the regional rail ridership combined, and more than 50 percent of the ridership on all the subway surface lines combined. They form the spine of a trolley system that SEPTA should regard as a treasure to be restored and invigorated. Instead, the current transit authority generally dismisses these lines as hopelessly out of date. The concept of reactivating them as trolley routes is treated as a nuisance. We have previously presented to each member of City Council a position paper called Reactivation of Route Trolley, accompanied by the 15 endorsements of a total of 21 groups, 18 business, 16 civic, and community organizations from Germantown, 17 Mt. Airy, and Chestnut Hill, the Philadelphia 18 Trolley Coalition, and the Clean Air Council. 19 Today we submit the paper and its 20 endorsements into the record of these hearings. 21 The five-page paper explains why 22 modern electric trolleys are superior to diesel 23 buses for Northwest Philadelphia in numerous ways; among them, air quality, greater passenger capacity, reliability, passenger loyalty, higher ridership 39 RESOLUTION 970532 figures, safety, and their role as a proven catalyst for economic revitalization. It describes how a character rich, smooth flowing streetcar system can unite and improve urban neighborhoods in the way a fleet of lurching, fume-spewing buses jouncing over our Belgium block avenue can never do. (Applause.)
The paper also advocates timely implementation of the Transit First policy, which the city and SEPTA have already adopted. This policy calls for a street management system that gives priority to mass transit vehicles over trucks and automobiles, and helps all traffic move more efficiently. But all the highfalutin philosophizing contained in a position paper is meaningless unless SEPTA keeps its 1992 promise to the City of Philadelphia. (Applause.)
What was in that 1992 agreement? It stated that the placement of diesel buses on Routes 15, 23, and 56 was temporary, 40 RESOLUTION 970532 a stopgap measure until SEPTA acquired 70 modern, air-conditioned trolleys known in 1990s lingo as light rail vehicles. Yet, the temporary buses that were supposed to be off the streets by 1997 are still running full blast. That's why we are still here today wondering, where are the trolleys. This month, September 1997, after five years of no action, the SEPTA Board grudgingly put money in its 1998 fiscal budget for Route 15. But trolley Routes and 56 were sent into 13 never-never land by a majority of the SEPTA Board, 14 who pushed the reactivation of Routes 23 and 56 15 right off the budgetary radar screen. 16 So what is the problem? Why can't 17 the citizens of Philadelphia get the full measure of 18 what SEPTA promised, the reactivation of all three 19 lines? 20 We can identify five examples of the 21 cloudy reasoning SEPTA uses to avoid honoring its 22 agreement. 23 We ask City Council's help in penetrating and overcoming the following arguments: Reason No. 1, nonaccountability. 41 RESOLUTION 970532 The majority of the 15-member SEPTA Board, which we notice has only two slots for appointees from Philadelphia, holds that the current SEPTA Board bears no accountability for agreements made by a previous Board. Unfortunately, this policy has not and does not encourage the public's trust. Quite vocally opposed to the reactivation of Routes and 56, one Board member 11 explained recently at a Budget Committee meeting 12 that SEPTA simply looks at any situation as it is 13 now. Okay. We will play that game. Fine. So can 14 we. We will look at things they way they are now. 15 We have the same neighborhoods, the 16 same streets, the same people, the same air 17 pollution, the same needs for modern trolleys as we 18 had in 1992. 19 However, three things have changed: 20 Number one, we have experienced firsthand the 21 unpleasant effects of five years of diesel buses; 22 Number two, while SEPTA takes no 23 positive action, we watch the cost of buying streetcars going up and the condition of the trolley route's infrastructure going down; 42 RESOLUTION 970532 Number three, we find ourselves confronted by a new configuration of Board members and management at SEPTA who are now more interested in building two brand-new suburban lines, the Schuylkill Valley Metro from Reading to Philadelphia, and the Cross-County Metro from New Jersey to Downingtown, than in giving Philadelphia the new streetcars and upgraded infrastructure that we were promised. We believe that SEPTA should honor its 1992 agreement and that the city should hold fast. We submit into testimony portions of minutes and transcript from SEPTA's July 23, 1992, regular Board meeting, a followup letter dated August 14, 1992, from then General Manager Louis Gambaccini to Mayor Edward Rendell, and an excerpt from SEPTA's annual reports for Fiscal Years 1994 and 1993. These three documents clearly show the SEPTA Board's awareness that the removal of the old PCC cars and their temporary replacement with diesel buses was conditional in the eyes both of the city Administration and the Authority on SEPTA's 43 RESOLUTION 970532 scheduled procurement of modern streetcars. Reason number two, the lease-leaseback agreement. The same SEPTA Board member who denies accountability for the actions of previous Boards also said publicly that the 1992 agreement to purchase new streetcars is based on what most of the Board regards as a false premise. He states that SEPTA was not required to ask the city's permission to remove the old PCC trolley cars and run temporary diesel buses. Is he not aware of a 1968 agreement between SEPTA and the city known by the reverberating name lease-leaseback?
As a result of this agreement, the city has a leasehold interest in all of the facilities of the city transit division, both fixed facilities, such as tracks, overhead wire, line poles, and substations, and movable facilities such as trolleys. As SEPTA's loan guarantor, the city says that the transit authority must get the city's permission to dispose of these facilities. However, SEPTA has traditionally maintained that it need only 44 RESOLUTION 970532 notify the city of its actions, not ask permission. Further aggravating this controversy, the lease-leaseback runs only until 2005. After that time, SEPTA will have made its final bond payment and the city will no longer have a leasehold interest. We ask City Council to make sure that SEPTA does not just string Philadelphia along until 2005, and then, no matter what the plans were supposed to be for Routes 15, 23, and 56, tear out the wires and pave over the tracks. We hope SEPTA is not playing a shell game. Considering that the city provides the lion's share of SEPTA's annual operating subsidy for the city transit division, we ask City Council to compel SEPTA to honor the terms of the 1968 lease-leaseback, in particular as it affects our three remaining surface trolley routes. We also ask City Council to extract from SEPTA a written commitment to protect and maintain the Routes 15, 23, and 56 trolley infrastructures now and beyond 2005. Reason number three, bus mania. SEPTA's staff has typically demonstrated a bias 45 RESOLUTION 970532 towards buses and against trolleys. Why? Because less sophistication and discipline are required to manage a bus-only fleet than one combining buses and trolleys. At virtually every opportunity, the bus management influences SEPTA's policies and prevails. We point out to City Council that General Manager Leary recently abolished the position of Assistant General Manager for Light Rail. With all respect to Mr. Leary's management capabilities, trolleys are now without an in-house advocate. This indicator does not bode well for Philadelphia's few remaining streetcar lines. We do not regard the subway elevated division, where SEPTA's light rail operations have now been placed, as an adequate overseer and protector of our endangered streetcar system. SEPTA's Board listens to the bus-friendly staff and never hears one reason to activate the lines of modern trolleys. A Board member stated publicly that 46 RESOLUTION 970532 these three temporary bus routes are, quote, adequately served by buses, end quote. But he is wrong. All the problems that SEPTA's management said would go away if they could just get rid of the trolleys have not gone away. In fact, SEPTA recently found it necessary to try an experiment, dividing bus Route into two sections, 10 thus changing a one-car trip from Chestnut Hill to 11 South Philadelphia into a trip that requires a very 12 awkward transfer. 13 Why this experiment? Because SEPTA 14 has been having so much trouble managing the line as 15 a bus route. The route still suffers from bunching, 16 which means no vehicles appear for a long time, and 17 then several in a row come along; the congestion at 18 12th and Market Streets is as terrible as ever. 19 In sum, the overall on-time 20 performance for Route 23, according to SEPTA's own 21 records, has been no better for buses than it was 22 for the old PCC trolleys. 23 We want City Council to encourage SEPTA to solve its operational problems by better supervision and by the Transit First policy, not by 47 RESOLUTION 970532 forcing us into a lifetime of diesel buses. For Route 23, which, by the way, carries more people on an average daily weekday than the golden R-5 Paoli Local train, buses are not the solution. Reason number four, the narrow avenue. SEPTA's management frequently accuses Germantown Avenue of being too narrow. That point of view is not surprising. Most transit engineers like wide streets, where light rail vehicles can run in lanes separated from automobiles.
But this is the same narrow Germantown Avenue that we have had since electric streetcar service began in 1894, and on which trolleys ran for nearly 100 years. The entire infrastructure and the trolleys it supports are a vital part of the economically valuable historic appearance of North West Philadelphia. The Avenue's narrowness enhances the heritage and character of its neighborhoods. To preserve, build on, and link this heritage from neighborhood to neighborhood, we need our trolley system, not diesel buses. 48 RESOLUTION 970532 Furthermore, because Germantown Avenue is narrow, the diesel fumes are especially unhealthful and offensive to those who live and work on the street. )
And with all the pedestrians trying to cross narrow, curving Germantown Avenue, trolleys are safer because, unlike buses, their wedded-to-the-rails movements are predictable. SEPTA does ask two good questions concerning narrow Germantown Avenue. What about double parking? What about delivery trucks parked too close to the tracks? Answer, these occurrences have, in fact, become more frequent with buses. Because without trolleys on the streets, motor vehicle drivers have gotten even sloppier about their parking habits. Granted, a bus can sometimes swing into the opposing lane to get around an illegally parked vehicle, but that can be very dangerous. And, anyway, is that any way we should address violations of the law? 49 RESOLUTION 970532 The solution is called police enforcement, ticketing and towing, rather than denying us the modern streetcar service we were promised. (Applause.)
Buses certainly have a place in SEPTA's overall system, but not on Germantown Avenue. We hope City Council can inspire SEPTA's management to look at the wider picture, rather than having such a narrow point of view about our narrow avenue. Reason number five, the last reason, and one reason that's always important to the world, the money. SEPTA expresses seemingly insurmountable concern about the capital investment needed for trolleys over buses for repairing the infrastructure and acquiring new vehicles. As for the infrastructure, the power stations on Route in particular have been allowed 23 by circumstance or deliberate acts to deteriorate. We hope SEPTA will not, by delaying repairs and exaggerating the costs, find another 50 RESOLUTION 970532 excuse not to bring us modern streetcar service. As for the vehicles, granted, a trolley costs more than a bus, but its life expectancy is far greater. Buses are often junked every dozen years, with ever higher replacement costs. A well-maintained trolley can last indefinitely. And the funds from new vehicles come largely from the federal government. Let's choose the best capital investment. Do we want the tar paper roof or should we go for the slate? And speaking of wise capital investments, we would like City Council to ask SEPTA some questions. A, we wonder why SEPTA spent hundreds of thousands of federal dollars constructing raised medians for trolley operations on Routes 15 and 56, and then within months removed the trolleys. B, we are puzzled why San Francisco is having such success running many of our old PCC cars, the same ones SEPTA said were not economically viable. (Applause.)
In 1995, San Francisco 51 RESOLUTION 970532 converted a bus route to a brand-new trolley line by upgrading and restoring a number of Philadelphia's discarded streetcars. Ridership went up 5 percent. 6 What does San Francisco understand 7 about the connection between investing in trolley 8 systems and attracting passengers that SEPTA does 9 not? 10 C, we ponder why forces at SEPTA lie 11 waiting in the wings to destroy the remaining 12 trolley infrastructure. That infrastructure, a 13 capital investment which has already been made, 14 takes us two-thirds of the way to a modern streetcar 15 system worth about $34 million. Why would SEPTA 16 waste it? 17 The final point about capital 18 investment concerns the Transit First policy. 19 SEPTA maintains that in order to 20 invest in modern streetcars, it needs reassurance that communities will cooperate in the Transit First policy, which gives priority to mass transit vehicles over private automobiles. But how much effort has SEPTA put into explaining Transit First to the public? Not 52 RESOLUTION 970532 enough. Most people have no idea what Transit First means. Nonetheless, dozens of organizations have gone out of their way to learn about Transit First, and have then put their response to writing saying, quote, Yes, we understand Transit First and we welcome it, end quote. What more must we say or do? Is SEPTA presenting Transit First not as an enabling policy, but as a barrier against moving forward with the reactivation of Routes 13 and 56? 14 Here today we have discussed the five 15 principal reasons SEPTA turns it back on the 16 trolleys: The faulty promise, lease-leaseback 17 agreement, bus mania, the narrow avenue, and the 18 money. 19 The reasons more have to do with 20 attitudes held by SEPTA's Board and management than 21 with the reality of what the Northwest community 22 needs. We would like SEPTA to work with the will of 23 the people, not in spite of it. We know that the city's funding propels the SEPTA system. And we hope that City 53 RESOLUTION 970532 Council will do whatever is in its power to hold SEPTA to its word. We want the diesel buses to go back to their barn, and we want a modern light rail system out on the streets. We want the infrastructure and the remaining PCC cars preserved. We want trolley reactivation for Routes and 56 placed in SEPTA's 10 very next fiscal budget. 11 We were promised that by 1997, we 12 would be riding in a trolley fleet that included 13 both modern light rail vehicles and the remaining 14 vintage PCC cars. 15 Every time we see, hear, smell, or 16 board a diesel bus on Routes 15, 23, or 56, 17 Philadelphia remembers that bus is supposed to be a 18 trolley. 19 Thank you. 20 (Applause.) 21 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: That's more 22 applause than the Mayor gets for his budget 23 message. I'd like to welcome Councilman Thacher Longstreth, who is also a member of the 54 RESOLUTION 970532 Committee. Mr. Leary, would you like to come forward and respond to some of the issues that were raised in this testimony? Particularly, there were a lot of issues, but one of particular concern is the issue of the infrastructure and the lease-leaseback agreement. You need to come back and sit down with the mike.
Councilwoman and members of the Council, that was an excellent presentation from the Chestnut Hill representatives. And it would be very difficult to respond to every issue. There was one thing that struck me in the presentation that I would like to comment on. Because I want to assure both the representatives from Chestnut Hill and the Council that, at SEPTA, I have not found any forces of darkness that are out to intentionally kill trolley restoration or light rail and advocate only bus. That is not something that exists inside the agency. I have been there nine months, and I haven't found anybody that's intentionally trying to 55 RESOLUTION 970532 do that. We do have very strong representation inside the agency for rail, within the organization. And I would continue to support that kind of balanced transportation philosophy inside the agency. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: And what about this issue of the infrastructure and the lease-leaseback agreement? Do we have a commitment from you that the infrastructure will not be --
As long as I have been there, in my nine months, I haven't found anybody advocating a policy to allow the infrastructure of the trolley to deteriorate. In fact, there have been some very heavy maintenance projects to keep that infrastructure in place. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: So do we have your commitment here today that the infrastructure will be left intact and not allowed to deteriorate?
You have my commitment that I am not about to go out and take it down. Is that what you are asking me? CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: I guess a 56 RESOLUTION 970532 commitment to preserve the infrastructure would be more positive, I think. I really would be shocked if you sat here and said you are going to take it down. So maybe as General Manager -- I see the hands from the SEPTA Board representatives. Did you want to come forward? And, again, any comments need to be on the public record.
Dick Voith again, Chairwoman, Vice-Chairman of the SEPTA Board. I think Jack is in a very uncomfortable position in that regard, because he is responsible to a Board. And the Board is very, very divided on this question. I stated it very early that the city's representatives are not divided. The Board is divided on the question; the city representatives are not divided on the question. We would provide full support for Jack for maintaining all the infrastructures to the best of our abilities. And we have been aggressive and successful so far to do so. And I think Jack finds it difficult to make an unqualified commitment for expenditure of 57 RESOLUTION 970532 funds, when all funds that have to be expended must be approved by the Board as a whole. As a personal commitment, from my point of view, I support your position fully, and will do the best that I can to assure that that's the outcome. But I don't think that it is in Jack's power, in a real sense, to make that commitment. Because he doesn't have the final say on the expenditure of funds. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Could you just review for the record and for the citizens that are here today, what is the membership, the composition of the SEPTA Board, the numbers and the representation?
The SEPTA Board consists of 15 representatives: Two from each county, that means two from the City of Philadelphia, two from Delaware, Chester, Bucks, and Montgomery, so that's a total of ten. There are two representatives from each level of the House, from each side of the aisle. So two Republican, two Democrat. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: The state 58 RESOLUTION 970532 House of Representatives?
The state House of Representatives, upper and lower House. That's four more. And there is one Governor's representative. So the city has not as much representation as one might expect. Although, there has been substantial cooperation among the city and suburban representatives. And, in general, the city's needs are at least, to a certain extent, accommodated. So, basically, I would feel fairly comfortable in saying that I think that we can probably assure that there will be no dismantling. That's my personal opinion, my evaluation. And I will fight very hard to get that, and I think we will. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you. Jenny Newkirk, did you have any additional comments?
We have gone beyond kneeling. Thank you, Chairlady. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Officially identify yourself for the record.
This is Jenny 59 RESOLUTION 970532 Newkirk. I am one of the Philadelphia representatives to the SEPTA Board. And we appreciate your permitting us to speak on your record. And I echo the sentiments of Mr. Voith. The two Philadelphia representatives unanimously, as much unanimity as you can have in two, support the restoration of all three of the lines. It was through the Mayor's assertion and our support that the was put back in. 13 However, as you have just been given 14 the composition of the Board, a commitment in terms 15 of us being able to pull off what you are asking is not something that I think that we can give at the time. You do have our support. We believe, as has Miss Potter stated -- and I commend her on her testimony -- that this would be better for the city. I live in West Philadelphia, which is one of the routes of the No. 15. And I sat in some of those meetings back then in '93, where some of these promises were made. 60 RESOLUTION 970532 And prior to that, I sat in some of these meetings before being a member of the SEPTA Board, where community organizations were given these promises. However, we know that there has been the assertion that these were not promises that were made as a part of the official record of the Board, in spite of what Miss Potter has presented. So that poses the difficulty. We do support maintaining the infrastructure. We do, the Philadelphia representatives, support the return of the trolleys. I think it is good business sense. I think it is good environmental sense. And I think it is good customer-friendly service. So you certainly have my personal commitment, as a Philadelphia representative, to do what I can to make sure that this occurs and that it stays in the budget. Thank you. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you very much, and thank you for coming. Councilman DiCicco. 61 RESOLUTION 970532 COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Thank you. Thank you, ma'am. Is there anything that you think we have not been doing or should be doing, as a body here in City Council, to supplement your efforts at the SEPTA Board? Because I understand the makeup. And 2 votes out of 15 is not a heck of a lot of votes. And we are always competing with the majority. Even though they are made up of representatives from various counties, they are not Philadelphia county representatives. And they have their interests, and they are doing what they have to do for their constituents. And I can appreciate that. Is there something that you would suggest that we might do in the future?
I would certainly suggest that as you interact as county and city officials, that you raise those issues with those commissioners and representatives. Remember, there the members are appointed, also, and they have appointing authorities. Some of them, of course, appointed 62 RESOLUTION 970532 themselves. But that then makes it easier for you to know to whom to speak. So as you -- COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Is that to suggest that as the Councilman who lives on the 7 line, I can vote on the budget? 8
We certainly have some 9 of the county officials who have appointed 10 themselves to the Board. And, therefore, you know 11 directly with whom to speak. 12 So that as you as city officials 13 interact with the county officials, and interact 14 with our state legislators, and in this cooperative 15 atmosphere -- after all, we just got the gas tax 16 passed, and that was a cooperative effort. 17 So I suggest that we foster this 18 sense of cooperation and help them to understand how 19 important this is to the city. 20 I just returned from the Chamber 21 breakfast where the Governor extolled, absolutely 22 extolled, the benefits and promises of 23 Philadelphia. He is now our esteemed advocate, and so let's make use of that. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: I was there, but 63 RESOLUTION 970532 I left before his speech. Nothing personal. Thank you. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: I might add in that context, State Representative Anthony Williams from West Philadelphia is the State House appointee to the Board. Is that who he is representing?
He is the representative for the Democratic minority, now, for the legislature, yes. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Okay. Thank you very much. We move on to our next witness, Mr. Vukan Vuchic, from the University of Pennsylvania.
Good morning. My name is Vukan R. Vuchic. I have been Professor of Transportation Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania for the last 30 years.
Thank you, Mr. Longstreth. During those years, I have done a lot 64 RESOLUTION 970532 of professional work, especially concentrating on cities and livability of cities and role of transit. I have followed developments of transit for about 40 years, I have advised many cities, and I was also instrumental in bringing the concept of light rail transit to the United States, when we had the first national conference on light rail transit in Philadelphia here in 1975. I am also arguing always that it is not promotion of one mode; that we have to have different modes in different roles in cities, and that we should carefully select modes where they belong in their optimal roles. In the last 10, 15 years, I have done with my colleagues a plan for SEPTA's regional rail -- several plans for regional rail. We did the study of green line improvements. And, also, in 1989, I chaired a peer group which analyzed the surface trolleys in Philadelphia. We submitted their report, which I believe most people on the Council are familiar with. And in this report, which I am showing here, 65 RESOLUTION 970532 we presented the disadvantages and advantages of trolleys. Now, some people say that's an acronysm, that's old fashioned, and it doesn't work. And some people say trolleys are the best, and they should be everywhere. And what is the truth? Where is the truth between those two? And what is the dilemma for our lines? That we are talking about, primarily, the lines in North Philadelphia that analyzed. And we had to analyze five, six lines at that time. We defined the dilemma as follows: We have the decision between resigning that nothing but the lowest quality street transit can be providing Philadelphia. In Philadelphia, there is no 18 discipline, we don't have money, we should really buy the buses which are the cheapest. That's the only solution we can have. The other alternative was to look at the trolley lines as an excellent opportunity to change the corner, to give some advantage to transit over other vehicles, to treat transit with priorities, and to use trolleys, and later buses and 66 RESOLUTION 970532 trackless trolleys, to introduce the Transit First policy and change the role of transit and say, Philadelphia can progress, as many other cities, by favoring its transit systems. Our peer group rejected the policy of resignation that we cannot do anything good in this city. We then reviewed carefully the trolleys and light rail in different cities and compared to Philadelphia. We recommended that lines 15, 23, and 56, and 6, at that time, be modernized. We recommended that 50 and 53, which were still being discussed, be left as bus routes because they didn't have sufficient ridership and sufficient reasons to be changed to trolleys. We also emphasized that we are not talking only about those lines independently of the others; that the green lines in West Philadelphia are also part of the system. And we emphasized strongly the Transit First policy should be introduced in the city. What happened since 1989, when we wrote this report? 67 RESOLUTION 970532 Well, as mentioned earlier today, SEPTA promised restoration of three of the four recommended lines; that is, 15, 23, and 56. Another event that happened was that the city adopted the Transit First policy. I was the main presenter to the Mayor of the concept. And some people call me godfather of Transit First policy. We have had that committee functioning. It has been slow -- it is much slower than I would like it -- but it has been significant to change the concepts. And it really, for the first time, introduced the cooperation, good cooperation, of many bodies: SEPTA, Streets Department, Parking Department, Police Department, and a number of others. We are sitting there in the one room and looking for the best solution.
Recently, police in Philadelphia, which I think has a major role in the future of transit, made the first, but very significant, steps in increasing enforcement of transit laws. Another event was that SEPTA has not undertaken a systematic review of trolleys as a system, nor has it considered green lines together 68 RESOLUTION 970532 with surface lines as one system. Except that it is now planning to combine -- to order new cars, probably, for the green line, and shift the Kawasakis to the North Philadelphia line, which is what we suggested. There was another significant event. What Mrs. Potter, who I am meeting the first time this morning, mentioned about the biases within SEPTA for and against modes was a true fact. And this is not only in SEPTA. In many transit agencies you get these clicks who are pro bus, pro rail, pro subway, and so on. We professionally, staying above that, have to curb that. And in a discussion with SEPTA's General Manager and top management, I challenged SEPTA several years ago that, really, for decades SEPTA has been against the whole mode of trolleys, including even the green lines, which nobody disputes the tremendous significance and permanence. I said, there is nobody in SEPTA who has a high position and who is in charge and can do something about trolleys. Actually, several people 69 RESOLUTION 970532 who could do something gave up in resignation. SEPTA reacted positively, appointed Assistant General Manager for Light Rail Transit, and the entire picture changed to the very positive attitude, and to a much better image of SEPTA, and cooperation between SEPTA and the riders and citizens groups. This, I think, was a very significant change. And that is how I see the transit agency should be operating with people, rather than with controversy against many groups and many riders. Recently, a restructuring in SEPTA has changed that position, and I'm not sure what the results will be of that internal change. But I should emphasize that that change within SEPTA was extremely significant and positive. What happened in the city? Well, some areas served by the trolley lines have deteriorated, as have many others across the city. Others have maintained or increased vitality. We have had the Convention Center built right on what is the alignment of Route 23. Very significant event, as we all know. We had new ideas for possible trolley 70 RESOLUTION 970532 lines in Center City as loops, as potential connection to the Penn's Landing development. We are also talking about distribution of the Schuylkill Valley Metro through Center City. So all of these ideas have occurred and are being discussed. Very brief review of developments in peer cities. Because we can learn from some of these events. There has been -- CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Mr. Vuchic, when there are so many people to testify, could you maybe shape it down to another three minutes?
Four or five, yes. Thank you. A lot of line rail systems have been developed at high speed and so on. But the trolleys have also been strengthened and reintroduced in Toronto, in Cleveland. Even in Memphis, Tennessee, they built and brought old trolleys for Center City. Now, that shows that trolleys do have a role. One is functional, to carry many riders; and the other one is that they do have a tourist 71 RESOLUTION 970532 attraction and citizen attraction. Therefore, trolleys cannot be only estimated on the basis of immediate direct costs. If we take the most uneconomical transit mode in the United States, we'll find cable cars in San Francisco, which are the treasure of the city, extremely significant for the city. I am just making a point that we should not take narrow direct costs as the only criteria. What would I recommend at this point? I think that trolleys have to be evaluated on a functional economic role, and also on their image, personality, and strong passenger attraction that they have. Our Fairmount trolleys are not the cheapest vehicles, nor is the PhilaFlash, but we do them because of their other significance. While trolleys could not, should not, be evaluated on the costs only, they cannot be planned without any economic considerations, either. We have to be very careful that the investment in them is done prudently, with good design, and with many supporting actions. 72 RESOLUTION 970532 Route 23, for example, satisfied eminently the number of people, the significance in the transportation function, as well as its side effects and charm in the neighborhoods and downtown in South Philadelphia, and so on. It is necessary to make a comprehensive and positive evaluation of this entire mode, including the three lines, the green lines, and the possible Center City and Schuylkill Valley Metro extensions. They are all interconnected. And I am delighted to hear that SEPTA wants to give a new name to Girard Avenue. I would suggest also that trolleys be named T1, T2, and T3, and so on, rather than one route is 11, one is 34, one is 15, without any image, any connection with any logic. SEPTA should develop a competent plan for trolleys, or LRT, using positive attitude and systems approach. It should modernize and remove the physical and operating remnants from 1900 to increase efficiency for year 2000. We have switches which are ancient. We have trolley poles with Toronto, the only two cities nearly in the world which are keeping trolley 73 RESOLUTION 970532 poles, an old-fashioned device. The city also has to look. And despite Transit First policies, the city has installed stop signs along many green line routes and slowed down the trolleys. That is not how we should be doing. Lancaster Avenue project now promises to speed up the trolleys. Speeding up is not only comfort for passengers; it makes more efficient, lowering operating costs for trolleys, so it is more economical. The city must come up with a package of much more energetic Transit First actions, initially for the trolley lines and then expand to all other lines. The most important, least directly costly, and immediately implemental is enforcement of traffic laws by the traffic police. The excuse that we have crime, and police must pay attention to crime and has no time for traffic, is an absolute evasion of duty. Police must do its duty to enforce laws. Finally, there should be strengthening of cooperation between SEPTA and 74 RESOLUTION 970532 citizens group, including SEPTA Citizens Advisory Committee, to orient operations to the convenience of the public, rather than of the operating personnel. Agencies sometimes slowly go to their own convenience and comfort, and forget the passengers. This is like sometimes we are joking that, at the university, we could be very quiet and do better work if we didn't have students. So let's not forget the passengers; that's why we have transit.
The future depends not only on financing; it depends on the attitudes of SEPTA and of the city. And there should be a joint action of SEPTA to modernize and come up with a coherent plan, as well as with the city, which has to -- which is really responsible for better conditions on the streets. SEPTA cannot enforce illegal parking, and so on. So there should be a joint effort to create a viable trolley services in the city. Thank you very much. ) 75 RESOLUTION 970532 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you very much. And next time you testify, I will try to remember you as the godfather of Transit First. Thank you very much. Should we move on to our next panel? I'd like to call Juanita Hatton, of the Citizens Congress of Nicetown organization. Along with Linda Corsover of the Germantown Business Association, John Herrick of the Chestnut Hill Business Association, Susan Bushu of the Mount Airy Business Association, and Michael Moore of the Germantown Special Services District. Mr. Leary, could you come forward? There is an additional question. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Or you can nod your head, whatever is easier. Just one question. Thank you. It was just during the testimony, we just heard it towards the end, that said that SEPTA, I think, did not have powers to issue parking tickets. I know that you have some --
We do. We do. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: You do. 76 RESOLUTION 970532 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Do speak into the mike.
Yes, we do have power to issue violations at the bus stops. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: At the bus stops. Okay.
And I can confirm that we are doing about eight a week, actually. COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Eight a week? You haven't been spending much time in South Philly, I can tell. I just wanted to clear that up. Because I thought I heard that you didn't have that authority. But I thought from my experience with traffic court that you did. Thank you. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you. Why don't we begin Juanita Hatton from the Citizens Congress of Nicetown organization.
Good morning, Madam Chair. My name is Juanita Hatton, President of the Citizens Congress of Nicetown. I would like to see the trolleys put 77 RESOLUTION 970532 back for three reasons: One is health, business, and historical reasons. Number one, the health. I say, if the trolley was there, and SEPTA was taking care of the streets, I would never have fell in 1993 and injured myself and wind up in intensive care for a week. That's one reason why I would like to have the trolley car put back. And the other reason for health is that I have asthma. I am on Germantown Avenue every day, and I am constantly coughing whenever the bus come by with all the smog. That's the reason for the health reason. And I think SEPTA will be more responsible for the rail lines when the trolley car is there, and the deteriorations of those rail lines won't be so prevalent. Because I ask the Board to come down Germantown Avenue and cross the street. And it is a dangerous obstacle trying to get through those tracks to cross the street on Germantown Avenue. And if the trolley was there, I think they would be taking better care of those lines. And another one, the business. We 78 RESOLUTION 970532 are in the process of redeveloping Germantown Avenue. And for business reasons, and the ringing of the bells, and the history reason, for -- the trolley car goes with Germantown Avenue. The 23, it is just like peanut butter go with jelly; that's how the trolley car go with Germantown Avenue. It's been there since 1859. So let's put it back for these reasons. (Applause.)
And some time listen to the people. Because we live there, we know what's there, and we know what sometimes is best for the city. This government is for the people, by the people, and of the people. Please let the people's voice be heard and put our trolley back. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman. (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: My favorite sandwich is peanut butter and jelly, so that's a great image to live with. Thank you very much. Our next person to testify, Linda Corsover, from the Germantown Business Association.
Hi. Good 79 RESOLUTION 970532 morning. My name is Linda Corsover. I am on the Board of Germantown Business Association. I want to paint a little urban scene for you. And this is Vernon Park, which is near Germantown Avenue. And it runs between Green and Germantown Avenue near Chelten Avenue. The traffic is usually backed up for at least a block along that avenue. The park is a beautiful historical park. It is now being replanted in a historical way. And as the cars and the buses are backed up along that avenue, people walking by and children playing in the playground are just suffused with fumes from the traffic. And most of that comes from the traffic light at Chelten Avenue. As part of the plan of the Germantown Business Association to improve the business atmosphere there, we would like to substitute the trolleys. And we feel like if we can improve the traffic and put people back onto public transportation, it would be a much better area to live and to work in. The Germantown Business Association 80 RESOLUTION 970532 has been recently reformed after a period of inactivity. Our new Board is filled with enthusiasm for improving the business environment and the quality of life for businesspeople and residents alike, since most of us on the Board live in Germantown. GBA intends to pursue the National Trust's Main Street Program to revitalize the shopping area of central Germantown. We see the reestablishment of the trolley as one step in our plan to upgrade Germantown and Chelten Avenues by improving building fronts and signage, street planting, and maintenance. We want to create an ambiance that will attract pedestrian shoppers to small businesses along the avenues, and to create a pleasant living environment for the many apartments that fill the upper floors of the historic street fronts. The quality of life in Germantown as a whole depends on the health of Germantown Avenue itself. If we are to encourage businesses to 81 RESOLUTION 970532 open shops and offices, thereby renovating buildings and employing residents, we must pay attention to details that will restore a quality of life we once had. Thank you. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you very much. (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Good morning. Could you identify yourself.
Good morning. My name is John Herrick. I am the President of the Chestnut Hill Business Association. Before I begin, I would like to thank City Council, and in particular this Committee, for holding these very important and timely hearings. Thank you. The Chestnut Hill Business Association, a 260 retail and professional member association in Northwest Philadelphia, strongly supports the reactivation of the Route trolley 23 from 10th and Bigler, to Germantown Avenue, Bethlehem Pike trolley loop. We understand and endorse the Transit 82 RESOLUTION 970532 First policy in the implementation of a modern light rail system, and the need of cooperation among various parties on design and enforcement of the program. Trolleys have long served our community. They carried our employees to and from work, and have moved our shoppers up and down Germantown Avenue. They have been the focal point of numerous celebrations, including our recent CoreStates Chestnut Hill Garden Festival, which brought 40,000 people to our shopping district. Trolleys also serve as our link to our near neighbors in Mt. Airy and Germantown, a vital connection as we seek to improve the local economy. Recently, the Chestnut Hill Business Association, in conjunction with our counterparts in Mt. Airy and Germantown, along with historical and cultural institutions, formed the Philadelphia Historic Northwest Coalition. Our mission is to market ourselves throughout the region and to the growing tourist industry in Philadelphia. The Germantown Avenue 83 RESOLUTION 970532 Route trolley is our common thread and the centerpiece of our combined districts. Buses simply don't have the appeal that trolleys do. And it is this trolley appeal that is essential to our marketing effort. Trolleys are attractive and not pollutant. The implementation of new trolleys would go a long way in the revitalization of Northwest Philadelphia. We look forward to working with SEPTA, the city Administration, the Streets Department, and law enforcement agencies in the reactivation of the Route trolley. 15 Thank you. 16 (Applause.) 17 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Our next 18 witness to testify, Susan Bushu. 19
Yes. 20 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Did I 21 pronounce that correctly? 22
That's as well as 23 anyone does. Good morning. Honorable Council members, as Past President -- 84 RESOLUTION 970532 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Give your name, too.
I'm sorry. My name is Susan Bushu. As Past President and member of the Board of Directors of the Mt. Airy Business Association, I have been asked to speak to you on behalf of the Mount Airy businesses and building owners along the historic Germantown Avenue business corridor between Washington Lane and Creshon Valley Road. As many of you know, effects of the resurfacing of Germantown Avenue, from southern Germantown to the top of the hill, were felt from the late 1970s, when construction began in Chestnut Hill, through 1981 and 1982, with the section from Mt. Pleasant Avenue to Allen's Lane, and well into 1988 as the portion from Upsal Street to Mt. Pleasant was completed. During these years businesses along Germantown Avenue were thoroughly disrupted, valued customers and potential tenants were lost, shopping patterns of necessity broken, and significant business diverted to other areas. 85 RESOLUTION 970532 Building owners and business owners were asked to weather the storm, with the promise that there would be gold at the end of the project. Buoyed by the considerable capital investment of city, state, and federal funding which was committed throughout these years to make preservation of historic trolley trackage an 9 integral part of these projects, small business and 10 entrepreneurs bit the bullet and waited through the 11 dust and debris for promise of a renaissance. 12 Preservation of the infrastructure 13 was heralded in stages, with ribbon cuttings and 14 speeches, and celebrations up and down the avenue. 15 Mt. Airy was back on track in the 16 fall of 1988, when the first 23 trolley in over a 17 year was able to run from Wayne junction to Chestnut 18 Hill. 19 Just four years later, trolleys were 20 gone, as the city awarded SEPTA temporary permission 21 to run diesel buses on Route 23. 22 The quid pro quo, businesses were 23 told, was that SEPTA would purchase modern, air-conditioned, electric streetcars which would be placed in service by 1997. Once again, businesses 86 RESOLUTION 970532 bit the perennial bullet and traded trolley bells for diesel fumes. It has been almost years since the 5 first trolley tracks and cobblestones were 6 reconditioned in Chestnut Hill; ample time, it would 7 seem, for SEPTA to have made good on the promises 8 that were made. 9 Ample time, it would seem, for 10 temporary diesel permissions to have expired. Ample 11 time, it would seem, for one or two air-conditioned 12 electric streetcars to have been ordered. 13 During these 20 years, historic 14 buildings have been renovated, leases have been 15 signed, and Germantown Avenue has been awarded 16 recognition of entry to the National Register of 17 Historic Places. 18 Cities like New Orleans, Atlanta, 19 Montreal, Milwaukee, and Minneapolis have converted 20 the historic value of the trolley to destination marketing. During these 20 years, small businesses and building owners along the avenue have, of necessity, upgraded systems, complied with proliferating codes, modified signage, purchased 87 RESOLUTION 970532 their own security, hired their own police, and opened mini stations. Volunteers scrambling to fund a dream. The battle of Germantown being fought up and down the avenue in a thousand ways every day, fund raisers and festivals. Small business has never stopped fulfilling their promise. They scraped together their rising taxes or closed their doors. No 11 temporary permissions are awarded here. In the summer of 1982, the return of the trolley was championed at a ribbon cutting led by City Council President Coleman and State Senator Phil Price. As part of Mt. Airy's participation in the city's Century Four Celebration in observance of Philadelphia's 300 birthday, we were asked to look ahead to the next century, when the new trolley would become an important part of the restoration of Germantown Avenue, an integral part of the fourth century as it had been of the third.
This pledge by SEPTA and the city was a vote of confidence for every business and property owner along Germantown Avenue's business corridor. 88 RESOLUTION 970532 It is time for City Council to require SEPTA to do what these investments were designed to do. It is time for City Council to require SEPTA to provide what they promised to provide. You have the power, and the time is now. There is no good reason not to. On behalf of your constituency, please have the strength and the vision to make this happen. Thank you. ) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you. Let me just make sure Michael Moore is not here. Okay. Let's move on to our next panel of neighborhood associations from the Northwest, Alice Foley and Tom Sigru of the West Mt. Airy Neighbors, Catherine Franklin from the Penn-Knox Neighborhood Association, and Catherine Paulmier of the Germantown Friends School. Again, in case I mispronounced anyone's name, that's the reason you get a chance to put it correctly and formally on the record before 89 RESOLUTION 970532 you speak. I think a theme that we are certainly hearing here, as we look at where we are now and where we want to go as a city, is with the increasing focus on attracting tourists to our city, many of whom may be very interested and curious to explore some of Philadelphia's very rich and wonderful neighborhoods, that that can be a very important link to the neighborhood revitalization and business revitalization around, along various corridors. And certainly those two things, we're hearing, go very closely hand in hand. So we do want to take a moment to thank all the neighborhood and businesspeople who have worked so long and hard to try to revitalize and maintain their neighborhoods and business corridors. And certainly want to let you know we hear that, and that's why we're here today. Should we start with Alice Foley and Tom Sigru.
Good morning. My name is Alice Foley, and I am the Chairperson of the Transportation and Transit Committee for West Mt. Airy Neighbors. 90 RESOLUTION 970532 On behalf of this Committee and any of its representatives here today, we wish to state our support for the restoration of the Route 23, 15, and 56. As other groups have said, the trolley was taken off as a temporary measure in 1982. Germantown Avenue was and is the longest route in the country. It is a historic street. It can and should bring persons to our beautiful historic neighborhood streets, where they can then patronize the businesses from one end to the other, South Philadelphia through Chestnut Hill. For the health reasons and the environment reasons that others have mentioned, we feel this should be restored again, also. This should be put back in the capital budget, and be back on the streets. People of Chestnut Hill, people of Northwest, through Mount Airy -- it is historic. When there are events in Chestnut Hill, when there are events in Mt. Airy, people do love the trolley. Thank you. (Applause.) 91 RESOLUTION 970532
My name is Thomas Sigru, and I am the President of the West Mt. Airy Neighbors. And I am here wearing two other hats, as well, less officially than my presence here of West Mt. Airy Neighbors. I am an urban historian who teaches at the University of Pennsylvania, and am interested in the historic implications of the restoration of service on our trolley lines. And I am also a regular user of SEPTA's R-8 and Route lines. 12 West Mt. Airy Neighbors, as Alice 13 says, has long been on the record as supporting the 14 Transit First policy and the restoration of trolley 15 service on the Route 23 and related lines. And we 16 are in favor of that restoration of service for 17 several reasons. 18 First, to preserve the historic 19 fabric of our community. The 23 line complements 20 the extraordinarily attractive historic fabric of 21 Mt. Airy, as well as our neighboring communities of 22 Chestnut Hill and Germantown. 23 We, indeed, in Northwest Philadelphia have one of the largest concentrations of Victorian architecture anywhere in the United States, 92 RESOLUTION 970532 something that is complemented quite wonderfully by the Route trolley. 4 Indeed, our community emerged as one 5 of the city's first streetcar neighborhoods. And 6 the trolley has been essential not just for the 7 current state, but indeed for the historic state and 8 historic presence of our community. 9 In addition, the 23 trolley 10 complements the historic fabric of our communities 11 represented by the colonial treasures of Clivedon 12 and Upsula and Kreshon Cottage, and the beautifully 13 restored Sedgwick Theater, all of which can serve as 14 magnets for tourists in Northwest Philadelphia, 15 especially in complements with the 23 trolley. 16 Secondly, we support restoration of 17 trolley service to serve as a spur for the economic 18 development of Germantown Avenue, long a high 19 priority for West Mt. Airy Neighbors, as well as our 20 other community organizations in which we work 21 collaboratively, East Mt. Airy Neighbors, and Mt. 22 Airy USA, the community development corporation. 23 Third, we are concerned about the environmental impact of bus service on Germantown Avenue. 93 RESOLUTION 970532 One of the treasures of our community is its lovely environment, its trees and its clean air. And we believe that restoration of trolley service on Route will enhance the environment of 6 our community and of Philadelphia at large. 7 Thank you very much. 8 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you. 9 (Applause.) 10 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Catharine 11 Franklin of the Penn-Knox Neighborhood Association. 12
I live in 13 Penn-Knox, in Germantown. I am a neighborhood 14 volunteer. 15 I have been talking not only with 16 residents about the 23 route, but with business 17 heads and religious leaders all along Germantown 18 avenue for two weeks. 19 I have walked from Wayne Junction to 20 Washington Lane, along the avenue, and also along 21 Green Street, near Chelten. 22 In reaction to the news of this 23 special trolley hearing, many business owners and ministers of churches wanted to come, but they can't come at 9 o'clock in the morning. 94 RESOLUTION 970532 They are very busy people, they work long hours, but they're not able to leave their jobs for more than a short time. I arrived unannounced, interrupted them, and asked for a few minutes. They were, without exception, interested in the issue of the 8 trolley. They felt it was very important, were glad 9 to be informed of the meeting, and willing to inform 10 others. Shop owners were quite willing to post 11 fliers in their businesses. 12 In talking to hundreds of people, I 13 have found the following: A majority of people know 14 that they are living and working on the longest 15 street running trolley line in the world. Several 16 told me it was in the Guiness Book of World 17 Records. 18 (Applause.) 19
The affection for the 20 trolley is 97 percent. 21 The most frequent comment is, "I rode 22 the trolley as a child. I want my children or 23 grandchildren to ride the trolley." But they want the ride to go all the way downtown, not just a part of the way. 95 RESOLUTION 970532 They know the city's ozone problem is bad, and that the bus fumes are bad, and that trolleys are clean. They know that trolleys last much longer than buses do. They remember trolley men fondly. Some have been to New Orleans and taken the St. Charles line, some have been to San Francisco and seen our President's Conference Committee cars painted green and cream on the waterfront. They know that tourists ride trolleys, and they think they would ride them here. They want air conditioning and handicapped accessibility, and they like the idea of the trolley triggering lights for faster progress. They like Transit First, but expressed skepticism that SEPTA and the city will implement this policy. They are pleased to learn that there is an agreement that emphasizes the importance of mass transit in getting people to work on time. They want very much to see this policy work. There is a distrust of SEPTA. People remember the 53 here. They know about the 96 RESOLUTION 970532 unfulfilled promise of new trolleys on the by 1997. The distrust is made worse by the sudden declaration last week of a break in the 6 line at Ontario, which caused a neighborhood 7 outcry. 8 (Applause.) 9
In the 1980s, a great 10 deal of money was spent reengineering the Germantown 11 Avenue roadbed. 12 Now people say, why did SEPTA bother 13 to lay new track in the new roadbed, and then not 14 follow through with the new cars? 15 Surely they wouldn't spend all of 16 that money for nothing. 17 (Applause.) 18
Finally, there is 19 gratitude to the Mayor for defending the trolley 20 lines, as those who have written letters indicate, 21 and to the Council for representing the people. 22 There is a very strong feeling that 23 promises need to be honored. Thank you. (Applause.) 97 RESOLUTION 970532 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Our next witness, Katherine Paulmier.
Just to correct, it is Kathleen, and it is Paulmier, P-A-U-L-M-I-E-R, the spelling. Good morning, and thank you for enabling us to be here this morning to testify. I am the Director of Community Involvement at Germantown Friends School, which is located at Germantown Avenue and Colter Street. I am a graduate of Germantown Friends School. I went there in the '60s and '70s, when many of my classmates rode the trolley to and 15 from school. 16 And I always enjoyed a treat of 17 riding home with them, when I got a chance in the 18 afternoon, on the 23. 19 Just to add a little historic 20 perspective here, my grandmother grew up on Knox 21 Street. And remembers looking down at the 53 on 22 Wayne Avenue across a cow pasture. 23 And she and her sisters would run across the cow pasture to wave at the Wayne Avenue trolley. 98 RESOLUTION 970532 And she used to take me up and down the route, and I hoped my kids can take their 4 grandkids up and down the 23 route, as well. 5 I'm here to speak for the children at 6 Germantown Friends School, who, unfortunately, had 7 to be in classes this morning. But they have 8 several concerns that I would like to have heard 9 this morning. 10 One is about the cleanliness. And 11 many people have spoken to that this morning. I 12 will try not to reiterate those. 13 But one issue that has not come up 14 yet is the fact that if we have electric lines, the 15 sources of our power are much more flexible in 16 future centuries; that we won't necessarily be 17 dependent on fossil fuels, if we have a line that's 18 running on electric. 19 (Applause.) 20
Our options will 21 certainly be greater. 22 Another issue is the security a child 23 feels in getting on a trolley line that that trolley will end up at the end of the rails. There is something secure in having 99 RESOLUTION 970532 lines that run straight that tell children their route is not going to veer left at Chelten Avenue, for example. When they get on that trolley, they are secure in knowing they are going to go all the way to their stop. Another issue I would like to mention here is that kids love trolleys, kids of all ages. There is a charm factor, people have mentioned here. And I think it is not to be underestimated. As I rode down the trolley this morning, I just saw in people's eyes, oh, my goodness, here is a trolley. Both young kids, of course, but then older gentlemen, as well, who looked like they were seeing a ghost from the past, with great glee. And I don't think we can underestimate that. That is something that's going to make our children want to stay or want to come back after they have gone away for a time. I just want to speak for myself. I won't exaggerate, but part of what brought me back to Germantown, after going to college and my first job, were the historic houses, the big old trees, 100 RESOLUTION 970532 the cobblestones, yes, and the trolleys were part of that, and the R-7 line which I take, as well as Quaker meetings and other things. But I think we can't discount that what makes up -- what makes our neighborhood attractive is made up of a lot of different things, and the trolley is certainly an important part of that. A number of people have mentioned the pollution, the carbon monoxide, the carbon dioxide, sulphur dioxide, and ozone. And the students themselves at Germantown Friends are very concerned about environmental issues. We have a big Environmental Committee, who does a lot of recycling. And they are very concerned and would like that voice heard this morning. So I will just reiterate that on their behalf. Here, when the 53 was stopped, I felt -- as a child, I felt as though SEPTA was taking something away from me. There is no prettier site in all of Philadelphia, I believe, than the 53 careening down Wayne Avenue, near Horter Street, amidst all the 101 RESOLUTION 970532 beautiful trees. And I would love us to keep the aesthetic in mind when we think about attracting people to our neighborhoods, when we think about keeping our children interested in our City of Philadelphia. I will end there. Thank you. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you. (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you very much. I would like to move on to our next group of neighborhood associations. Bernice Roberts of Nazarene Church, Carl Dahlgren of the Friends of Hunting Park, Susan Petrone of the East Passyunk Neighbors Civic Association, and Tony Palmieri of the Italian Market Civic Association. I note our witness Kathleen Paulmier, from Germantown Friends, mentioned the students were in class. It might have been a very good educational experience to be here this morning, to see, really, I think, democracy at its best, when citizens are letting public officials know very 102 RESOLUTION 970532 clearly how strongly and passionately they feel about an issue and what they want done with their tax dollars. And I do want to welcome -- I think there are some students from one of the others, Northeast Catholic High School are here this morning. I hope you are learning a little bit. Should we begin with Bernice Roberts of Nazarene Church?
Yes. I am Bernice Roberts, and it is my pleasure to be here today. And I can start off immediately saying that I agreed so much and was happy to hear Mr. Foster, as an employee, say what he had to say about SEPTA, about the 23, and SEPTA perhaps in general. And I had the unfortunate experience just last week of taking the to go in -- I was 21 only going as far as Broad and Erie. I am in the 22 Nicetown area. And I was amazed at how jam-packed 23 the trolley -- the bus was at o'clock in the 24 afternoon. I just couldn't believe it. 25 I mean, I know that sometimes when I 103 1 RESOLUTION 970532 go out and get the 23, and it is time for the kids to be coming out of class, I say to myself, oh, you know better than to come at this time. But at 1 o'clock in the afternoon, it is only because they are not sufficient, there is not sufficient transportation, they're spaced too far apart. " And a groan went up from a lot of people on the bus. I was glad that I was getting off, because I was going to get the subway. But had I wanted to go, because where I was going also I could have gone to 11th and Market first, if I wanted to take the route, the scenic route, we will call it. But I did get off and use the subway. And in conversation, I know in our choir rehearsal at church, I had mentioned -- because I had been sent by Miss Potter information about this meeting, and I discussed it with the members. And some of them already had learned about the fact that you will have to get off the 23 104 RESOLUTION 970532 at various stops. And I was amazed about that. Because I know from what has happened in the past concerning getting off of the buses and trying to wait for something else, that we were probably -- then you would have to go around the corner, or something. I never found out exactly how that was supposed to work. But how much more inconvenient could we as citizens have to endure things like that? And it is very important. Because at my church -- the church that I attend, I'm sorry, not my church, is right on the line as far as -- we are right on the corner of Germantown Avenue and Lycoming Street. And sometimes when we see persons, I can myself -- it is about five blocks. I can walk over. But other persons who come and are not in a car, and are standing there waiting, thanks be to God that many of the other persons of the congregation will assist one another when they see you out there waiting for the trolley or bus -- I keep saying trolley; bus -- and they will, you know, take that person home. 105 RESOLUTION 970532 But I know in waiting, even if I have the schedule in my pocket, the length of time that one stands out there to wait is absolutely preposterous. As well as, the congestion with the bulky packets that the kids have when they are carrying their books and everything, it makes congestion just absolutely terrible. Also, in Lower Germantown and Nicetown area, Germantown Avenue, a lot of the persons who have businesses there between, I would say, before you get to Broad and Erie, are trying to redevelop. Some new businesses have opened, small businesses, and they are trying to have more pride in the area. And we know, too, that the transportation -- easy access to good transportation encourages people, very much so. I say the same thing concerning the 56. I am only two and a half blocks from the 56. And I think that on the 56 line, that the businesses on East Erie Avenue, and over there going towards Torresdale, I would think that they would want to develop, maybe, new business along those lines. 106 RESOLUTION 970532 We know that a lot of the businesses that have been over in that area have moved out of the city, but the buildings are still there. So I would think that people would want to, businesspeople would want to, establish new businesses out in that area and make it easier for people to get to work, if they have easy access and a comfortable ride.
Because we know that transportation, and the beauty of a city as far as lack of graffiti all over the place -- which is being worked on -- encourages new business to come into the city. And I was born and raised in Philadelphia, and I have only lived out of the Nicetown area for about seven years of my life. And I have seen the many changes that have taken place, and they have not all been for the best, the thing of best situation in the city. But in using the 23, as it was stated by someone earlier, to go shopping on Chelten Avenue, in that area, but to endure what we have to go through on the bus is just absolutely ridiculous. And I know in shopping at the 107 RESOLUTION 970532 supermarket -- because a lot of the supermarkets that I would want to go to and do go to are up there on Chelten Avenue. The Super Fresh had a fire, and they are no longer there. But we go to Shop Rite. So I can use the or the 53 for access to Chelten 7 Avenue. 8 So the -- it is important to me and 9 many others that I am representing here in our area 10 of the Nicetown area, who we do have access -- and 11 many churches are located and are being actively 12 attended right on Germantown Avenue. There are many 13 churches on that line. 14 And so it is important to us for the 15 improvement and the reestablishment of the 16 trolleys. And more frequent, you know -- the 17 schedule to have more frequent and more service 18 available to us. 19 And I can't -- I just can't stress it 20 too much. Because, I mean, I get emotional about 21 it. 22 Thank you for your time. 23 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you for your testimony. ) 108 RESOLUTION 970532 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Next witness is Carl Dahlgren of the Friends of Hunting Park.
Thank you for this opportunity to testify. And thank you for developing hearings of this quality, in which everybody talks so shortly. So I am going to try not to violate that precedent that's been set. And so the first thing I will say is, ditto for nearly all the testimony that's gone before, with the exception of the personal references, which I can't relate to. But certainly the general thing, I do. I will indulge in just a little bit of nostalgia. I moved in Philadelphia in '53, lived on North 8th Street, just below Girard Avenue. And every morning as we sat for our breakfast, we watched the trolley go by. And, frequently, if it stopped in traffic, we had people looking into our dining room, so to speak. And later on I was shopping in Lit Brothers. And a woman who was waiting on me said, "I like your apartment." And I said, "What do you mean?" 109 RESOLUTION 970532 She says, "Well, the trolley was stopping there this morning, and I looked in, and it looked so nice." So that's just another aspect of trolleys. But nostalgia is one of the things that I want to refer to. Trolleys are fun, in addition to getting you from one place to another. And the city recently tried to capitalize on that by having a trolley or a train run back and forth on Delaware Avenue, rechristened Columbus. And then in talking about a loop in Center City, I think that's cute. It is all well and good. But trolleys, in addition to being fun, are transportation. And I think tourists would enjoy riding farther and going someplace, instead of just riding around. And if we do restore a loop in Center City, I think it should be free, sort of like an escalator in a building. The trolley running around on the ground level would be just like a people-mover, and it would be good for business and good for everybody. Now, since I expected, as with most hearings, that this would be pro and con -- and 110 RESOLUTION 970532 obviously it is pretty unanimously pro. And that's refreshing, and I enjoy that. But just to take up one of the problems that people talk about with trolleys, they say the advantage of buses is, if you come up on an oil truck making a delivery, the bus can pull around. Well, we're talking about buses pulling around on streets that are only four lanes wide, counting the parking lanes. So there isn't a lot of room for the bus to do it. Plus, what is holding up the trolley? Not the trolley; it is the delivery truck. And that can be dealt with by people planning their deliveries, making sure that there is no parking at the place where they are going to make the delivery, and they can avoid that sort of thing. And all the advantages that have been talked about trolleys, I concur in. And so I will try to do something which is very unusual for me, is to make my remarks as short as possible. But I would like to think of not just 111 RESOLUTION 970532 the three routes that are being talked about, but more, if at all possible. And mention, again, the paving and tracks that have been restored, I assume they are probably not in total, the complete route, but that is double extravagance if we don't take advantage of that and get them in operation. And then if we are talking about funds, I might suggest that you might consider General Motors as a source of funding, in view of the fact that General Motors established a subsidiary transit company, took over many city operations, and slowly phased out trolleys all over the country. So they are liable for the restoration of trolleys, as well. Thank you very much. (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Councilman Longstreth wanted to make a comment.
I have to go fairly shortly, and so I am interrupting at a moment where I apologize for breaking your train of thought, but there are several things that I wanted to get on the record before I left. 112 RESOLUTION 970532 I have lived in Philadelphia, in Chestnut Hill, for 60 years, and have had an opportunity to become thoroughly familiar with the and the trolleys, et cetera. That's the way I 6 used to travel, before I became a powerful 7 politician and was given an automobile. 8 But there are two things that I think 9 we have to think about. And I heartily support this 10 project of providing this light transportation. We 11 have talked about it over a period of time. It 12 makes all sorts of sense from our standpoint. 13 There are, however, two factors that 14 I think we must consider. And I would regard 15 evidence supporting the positive side of these two 16 factors as very important to achieving what we 17 hopefully can achieve; that is, the installation of 18 this line. 19 One is, I think we will have to 20 demonstrate as conclusively as you can, through 21 research and projections and things of that sort, 22 just what the passenger traffic is going to be on 23 this organization. As you might guess, SEPTA, with many lines they have, are constantly adding and 113 RESOLUTION 970532 subtracting lines, so to speak. And usually the factor that makes the subtraction a necessity is, there simply aren't enough people using a particular line to make it worthwhile to continue to operate it at the expense of someplace else, where there might be a greater need or there may be a greater volume of traffic that's possible there with the appropriate action. So I would hope that we will be able to get a realistic evaluation of what we're going to get for our buck, what bang are we going to get for our buck. Because we will be spending money here that we won't be spending somewhere else. There will be neighborhood groups who will be just as enthusiastic about something else in some other part of the city or some other part of the region, and we have to be in a position to justify spending those dollars here, rather than somewhere else. That brings us to point number two, which is the need to bring to the attention of our friends in the suburbs the fact that this is a more important place for us to spend our dollars than to spend them in some other part of the surrounding 114 RESOLUTION 970532 counties. (Applause.)
I would urge you to use your influence on your friends, et cetera, to get them to want this to happen, recognizing that it is always on a quid pro quo situation, and that later on we will have to support some of the things they want in the suburbs, in order to get them to support some of the things that we want here in the city. In a situation like SEPTA, where, as you have been told, we represent only 2 votes of 15 and, therefore, are at the mercy of people in other parts of the region to achieve some of the things that we wish to achieve here with never enough dollars. And I can promise you that if we doubled the SEPTA income tomorrow, it wouldn't be enough. Because it is like schools and it is like other aspects of our society, which are bottomless pits in terms of financial needs. No matter how much you get, you can be assured that it will never be enough to satisfy the needs or desires of groups such as your own. 115 RESOLUTION 970532
I had intended to comment about the fact that with improved transportation, it would get some of the people who are driving around here as uninsured drivers to want to use the transportation again, when we have better transportation and easy access. Because as I look around me, and especially looking at some of the young faces in those cars, and they are not in the best condition, it is because a lot of people would prefer to take their chances being uninsured and riding around in a piece of equipment that is not at its best than to use SEPTA. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: That came up in last Thursday's City Council meeting, and that was a point that I made. When people's cars were impounded, in other words, their car gets taken away when they don't have their insurance, license, or registration, they need then to make their best choice, which would be to use public transit. And they are lucky to be in a city 116 RESOLUTION 970532 where there is public transit that they can use.
Yes, but that's deteriorated so badly. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: If I could follow up on what Councilman Longstreth was noting, just so people know where to invest your time and energy to try to influence policy on this issue. City Council doesn't have direct control over SEPTA; it is really the SEPTA Board that makes the decisions about how the public dollars and the riders' dollars in SEPTA will be used. And as we have noted, there are only 2 city-appointed representatives out of 15 on the SEPTA Board. So we in Council are trying to do all we can to use what influence we have, which is more indirect than direct. But our influence is to hold public hearings, to have our voices be heard to the members of the SEPTA Board and the management of SEPTA. And then, as Councilman Longstreth noted, we can use any access, relationships, power we have, or connection we have, to members of the 117 RESOLUTION 970532 SEPTA Board or the politicians that appoint the members, the other members, of the SEPTA Board. But I think we need to be clear. The other thing we can do, which would be a tactic of last resort, the city does make a major contribution to SEPTA. It is, what, 43 million, 56 million, somewhere in there. So that we do as a city make a major contribution to SEPTA. You don't threaten to withhold funds except in extreme circumstances because that would, you know, hurt all the riders. But my point is, if any of you do know members of the SEPTA Board or political people who live in the suburbs or --
Powerful Councilmen. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Governor Ridge has appointments to the SEPTA Board. I think you need to make your voices heard to them. So following up on today's hearings, to also make sure your voice gets heard directly to members of the SEPTA Board, or some of you going to testify at the public meetings of the SEPTA Board, are ways where you will have to continue to hammer 118 RESOLUTION 970532 away with your message. If we had direct control over the SEPTA budget, then it might be a different story. But we don't. Okay. Let's move on with the testimony. Did I miss, is it, Susan Petrone, of the East Passyunk Neighbors Civic Association.
Thank you. Good morning. You just said my name, Susan Petrone, and I am at the southern end of the 23. I am a neighbor of Councilman DiCicco. And I will keep my remarks short, I promise. Everyone has covered every base I had wanted to speak about. However, it is kind of like I am preaching to the choir, and I have Mr. Leary behind me. So it is kind of like I want to thank you, and I would also like to thank Mr. Leary for staying for the duration of the hearings. I'd also like Mr. Leary to know, and take the message back, if he is so inclined, to the other suburban members, who are not familiar with city life and do not realize how important public transportation is, because we have become an 119 RESOLUTION 970532 auto-centered culture, that the restoration of this, the particularly, the 15 and the 56, are 4 extremely important for restoring, preserving, and 5 enhancing the neighborhood character in our city. 6 In some areas it will enhance and preserve. Okay? 7 In South Philadelphia, in certain 8 areas, the restoration of the trolley service will 9 begin, to be redundant, to help restore our 10 neighborhood character and fabric. It is 11 desperately needed. We need the beauty. We need 12 every component. 13 Many components are needed for 14 restoration of neighborhood life, and each component 15 needs attention. This is an integral component. 16 And if our neighborhoods are not just 17 to survive, but to flourish, we need to have every 18 component taken care of in the proper way, and with 19 people who are dedicated and who have the vision for 20 it. 21 And I guess I will have to start 22 attending SEPTA Board meetings. 23 Thank you. (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you very 120 RESOLUTION 970532 much. Should we move on to our next panel? I have listed here about ten people who have asked to speak. I would like to call next Steven Vaughan, who is the legislative aide for Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller.
Good morning, Council members. On behalf of Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller, just for the record, I am her Chief of Staff. My name is Steven A. Vaughan. At any rate, the Councilwoman instructed me to come here to advise this Committee that she is in total support and favor of restoring the trolley. 18 She believed that the restoring of 19 the 23 trolley will bring back many, many positive 20 things for the City of Philadelphia. 21 It is a corridor that goes from, I 22 believe, her district, starting with Chestnut Hill, 23 all the way down to DiCicco's district. It is something that the neighbors want, the community wants, all Philadelphians want. 121 RESOLUTION 970532 And it is something that will bring back, hopefully, tourism, it will support businesses, it will restore, bring back community growth. It will also help with the development of businesses, small businesses, and economic development. And it is something that the city needs, should have, and is a means and way of transportation that the city should not have lost. And however we can get it back, she supports that one hundred percent. And I would like to thank you for this opportunity. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you. (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Our next panel is Thomas Deahl of Historic Rittenhousetown, Anne Roller of Clivedon, and Howard Kittel of the Chestnut Hill Historical Society. Please identify yourselves for the record.
Madam Chairwoman, I have a handout. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Okay. One of 122 RESOLUTION 970532 the sergeant at arms or staff will get it. Should we begin with Mr. Deahl.
Yes. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman and Council Members. I appreciate the opportunity to talk to you about something that I think is kind of a novel ideal. My name is Tom Deahl. I am on the Board of Directors of Historic Rittenhousetown, and Chairman of the Community Relations Committee. If I may, I would like to take a brief minute to expand your image of trolley service and tell you about an idea that could prove to be a new source of income for the city, with minimal investment because its basic infrastructure is already in place. It goes without saying that Philadelphia is world renowned for the history-making deeds that occurred here. People want to visit Philadelphia for the same reasons they want to tour Athens or Rome. And they will come, and, more importantly, they will stay awhile if we fully exploit the gamut of our historic sites, attractions beyond the Independence Hall District. 123 RESOLUTION 970532 It is common sense to believe that by increasing the number and variety of historic sites, the attraction of visitors to the city and, by extension, their tourist dollars, will be strengthened. Take the Northwest section of the city, for example. It is rich, as you have heard from other people who have given testimony this morning, with historically important sites and architectural specimens that span American history from colonial to modern times. We believe these sites could be and should be added to the traditional mix of Center City attractions that define Philadelphia as a tourist destination. We think a novel use of trolleys can help achieve that goal. Complicating our efforts to turn the communities that make up the historic Northwest into a serious tourist destination are two things: A severe shortage of auto parking space and, frankly, some rough neighborhoods in which some of the sites are located. We believe a restored and slightly modified trolley service on the Germantown Avenue 124 RESOLUTION 970532 line will address these problems. We propose to use trolleys to transport tourists to and from historic sites scattered throughout the historic northwest. Here is how it would work: Specially designed or designated tour trolleys would pick up Center City visitors -- many at the Convention Center, where the passes right 10 beneath -- and move them to weigh stations 11 positioned along the light rail line in North 12 Philadelphia, Germantown, Mt. Airy, and Chestnut 13 Hill. Each weigh station would serve a distinct set 14 of historic sites clustered nearby. 15 Tourists would offload to mini-buses, 16 which would take small groups to the sites in 17 pre-arranged sequences, thereby minimizing site 18 overcrowding. 19 On completion of the mini-bus package 20 tour, tourists are returned to the weigh station. 21 There they could chose to return to Center City 22 hotels, the Convention Center, or parking lots, or 23 move on for second and third helpings of American history. Preliminary thinking suggests this 125 RESOLUTION 970532 plan to augment Center City tourism will generate significant new revenue not only for the city, but income for historic sites and local businesses, as well. It is an idea we believe that should be given serious consideration before trolley service is abandoned. We propose light rail service instead of buses because of the novelty and the genuine connection with Philadelphia's past. Riding real trolleys becomes a part of the adventure of historical discovery. Moreover, since this method of travel has become a rarity in the United States, electric trolleys themselves, like San Francisco's cable cars, become a tourist attraction. At election time, city Administration, as well as City Council members, regularly pledge to revive the city's neighborhoods. Today we present you with an opportunity to fulfill that pledge and to help the neighborhoods help themselves in the bargain. Thank you. 126 RESOLUTION 970532 (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Anne Roller of Clivedon.
Good morning, Councilwoman Fernandez and members of the Committee, I am Anne Roller. I am Public Relations Coordinator of Clivedon of the National Trust -- CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Excuse me.
-- home of the original battle of Germantown. I also speak today as the Vice-President of Historic Germantown Preserved. Historic Germantown Preserved is a consortium of a dozen historic sites in Philadelphia's historic Northwest. That word is going to come up a lot. Historic Germantown Preserve supports the restoration of modern trolley service to the Route 23. HGP's member sites are strong along the hilly, 2-mile stretch of Germantown Avenue between Wayne Junction and Upsal Street. This is not friendly walking territory. It is the only street in the country, however, that is recognized as a National Historic 127 RESOLUTION 970532 Landmark. Since the first half of the 19th century, the streetcar has been identified with Germantown Avenue. And just as the community has changed over the years, the streetcars have changed to adapt to new technology and new needs. Trolleys, whether historic or ultramodern, are a distinctive part of Germantown's character. The historic community believes an efficient, attractive trolley on Route can help 13 increase the number of visitors to our member sites, 14 it can encourage them to stay longer and see more, 15 and it can bolster the retail economy in 16 Philadelphia's historic Northwest. 17 The Preservation Alliance of Greater 18 Philadelphia is now working on the planning phase of 19 a Heritage Tourism Corridor along Germantown Avenue, 20 funded under the federal Intermodal Surface 21 Transportation Efficiency Act. The corridor plan 22 uses the existing SEPTA line as the basis for a 23 revitalization of the Germantown community. Surely we can wait for the study to be completed before deciding to jettison one of the 128 RESOLUTION 970532 corridor's most significant features. Tearing out the existing infrastructure, or allowing it to fall into significant disrepair, would add enormously to the cost when trolleys are determined to be the most favorable solution for the corridor. 8 To reinitiate trolley service on the 9 23 now would help to guarantee the tracks and the 10 overhead lines remain in good working order. 11 We are not asking SEPTA to finance 12 the continued health of historic Germantown. We are 13 asking for a chance to use the existing SEPTA system 14 to best advantage. 15 Our vision for the future of our 16 neighborhood has, at its core, a clean, safe, 17 efficient, and distinctive transportation system 18 that continues the tradition of the Germantown 19 Avenue streetcar. 20 We urge SEPTA to work with us to make 21 that vision a reality. 22 Thank you. 23 (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Our next witness, Howard Kittel. 129 RESOLUTION 970532
Councilwoman Fernandez and your Committee, thank you very much for making this possible, and for the individuals who helped to organize the public commentary. I am the Executive Director of the Chestnut Hill Historical Society. And on behalf of the Board of Directors, I wish to join with other Philadelphia residents and our sister organizations, agencies, and businesses to urge both the City of Philadelphia and SEPTA to reactivate the Routes 15, 23, and 56 trolley lines. The Chestnut Hill Historical Society has endorsed the Transit First policy and sees it as essential to the long-term preservation and vitality of our Northwest communities. The Historical Society's interest in the reactivation stems from our concerns about the economic future and unity of Northwest Philadelphia; the environmental benefits of trolleys, as opposed to diesel buses; and SEPTA fulfilling its promise to the city to have trolleys in service by 1997. As you have already heard, for the past 18 months businesses, organizations, and historic sites in Northwest Philadelphia have been 130 RESOLUTION 970532 forging an alliance to collectively promote the attractions in this section of the city. Transportation linkages are critical for linear areas such as this one. In addition, the Northwest transportation connections to Center City is, at best, indirect and often tenuous. The Route trolley has the 9 potential for enhancing Northwest Philadelphia's 10 image as a place to recreate, shop, dine, and 11 revisit. 12 The trolley route is integral to 13 integrating Northwest Philadelphia attractions, 14 while interfacing with commuter rail, bus, and 15 highway modes of travel. 16 Northwest Philadelphia is an area 17 striving to help itself. In doing so, it also will 18 help the City of Philadelphia. 19 Trolley service will enhance the 20 image of the corridor and provide a physical and 21 psychological link between the sites, businesses, 22 and communities. 23 Again, the Chestnut Hill Historical Society urges your Committee and City Council to work for the reactivation of these trolley routes. 131 RESOLUTION 970532 (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you very much. And we will move on to our next panel, transportation organizations, including Don Nigro of the DVARP, Delaware Valley Association of Rail Passengers; Dennis Winters of the Clean Air Council; and Lorraine Brill of the Delaware Valley Citizens Transportation Committee. So people can plan their time, I have three other people who have asked to be added to the list to testify. Don Nigro.
Yes. Good morning and thank you for this opportunity for me to speak on behalf -- CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Pull the mike way up.
Thank you for this opportunity for me to speak on behalf of the Delaware Valley Association of Railroad Passengers. We are a public transportation advocacy, and we are committed to supporting the restoration of streetcar service in the City of 132 RESOLUTION 970532 Philadelphia. In the past, we have repeatedly urged the restoration of streetcar service for the Routes 15, 23, and 56, both in our newsletter and in testimony at SEPTA budget hearings. We are here again to demonstrate our support for the effort to bring trolleys back to those three routes. We'd like to take this opportunity to commend SEPTA and the City of Philadelphia for their joint initiative in carrying out the Transit First project for the Route 10 trolley line. The SEPTA pamphlet developed for this project contains a statement which directly applies to the three routes which are the subject of this hearing. The statement reads, "A safe, reliable, and smooth operating light rail line serves the community better than a bus route because it is a permanent investment." Contrary to what some believe, trolleys do not need an exclusive right-of-way. Street-running trolleys, mixed with regular traffic, are cost effective with modern Transit First 133 RESOLUTION 970532 techniques. Councilman Longstreth is correct, we do need to demonstrate the cost effectiveness of restoring this service. And we believe that with the basic Transit First measures applied to Routes 15, 23, and 56, they would be very cost effective. These measures include transit priority; traffic signals to reduce trolley travel time; signs to protect pedestrians and regulate motor traffic; enforcement of parking and traffic regulations; new passenger shelters; and we also encourage SEPTA to consider increasing the spacing of trolley stops to at least every two or three blocks in order to reduce travel time in making the vehicles more attractive. We urge SEPTA to rehabilitate the infrastructure along the three routes and assemble a fleet of light rail vehicles. SEPTA should take advantage of the fact that most of the trolley infrastructure, such as rail, poles, and wires, is already in place and need only to be restored. An added benefit of light rail is the reduction of air pollution. The Environmental 134 RESOLUTION 970532 Protection Agency has proposed new strict air pollution standards. IST reauthorization is expected to provide additional funds to promote the use of alternative modes of transportation. Restoring the service to Routes 15, 23, and 56 would be an excellent means of complying with the new federal legislation designed to cut air pollution and emphasize clean modes of transportation. DVARP is grateful to the City of Philadelphia for holding this hearing and giving us an opportunity to testify in support of streetcar service. At one time Philadelphia had more streetcar lines than any other city in North America. Unfortunately, Philadelphia has been abandoning lines, while other cities have been expanding and/or building new lines. Hopefully, the City of Philadelphia will eventually reverse this downward trend and reclaim its position as the streetcar capital. Thank you. (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Our next 135 RESOLUTION 970532 witness is Dennis Winters, Clean Air Council.
Thank you. My name is Dennis R. Winters, and I am an Environmental Policy Analyst in the Philadelphia office of the Clean Air Council. The 30-year-old Clean Air Council is the oldest locally based environmental organization in the Delaware Valley. First, the Clean Air Council would like to thank City Council for this opportunity to comment on the reestablishment of trolley service on SEPTA Routes 15, 23, and 56. In particular, the Council would like to express its appreciation of Councilwoman Fernandez' continuing interest in intermodalism as an alternative to our over-dependence on automobile. Her consistent support for cyclists and pedestrians in the City of Philadelphia is recognized throughout the East. The Clean Air Council believes trolley service should be restored on all existing light rail infrastructure at the earliest possible date. 136 RESOLUTION 970532 In terms of noise, energy efficiency, air pollution, and greenhouse gas abatement, the trolley, fixed rail or otherwise, has the advantage over both diesel bus and the automobile. And SEPTA trolley Routes 15, 23, and 56 represent such basic neighborhood service for some of the city's longest and most historic transit corridors, it's hard to imagine that they were ever allowed to be abandoned in the first place. Unfortunately, even some of SEPTA's managers denigrate on-street trolleys for some of the very reasons they are so useful to communities. There are complaints that trolleys compete with and impede automobile traffic, obscure the fact that trolleys actually provide more access in less street space than a hoard of congested, single-occupant vehicles. And the very presence of trolleys on these routes offers the dense residential neighborhoods that border them a traffic-calming effect that reduces the impact from automobile traffic. Trolleys deserve priority right-of-way on the streets of Philadelphia. Don't get us wrong. The Council is 137 RESOLUTION 970532 not here to wax nostalgic about trolleys. There are others here that can finely make the historic case for the trolley. The Council is here because this city and this nation need to be moving in new directions in the way both people and goods are transported. President Bill Clinton can use trolleys to the Climate Change Treaty Negotiations in Kyoto, Japan in December. Governor Tom Ridge can use trolleys to bring Pennsylvania in compliance with the Clean Air Act and the new National Ambient Air Quality Standard. Mayor Rendell can use trolleys to make Philadelphia both a more competitive community in the world marketplace and to make our community a tourist magnet second to none. I just couldn't leave these hearings today without sharing the short passage from the July/August 1997 issue of Urban Transport International, published in Paris, France. And this is a direct quote. "A small group of trams," trolleys in this country, "continues to operate in daily 138 RESOLUTION 970532 service on San Francisco's so-called F Line, which serves the portion of Market Street between Trans Bay Terminal and Castro Street. "Begun in 1995, this four and a half mile route is the revival of the service which quit in the late 1970s. " And I have emphasized this in my testimony. " In summary, the Clean Air Council wholeheartedly supports not only trolley service on Routes 23, 15 and 56, but new and expanded trolley and trackless trolley service wherever possible. The reduced environmental impact from these vehicles, compared to diesel bus and automobile alternatives, demands widespread implementation as quickly as regional transportation planners can act. And thank you, again, for this 139 RESOLUTION 970532 opportunity to express the Council's concerns regarding the proposed resolution. ) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Our next witness is Lorraine Brill of the Delaware Valley Citizens Transportation Committee.
Thank you. I am Lorraine Brill, Chairperson of the Delaware Valley Citizens Transportation Committee, which I represent on the Regional Transportation Committee of the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission. I am also a former member of SEPTA's Citizens Advisory Committee, and President of Upper Northwood Community Council and Northeast Philadelphia Community Group. We support the restoration of modern, air-conditioned trolleys on Routes 56, 15, and 23. Other groups have testified about the benefits of streetcars, pollution free, quiet, fast, with better ability to operate in hilly terrain than a bus. The high ridership on these three routes justifies using trolleys instead of buses, since trolleys carry more passengers per vehicle 140 RESOLUTION 970532 than a bus. I personally am most familiar with Route 56, which serves many transit-dependent communities, including four high schools, St. Christopher's Hospital for Children, and Temple University Hospital. It also serves as a feeder to the Frankford El at the Erie-Torresdale Station, into the Broad Street Subway at the Erie station. Earlier this year, on February 7, 1997, SEPTA held a hearing to extend Route 56 in nonrevenue service to the Midvale District and to change Route 56 from a temporary bus route to a permanent bus route. Because of major opposition to this tariff, SEPTA staff withdrew the tariff from consideration. Route 56 is still listed as a temporary bus route. The Federal Transit Administration Section 9 Formula Grant Program, which SEPTA receives, makes funds available on the basis of a statutory formula to all urbanized areas in the country. Grants can be used for mass transit 141 RESOLUTION 970532 capital or operating expenses, though limits are placed on the amount that can be used for operating assistance. The Section 9 formula has two parts: The rail formula, which includes regional rail, subway elevated, trolleys and trackless trolleys, is based on 60 percent revenue vehicle miles and 40 percent route miles. The bus formula is based on 50 percent bus revenue vehicle miles, percent 12 population, and 25 percent population over density. 13 If a bus route were to replace a 14 trolley route, the amount of Section 9 funds 15 received for this route would decrease. 16 The Section 9 rail, or fixed guideway 17 funds, are meant to be used for maintenance of 18 infrastructure, as well as replacement of vehicles. 19 What we do not know is, if SEPTA is 20 currently receiving Section 9 funding for Routes 56, 21 15, and 23 as fixed guideways or as bus routes. 22 If they are being counted as fixed 23 guideways, does that imply that SEPTA is committed 24 to restoration of these routes as trolleys? 25 We are also afraid that SEPTA wants 142 RESOLUTION 970532 to eliminate the five trackless trolley routes in Philadelphia. The Phoenix Management Services report to SEPTA, dated March 19, 1997, recommended this on Pages 93 to 96 of the report. The Mayor's Office of Transportation, as well as many of the groups here today, want the trackless trolley routes retained, since they provide the same benefits as trolleys. I have attached to the original of this statement copies of recent correspondence on this issue. And I would be happy to meet with Councilwoman Fernandez' staff to provide additional material about this issue. We hope this Committee will also investigate the status of trackless trolleys with SEPTA. Thank you. (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you. Mr. Leary, would you be able to clarify for us whether Routes 15, 56, and 23, are they being counted as fixed guideways or as bus routes? 143 RESOLUTION 970532
I would have to check on that. I believe they are counted as bus routes. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Speak into the mike.
I would have to check on that to be absolutely certain. If I were to guess, though, I would say that they are being counted as bus routes, as part of the Section 9 operating assistance formula. Which, by the way, has been declining rapidly in the last couple of years, and is expected to disappear in the next two years. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Could you double-check it and get back that information to the Committee? I wasn't aware of the differences. Thank you very much for your testimony. Our last four people who have asked to testify are Reverend Michael S. Murray of Northeast Catholic High School, Mr. James Moody, Mr. Douglas Deahl, and Mr. James Royal. I would also like to acknowledge the presence here today of Frank Ryan, who I understand has been riding the 23 since 1918. So that perhaps 144 RESOLUTION 970532 makes him -- (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: So he may win the prize as the oldest rider here today. 6 (Applause. ) 7 CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: And Reverend 8 Murray is perhaps here with some of the youngest 9 riders. 10 REV. MICHAEL MURRAY: Thank you very 11 much for this opportunity. My name is Michael 12 Murray. I am with St. Francis DeSalles, presently 13 serving as President of Northeast Catholic High 14 School for Boys. 15 Let the record show that five of our 16 students are in fact missing class this morning, but 17 I am confident that they are getting an education. 18 Two points speaking on behalf of some 19 of our constituents, and one personal observation. 20 Many of our constituents, the people 21 who we serve and with whom we work in our 22 neighborhoods, effective tomorrow, if I am not 23 mistaken, will be spending more money to have their cars pass inspection to be in compliance with the Clean Air Act as it applies to Philadelphia. 145 RESOLUTION 970532 I think it would behove the city and the SEPTA Board to do what it can to be part of a comprehensive program that would go a long way in helping us to be in compliance with those federal requirements, as well as improving the quality of our air in Philadelphia. Second of all, the Vice-Chair of the SEPTA Board himself mentioned earlier that trolleys are perceived by people in our neighborhoods as, quote, an immovable resource. Many of our parents and businesspeople with whom I interact, especially through the Frankford Rotary, do see the trolleys as a dedicated resource. And it does speak of stability not only in neighborhoods in terms of where people live, but where they do business. And, finally, my personal observation. Much has been made of the impact that trolleys seem to have on people. Why people get nostalgic, why they get misty, why they get weepy, why they cry when they see trolleys, I cannot answer, insofar as I am not a psychiatrist or a cultural anthropologist. And I, for one, would not ask the SEPTA Board to 146 RESOLUTION 970532 spend a nickel for sentimentality. However, there is such a thing as emotional capital. And where emotional capital exists, people spend money. And people, I think, who would see the trolleys and the restoration of the service to the 15, 23, and especially, if I might say, to the 56, it does speak of stability, it does speak of a future, it does speak of a vision. And where there is stability, people will spend their money, be it increased ridership or in tourism. Thank you. (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you. Mr. James Moody.
Good morning, or good afternoon, whichever the time is. I was asked to come here by some neighbors on Ogontz Avenue. That's up on the other end, in the Northwest section of Philadelphia. We once had a trolley, No. 6 trolley. But SEPTA felt that in the middle '80s, that it would no longer satisfy their needs. And 147 RESOLUTION 970532 now we have, on that route, buses. And we have on the No. 6 bus route, those buses run every six minutes on the peak-hour. We not only have express bus; we have the non-express bus. And you can see that in the morning, around 8 o'clock, there are about 17 buses in that loop at Cheltenham and Ogontz, that they are in the No. C bus, the No. H bus, XH bus, and 6 bus. Now, I have heard this morning about all of the pollution that is occurring on these lines who now want the trolleys restored. You can see the problem that we are having in regard to air pollution. So I am down here to say that, personally, that if we are going to have the light rails back in this city, that the No. 6 line would like to have that trolley back. (Applause.)
Because we find that with all the problems that we are having since SEPTA -- they made us promises, too. Their promise was that it was going to run nice buses all the time. But up until about three years ago, the buses broke down. 148 RESOLUTION 970532 And, you know, we even had people who would ride from Ogontz and Cheltenham down to the Olney Avenue. They were betting whether or not the bus was going to get there, and most times it didn't. So now I realize, and I am sure a lot of people realize -- because I talk with people down in Washington -- light rail is not on their agenda, not part of that agenda. Because we have people down there who have a different mindset. We have people down there who say that we are going to get rid of transportation, if we can do it. So you see a problem. You know, I sympathize with SEPTA in the problems. But if we're going to have light rail system, let's make it a comprehensive thing, that it is going to benefit a lot of people in the Philadelphia area, and not like -- and not just the selected few. And this is what I am being told by some people in my area, that, yes, we are willing to go along with light rail system in Philadelphia, but we like to be a part of that light rail system. Thank you. 149 RESOLUTION 970532 (Applause.) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Our next witness, Douglas Deahl.
Thank you. My name is Douglas Deahl, I represent Tri-State Transit 21. We are an organization representing public transportation in Southeastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey, and Delaware. Tri-State Transit is proud that 11 the City of Philadelphia is committed to restoring 12 light rail service to the North Philadelphia 13 streetcar lines. 14 We applaud Mayor Ed Rendell and City 15 Council for seeing through SEPTA's plans to 16 permanently convert Routes 15, 23, and 56 to bus 17 operations and for SEPTA to honor its previous 18 commitments to the city. 19 Tri-State Transit 21 is concerned 20 that these rail lines will be restored without a 21 feasibility study to determine whether these routes need service adjustments to meet current passenger demands or to improve service quality. Tri-State Transit 21 does support restoration of rail service on Routes 15, 23, and 150 RESOLUTION 970532 56, and asks that the City of Philadelphia add Route 60 to this list. However, we will oppose restoration of rail service without a study to determine if these routes can be extended to serve new areas, providing new connections to key parts of the SEPTA system, or change to improve the reliability of the service. Millions of dollars will be spent to restore rail service in North Philadelphia, and we want to make sure that these rail lines will not only be efficient, quick, and reliable, but will meet the demands of the SEPTA riders well into the 21st Century. I am going to skip over the Route 15, since the Route 15 has been decided to come back. And I just am glad to see that, on looking at that map, that SEPTA does plan to extend the Route 15 to 63rd and Malvern, to offer Route 15 riders better transfer opportunities along City Avenue. I am going to go to Route 23. And I have a feeling this might be a little bit controversial, but our ideas can be changed for the future. 151 RESOLUTION 970532 Route operates along Germantown Avenue, 11th and 12th Street, and is the longest surface street car line in the world. It is also the route that SEPTA receives the most complaints about on the system because of its increasing unreliability. Unfortunately, there were some groups that insist Route be restored as a single rail 10 line, despite the operational problems that plague 11 this route. 12 Some organizations have made proposal 13 to speed up Route 23. But if the City of 14 Philadelphia and its police department cannot 15 strictly enforce the most basic traffic laws, such 16 as red means stop, how do you expect them to enforce 17 the laws that will make Route 23 more reliable? 18 To these groups we respond by saying, 19 it is time to break Route 23 up into three separate 20 light rail lines based on the ridership patterns. 21 And they would basically be broken up 22 as, the Route 23 would operate between Chestnut Hill 23 and 10th and Luzerne. Since most of the people along that line do transfer to the Broad Street Subway at Erie 152 RESOLUTION 970532 Avenue, there would be only a small amount, there may be some riders that would be inconvenienced, but they would be able to transfer along a common portion of the Route and the proposed rail line 6 from Wayne Junction to Center City. 7 Next, the second rail line we propose 8 for the Route 23 is the rail line between Wayne 9 Junction and 11th and Bainbridge Street. This would 10 operate between via Clarissa, Pulaski, and Erie 11 Avenues, down 11th and 12th Street, to Bainbridge 12 Street. 13 Since there are not a heck of a lot 14 of riders that go from North to South Philadelphia, 15 so breaking the route at Bainbridge Street would 16 enable to keep delays in South Philadelphia from 17 affecting service in North Philadelphia. 18 Passengers traveling south at 19 Bainbridge Street could transfer to the third light 20 rail line, which would operate from Center City to 21 South Philadelphia.
22 And that would be -- and the third 23 one would be from 12th and Girard to 10th and Bigler, and that would serve South Philadelphia. And since some trolleys would have to 153 RESOLUTION 970532 come from the Luzerne depot to get to South Philadelphia, there would be some through-routing of service between North Philadelphia and South Philadelphia. Service along 11th and 12th Street at Germantown Avenue is a vital part of the transit system. But we need to redesign the service to meet the needs of the riders, as well as improve service reliability. And that was my main concern about the Route 23, is the service reliability, since we all know that Germantown, 11th, and 12th Street are very narrow streets and are subject to many delays. Finally, on Route 56. Route 56 operates along Erie and Torresdale Avenue, and is an important cross-town route through North Philadelphia. Unfortunately, Route 56 faces some major problems. Erie Avenue is a slowly dying residential and industrial corridor, and many Torresdale residents are opposed to restoration of rail service. A renewed and expanded Route 56 rail line is the key to reviving both 56 ridership, as 154 RESOLUTION 970532 well as the Erie Avenue corridor. Erie Avenue is wide enough to accommodate both automobile and traffic and private right-of-way for light rail vehicles in the entire length. With this right-of-way, trolleys would be able to operate on faster schedules. Other changes must be made to Route 56 to meet the changing needs of transit riders. On the western end, service must be removed from Venango loop and relocated over the Route 53 trackage on Pulaski Avenue and Clarissa Street, to Wayne Junction, to give people along this section of Erie Avenue, Torresdale, access to the regional rail system which is not currently available today. Passengers who formerly rode that portion of Route 56 could ride both Routes H and XH, which provides better service. On the eastern end, SEPTA should seriously consider relocating Tacony Station on the R-7 to a location between Cottman and Princeton, where connections with Route 56 and the R-7 can be established. These service improvements, along 155 RESOLUTION 970532 with education on the positive side of light rail, should convince Torresdale Avenue residents to become light rail supporters. With these changes in place, Philadelphia will be able to attract and revive businesses along Erie Avenue, and by giving employers access to employees who live both in the city and in the suburbs. Conversely, residents along Erie Avenue and Torresdale will have access to the growing suburban job market. Route 56 has a lot of potential for success if SEPTA, the City of Philadelphia, and the residents work together to support light rail, instead of being opposed to. And, finally, in closing, Tri-State Transit is glad to see that someone does care 19 enough it make sure that Philadelphia does not go in 20 the opposite direction of other cities. 21 It is depressing to read magazines showing how other cities are building a new, successful rail system while SEPTA dismantles ours. Unfortunately, we may be gathering again, as the next plan is to dismantle the 156 RESOLUTION 970532 trackless trolley system in the city and convert it to diesel bus operations. If we continue to fight, maybe, just maybe, we can win and make Philadelphia the front-runner in public transportation, as it once was. ) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: And our last person to testify today is James Royal.
Good afternoon. We give our regard to the Chair of the Committee and to the Committee itself, and to Mr. Leary and to all the friends that are left here. My name is James Royal, and I represent the Noble Group, a corporation. And we will start off by saying that it is our intention at some point in the future to own the SEPTA system and to change it. But today we come speaking specifically to the LRV's, Routes 15, 23, and 56. We support the restoration. We also support the infrastructure and the rehabilitation that should be done. But we also give a slight caveat to our testimony. And, that is, if SEPTA cannot do it, 157 RESOLUTION 970532 the Noble Group will. We will get new trolleys, which we want to be built at the Navy Yard, we will do the infrastructure, and we will do it now. The question has been on the table for a long time, how can we get better service. Well, SEPTA sits in a unique position in the State of Pennsylvania. Because of a study that was done in, I think, 1991, where it shows that if SEPTA goes down, it affects the entire State of Pennsylvania. And, also, in that same report it showed that SEPTA itself is the best vehicle carrier per man. In other words, pull the people out of the cars and riding on buses. But at the same time, for those people that stand on the corners waiting for buses, that's not a very high mark to reach. We believe what the problem is, is two things, management and money. SEPTA is in a bad position management-wise. I think a little earlier the question was put before Mr. Leary about making a promise that he couldn't make. 158 RESOLUTION 970532 The SEPTA Board is made up of suburbs versus city, and they both have competing interests. But at the same time, they both want to accomplish the same goal. Well, we are here as Noble Group, we can solve all those problems. Because SEPTA needs money, it needs billions of dollars, right now. We are not talking about the history. We are not talking about, you know, the pie in the sky. It needs money right now for the capital, as well as operating problems. So, in essence, we are trying to say in a very short time, because we agree with most of the things that have been said. But we stand at the door, if the Committee has no other alternative, to not just talk about things, but implement the restoration of these trolley lines and others. And there should be expansion. SEPTA should be going the exact opposite way. But, again, we think some of the thinking inside the SEPTA system, some of the thinking at the state level, as well as the federal level, with the cutting back of dollars, is just like a man trying to swim that has 159 RESOLUTION 970532 a cramp, and he just got finished eating two hoagies. You are out there thrashing in the water, you are in the pain, and everybody is standing around looking at the guy, should have known better than to jump in the water. Look, we are in the water now. If we want to get things straightened out, then we are going to either straighten it up with what we have, or start to do something to bring us up into the 21st Century. Clean Air Act is upon us. I mean, a lot of things that supposed to have happened, haven't happened. That also has to happen right along with this process. The Clean Air Act will pull people out of their cars. If the SEPTA system or the transit system is a better system, a cheaper system, folks will ride, they will park their cars. So we are here today to support the Route 15, 23, and 56. And if SEPTA cannot lay out any timetable, and we talk about reasonable, within the next year or so, we are talking about our trains and buses and things, we want to build them in the 160 RESOLUTION 970532 city so that we have a double, triple effect. Not only do we have good jobs, but we also have a good transportation system that we built ourselves. I want to thank so much. CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: Thank you.
) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: I would also like to note for the record that I am entering the written testimony of the Spruce Hill Community Association and of the Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association. Councilman DiCicco, did you have any comments as we're winding up? COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: Yes. Thank you, Madam Chair. I would like to thank John Leary and his staff for being here and staying through these proceedings. (Applause. ) COUNCILMAN DiCICCO: I would like to thank every one of you who are here today representing yourselves or your communities for the fine presentation. 161 RESOLUTION 970532 In the year and a half or so that I have been in Council, I can honestly say that this has probably been one of the best organized public hearings I have attended. You have all been very well informed in your presentation to us. I would think that it would be -- I would like to say that I obviously support this endeavor. And I would think that to a person in City Council, you would probably have everyone's support. So as Miss Petrone said earlier, you are actually preaching to the choir. And we will continue to do whatever it is that we can in our positions, respective positions, to support this program and make certain that we can restore those three lines. There have been mentioned several times during the testimony this morning, and we made reference to, the SEPTA Board, and the fact that Philadelphia only has 2 representatives out of 15. With all due respect to the other 13 representatives of the Board, and to the 2 Philadelphia representatives, who I know are doing a fantastic job in trying to get the message out to the other Board members of how important not only 162 RESOLUTION 970532 the three lines that we are talking to this morning are to the City of Philadelphia, but SEPTA in general and public transportation in the city. But the political reality of it is that the other Board members have a constituency 7 that they need to represent. And they are going to 8 do what it takes to represent that constituency. 9 But I think the other part of the 10 political reality is, hearing all of the community 11 groups, the business groups, the advisory councils 12 and coalitions that are here today, you all 13 represent a considerable number of people, and that translates into voters. See, I am a politician, and I believe in numbers. And what makes us tick are numbers and people voting. In a very short period of time, just in a few months, the gubernatorial election, or the race for the Governor's seat, will heat up. And just this morning Governor Ridge was at the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce breakfast suggesting that he wants a partnership with Philadelphia, he wants to be a friend of Philadelphia. And I think we need to hold him to 163 RESOLUTION 970532 that. So my suggestion is -- I think it is a very simple thing, but it will take some time. And I know all of you have spent a lot of time, and I commend you for what you have done to date -- is to begin to petition people in your communities, petition people who are along those lines that we are talking to this morning, and send those petitions to the Governor. Because I would venture to say we are probably talking in the tens of thousands of voters. And I don't think that is an exaggeration here. The line, as we know, is the longest line 15 in the world. It goes through just about every 16 single neighborhood in the city. 17 And in the wards that I represent at 18 the southern end, just south of Market Street, as an 19 example, there are probably 20 to 30 thousand voters 20 in those three or four wards. 21 And if you took that and followed 22 that through all the way up through Chestnut Hill, 23 West Philadelphia, North Philly, or wherever the 23 line, as an example, travels through, you will have a significant voice. 164 RESOLUTION 970532 And I think the next Governor, be it a he or she, would have to pay attention to you. I think that's the bottom line.
So, again, we are paying attention, we will continue to pay attention -- "we" meaning City Council, the Chairperson -- Madam Chairperson Fernandez will continue to do what she does best. And she is really good with public transportation. But I think you need to go to the next level. I think it would be helpful to all of us if you take it up to the next level. And, again, political people, politicians, we do listen. And we pay attention to people who vote, especially when they are vocal. So I would encourage you to do that. And if you need our Committee to be helpful in any way in organizing that petition drive, I'm sure we would be more than glad to sit down with you and work out the details of that. And, again, thank you all for being here. Thank you. ) CHAIRWOMAN FERNANDEZ: I want to thank my colleague Councilman DiCicco for his 165 RESOLUTION 970532 sustained and personal interest in public transportation. I would also like to thank Mr. Leary and your staff for staying all morning to hear firsthand how strongly people feel and how important they feel the restoration of these trolleys are to our neighborhood health and economic vitality. Certainly this link between revitalizing our neighborhoods and sustaining our neighborhoods, and how that links with economic development and tourism and the future of tourism in our city, is a very important link. I would just like to second and underscore what my colleague said about where we need to go from today. I think these have been very effective hearings. And if each person who has testified is willing to take that little bit of extra time to try, in as personal a way as possible, to get your message to other members of the SEPTA Board and other elected officials like Governor Ridge, the people who appoint some of the members to the Board, to get your personal message. And for people who testified, could I 166 RESOLUTION 970532 suggest if you have written testimony, make some copies and send it with a little personal handwritten note to other members of the SEPTA Board to make sure they personally hear from you on this. The official transcript will be sent. I invited personally all of them by letter to come to this hearing, so they know about the hearing. But if you can do that followup, we will do similar kinds of followup. I think what we need to do is build the base of political support, so that Mr. Leary will have the support on the SEPTA Board when the capital budget comes up for review next year. And if I could just put it in pretty blunt terms, Route 15, which will be the Girard Avenue light rail, whatever they are going to call it, that is on their radar screen, plans are moving ahead to restore that Route 15 trolley. But and 56 are so far out, Years 7 22 to 12 of the capital budget, that's like 23 nowheres-ville. And your only hope is to get their attention so that next year, when they review the 167 RESOLUTION 970532 capital budget, Routes and 56 get moved up on the agenda. Because, essentially, to be out in the 7 to 12 years out means it is nowheres. So our job, working together, is to continue your advocacy, to be vocal, to communicate your very deep concern over the next year. So when the SEPTA Board next year considers its capital budget, there may be the political support to move it higher on the agenda and to get it on the radar screen. So, again, thank you all for your time, your testimony, and for your continued commitment to get this trolley service restored for our city. Thank you. ) - - - 168 C E R T I F I C A T I O N I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing proceedings of the Council of the City of Philadelphia of Tuesday, September 30, 1997, were reported fully and accurately by me, and that this is a correct transcript of same. RE: COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION AND PUBLIC UTILITIES _____________________________________ DEBRA A. WHITEHEAD, RPR