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Robot Story of the Week: A Frustrated Philly Sports Fan Considers Taking Regional Rail to the Broad Street Line
Published:
We did a story Tuesday titled The Worst Part About Driving to and from the Sports Complex is that We’ve Accepted the Gridlocked Hellscape as Normal. I wouldn’t say it stirred up the hornet’s nest, but it did generate a lot of buzz because people have passionate opinions about urbanism and mass transit and all of that. The topic is especially touchy because SEPTA is circling the funding drain as we speak.
As an aside, we decided it would be a good idea to run a couple of experiments this summer to compare and contrast different ways of getting to the Sports Complex.
Option 1: drive down and back and sit in traffic.
Option 2: drive somewhere in the city (Fern Rock, for example) and then get on the Broad Street Line.
Option 3: Take regional rail to Suburban Station, switch off, ride the BSL down.
We can time each trip and see if it’s more or less efficient, enjoyable, and affordable. This would be good #content that everyone can relate to.
Meantime, ChatGPT had this to say about a conflicted fan who is sick of the sports complex traffic and unregulated, postgame, asshole free-for-all:
Title: The Crossroads of a Collegeville Fan“
It was a damp, gray Wednesday in late May, the kind of day where the rain seemed to seep into your bones, and the sky hung low over Philadelphia. The forecast had warned of rain and cooler temperatures, and it had delivered.
Mike, a lifelong Philadelphia sports fan from Collegeville, sat in his car, inching forward in the post-game traffic near the South Philadelphia Sports Complex. The Phillies had just clinched a thrilling victory, but the euphoria was quickly fading as he stared at the sea of brake lights ahead.
“Every time,” he muttered, gripping the steering wheel. “Every single time.”
He had left his home hours earlier, hoping to beat the rush. But with multiple events happening simultaneously—a Phillies game, a Flyers match, and a major soccer game—the area was a madhouse. Parking lots had reached capacity, and even I-95 exits were closed due to the congestion.
Mike had always preferred driving. He liked the control, the ability to leave when he wanted, to avoid the unpredictability of public transportation. But tonight, as he sat motionless on Pattison Avenue, he began to question his choices.
He recalled a conversation he’d had with a fellow fan on Reddit:
“Take SEPTA, talking to phans on the way and back is a fun time.”
He had dismissed it at the time. The idea of coordinating Regional Rail schedules, transferring to the Broad Street Line, and dealing with potential delays seemed more trouble than it was worth.
But now, trapped in his car with no end in sight, the idea seemed more appealing.
He thought about the Broad Street Line, which ran every 7 minutes during rush hours and every 12 minutes during off-peak times. The express trains, stopping at key stations, could get him from Center City to NRG Station in about 15 minutes.
He imagined parking at Fern Rock Transportation Center, hopping on the subway, and avoiding the nightmare he was currently experiencing.
Sure, Regional Rail had its issues—limited late-night service and hourly trains—but perhaps the trade-off was worth it.
As he finally crawled onto the highway, hours after the game had ended, Mike made a decision.
Next time, he’d give SEPTA a try.
The next weekend, he parked at Fern Rock, boarded the Broad Street Line, and found himself at the stadium with time to spare. The ride was smooth, the fellow fans were lively, and the stress of traffic was a distant memory.
After the game, he joined the crowd heading back to the subway. There was a line, but it moved quickly. He was home in Collegeville before he knew it.
Sitting in his living room, reliving the game’s highlights, Mike smiled.
“Maybe I’m a convert,” he thought. “Maybe mass transit isn’t so bad after all.
It’s a pretty good story. The only thing somewhat implausible is the idea of someone from Collegeville driving to Fern Rock. That’s probably 50 minutes right there. If you’re coming from that direction, you’d probably just roll into Norristown and then take the Regional Rail into Center City and do the exchange there. Or would you? That’s the question. Is Regional Rail to Center City faster than driving your car to Fern Rock? Not everybody is served by Fern Rock anyway. That’s only an option for people in parts of Montco and lower Bucks. If you’re coming in from the Chesco, Delco, New Jersey, or Delaware, it’s not a thing.
But we’ll run the experiments and deliver our findings. The other thing is that if you ride the subway, you can play PA online casinos on your phone! Using PA casino bonuses, of course.
Kevin has been writing about Philadelphia sports since 2009. He spent seven years in the CBS 3 sports department and started with the Union during the team's 2010 inaugural season. He went to the academic powerhouses of Boyertown High School and West Virginia University. email - k.kinkead@sportradar.com