Passenger Trains > SEPTA's Great Valley Flyer with ex-NJT Comet I cars

SEPTA purchased eight Comet I cars from NJ Transit's retired fleet when they ran into capacity constraints. The set started revenue service on Monday Oct 27 and was photographed arriving at 30th Street Station, Philadelphia, on SEPTA's Great Valley Flyer on Wednesday Oct 29, a few hours before the Phillies won the World Series.

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SEPTA pictures and a Philadelphia Championship...all is truly right in the world.
Cheers,
Nick

I thought SEPTA was trying to sell off its electric locos and non-powered coaches?

pennsy3750 Wrote:
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> I thought SEPTA was trying to sell off its
> electric locos and non-powered coaches?

That was before ridership started to explode due to skyrocketing gas prices.

Even with the current (temporary) decline at the pump, the amount of people taking the train seems to be keeping up.

BTW, I saw this set this morning from the window of my late-running (due to crowds coming for the Phillies parade) Warminster-Wilmington R2 train.

P.S. It's proving to be an interesting day for SEPTA. As of now, it appears that all inbound trains have been suspended as the agency tries to stage as munch equipment as possible in Center City to handle the massive post-parade crowds.

Please advise this Southern Californian: What's the Great Valley Flyer? I try to "keep track" of all electric railway activities, but this seems to have gone under the radar (or not crossed the Mississippi River).
Bob Davis
Electric railway enthusiast and
LA Dodger fan--"Wait 'til next year!!"

DNRY122 Wrote:
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> Please advise this Southern Californian: What's
> the Great Valley Flyer? I try to "keep track" of
> all electric railway activities, but this seems to
> have gone under the radar (or not crossed the
> Mississippi River).
> Bob Davis
> Electric railway enthusiast and
> LA Dodger fan--"Wait 'til next year!!"

SEPTA R5 Regional Rail train on the former PRR Main Line from Thorndale to Philadelphia in the morning and back in the afternoon, nonstop between Paoli and 30th Street.

ChS7-321 Wrote:
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> BTW, I saw this set this morning from the window
> of my late-running (due to crowds coming for the
> Phillies parade) Warminster-Wilmington R2 train.
>
> P.S. It's proving to be an interesting day for
> SEPTA. As of now, it appears that all inbound
> trains have been suspended as the agency tries to
> stage as munch equipment as possible in Center
> City to handle the massive post-parade crowds.

SEPTA did what they could, but couldn't handle the crushing crowds. Around noon, before the meltdown, they had added a Silverliner II and Silverliner III to a four car SL IV train, and they ran their push-pulls mid day, photographed at 30th Street Station.
The Market Street Subway platform at 30th Street was cowded at noon.

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They sure had a time of it, but I don't think anybody expected 3 million people to show up and all at the same time. As a season ticket holder I was at the Ball Park for the show today and they did not allow any parking at the stadium lot. There were 45,000 in the Bank, and more in the Linc. At the end almost all of them went to get on the subway all at once. It was a little slow and it took us about 10 minutes to get to the track and we got the third train to leave after we got to the platform. SEPTA got smart and had people standing with sacks at open gates to collect tokens and cash, and everybody ignored the turnstiles. It is amazing to watch an 8 car empty train literally swallow the people on the platform. I'm guessing each train rolled out of Pattison with over 2000 people on them. It took us exactly 45 mins to go from the ball park to 30th street in that melee. The bad news was every station up Broad St. was wall to wall people, who couldn't get on the already packed trains. I went to 30th st. as a hedge to get on a Reading side train it worked as the train was packed leaving Suburban.

All in all it was a fun day. Go Phillies!!

I work in Wilmington, and we got out at 3pm. I left a little early to catch the 2:45 R2. That didn't happen until like 3:30.

My end destination is Willow Grove (R2 line, but on the Reading side). I'll do a little travelogue of my commute home a little later. It was, um, interesting.......

MW4man Wrote:
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> They sure had a time of it, but I don't think
> anybody expected 3 million people to show up and
> all at the same time. As a season ticket holder I
> was at the Ball Park for the show today and they
> did not allow any parking at the stadium lot.
> There were 45,000 in the Bank, and more in the
> Linc. At the end almost all of them went to get on
> the subway all at once. It was a little slow and
> it took us about 10 minutes to get to the track
> and we got the third train to leave after we got
> to the platform. SEPTA got smart and had people
> standing with sacks at open gates to collect
> tokens and cash, and everybody ignored the
> turnstiles. It is amazing to watch an 8 car empty
> train literally swallow the people on the
> platform. I'm guessing each train rolled out of
> Pattison with over 2000 people on them. It took
> us exactly 45 mins to go from the ball park to
> 30th street in that melee. The bad news was every
> station up Broad St. was wall to wall people, who
> couldn't get on the already packed trains. I went
> to 30th st. as a hedge to get on a Reading side
> train it worked as the train was packed leaving
> Suburban.
>
> All in all it was a fun day. Go Phillies!!