philabob1

Jul 15 2008, 09:07 PM

Southern_8100

Jul 14 2008, 11:52 PM

27 is too long. It shouldn't go to Plymouth Meeting - it should be cut back to Barren Hill. The Manayunk Ave routing should also be reconsidered - very slow. The entire Expressway routing should also be rethought - often, the express via local route service is faster (once a regular Friday afternoon thing).

The 27 does need some reformulation to get it out of the red zone (it is not meeting the SEPTA ridership standards). However, Plymouth Meeting Mall service IS necessary. For instance, the 27 is the ONLY bus on Ridge Pike up to Ridge & Butler Avenues in Conshohocken. Also, there are many people that take the bus to the mall and to the Metroplex, especially overnight workers at Target. You want to deny them service? I know personally, as a rider to takes the 27 from Center City (and occasionally Wissahicken Transfer Center) to our lovely mall in Plymouth Meeting to transfer to suburban transit services, I wouldn't waste time trying to catch the bus to/from Barren Hill.

If you ask me, the part that should be cut is the section between Broad and Washington and I guess Broad and South/Locust. Buses are generally empty here outside of school hours, and traffic on Broad Street tends to cause delays for the buses.

At first, I thought the Manyunk Ave route was slower than just going up Ridge Pike. However, one day a late running driver went via Ridge Pike in an effort to make up time. With all of the traffic lights (remember, Manyunk Ave only has stop signs) it seemed to actually take longer going via Ridge Pike than it would have just going up Manyunk Avenue. I cringe to think of how the artics handle those hills in the snowtime, especially since it seems that they always manage to pass each other on that narrow road.

There was a proposal a couple years ago to take the 27 off of the highway. Instead, it would essentially go via the diversion routing, going down the Parkway. With the longer routing, the route would be cut back at Broad and Locust. I thought it was a fantastic idea, but the idea was shot down as being "Not Recommended". The 98 Ambler short turns being extended to the Fort Washington Business Complex suffered the same fate.

Too bad a lot of artic runs may likely be cut in the fall. Like other routes, it's suffering the "New Flyer Fate". Well, it'll be a lot less interesting to ride - so much for having a way to get an "artic ride home". Does the 14 really need artics 24/7 though as SEPTA is allegedly calling for? I think that's a bit overkill, especially as the route runs hourly headways in OWL service.