From the General Manager
Message from General Manager
Report to our Customers and Commissioners - December, 2019
Full Accessibility at Haddonfield – On December 19, the Mayor of Haddonfield joined PATCO President John Hanson and PATCO General Manager John Rink in cutting the ribbon and taking the inaugural trip on a brand new elevator at our Haddonfield Station. This is the second of the eight new elevators that will make PATCO completely accessible to the disabled and significantly increase convenience for those who bring strollers and bicycles on the train.
Work is currently progressing at Ashland, where the elevator is scheduled to be complete in the spring, and at Westmont and 13th/Locust Street Stations.
Ridership – Ridership in December, 2019 was 895,747, an increase of 38,961 (+4.55%) when compared to December of 2018. A comparison of the calendars reveals that December of 2019 had one more weekday than 2018, and the Christmas holiday fell on a Wednesday rather than a Tuesday, possibly affecting the number of commuting days.
The best news is that our ridership for the year totaled 11,107,310, an increase of 317,939 (+2.95%) compared to 2018. This is the highest ridership in 25 years.
COMMUNITY
Here Comes Santa Claus with his Reindeer and Elves – On Saturday, December 7, a festive, music-filled, decorated six-car train transported enthusiastic crowds on three special trips into the city. Every child had an opportunity to tell Santa what he or she wanted, and delighted parents took photos. Our ridership that day was 23,558, significantly higher than an average Saturday (15,416), and that doesn’t even count children under 5 who rode at no charge. PATCO “elves” handed out stickers and candy canes as well as a holiday brochure and map to help families plan their extraordinary day in the city. This annual event has become a holiday tradition for many families as well as a pleasant surprise for some adults who happened to take “Santa’s Silver Sleigh” instead of the regularly scheduled trains.
School Field Trips – PATCO hosted seven field trips in December, enabling 175 students to enjoy the holiday attractions in Center City.
SERVICE
New Owl Schedule and Security App – On December 7, PATCO changed its schedule for late night service for all stations (with the exception of 9th/Locust that is traditionally closed at night) to address security concerns. The changes enable Public Safety to provide an officer on every train during the wee hours of the morning. In addition, a new App enables customers to discreetly report any situation that makes them uncomfortable.
Celebration of PATCO’s 50th Anniversary at Ashland Station – On December 17, PATCO staff greeted passengers at Ashland Station with soft pretzels, free tape measures, and cheerful music. This last of the monthly 50th anniversary station events coincided with the opening of the new stairway to the west head house. Our customers at Ashland Station had been limited to a single stairway for nearly a year during elevator construction, and had been patiently awaiting the new configuration, which was necessary to accommodate an elevator shaft.
Customers spun a prize wheel for a pre-loaded $50 FREEDOM card, round-trip ticket, free ride, 50th anniversary T shirt and assorted promotional items. Spinning the blank spot on the wheel entitled many a pleased passenger to a choice of any of the gifts on the table or to one of the two prizes that are normally available only on the Zazzle sales website: a 50th anniversary PATCO tote bag and playing cards that look like legacy tickets.
On-Time Performance – In December, 2019, we had scheduled 5,794 trips, of which 47 trips were cancelled, 110 trains were late, and 81 stations were bypassed. Our on-time performance was 97.18% for the month and 96.86% for the year overall. This monthly and yearly performance was superior to that of 2018, 2017, and 2016.
Availability of Transit Equipment – PATCO closely monitors the availability of equipment to meet the needs of our peak service customers. Wheel flats were one of the primary causes for equipment shortages due to leaf season, but often we were able to substitute a four-car train for a six-car train to avoid having to cancel trips altogether. Rehabilitation of the west yard also affected our ability to move trains from storage out onto the mainline.
FREEDOM Service Centers – In December, the Service Centers replaced 290 FREEDOM Cards that reached their 10 year expiration mark. In addition, 180 seniors (age 65 and above) and disabled customers signed up for the Reduced Fare Program, enabling them to take advantage of reduced fares during off-peak hours. Ninety-three customers signed up for the FREEDOM Share card for use on both PATCO and SEPTA, and 20 “T” cards were issued to transit benefit customers. Furthermore, three students signed up for a FREEDOM card, saving the $5 cost of the card by showing their educational ID.
Totals for all of 2019 are as follows:
FREEDOM Card replacements 4,420
Reduced Fare Card sign-ups 2,112
Share Cards issued 754
T Cards issued 197
Student Sign-ups 184
Passenger Services – Lost & Found – In 2019, PATCO’s Lost & Found processed almost 1900 items. One-hundred ninety-five (195) happy customers retrieved cell phones, 116 were reunited with a purse or wallet, 75 were relieved to recover their house or car keys (especially expensive remotes), 10 ecstatic passengers were delighted to get their laptop or tablet back, and hundreds of others were pleased to reclaim ID or FREEDOM cards, iPods/accessories, umbrellas, eyeglasses, gloves, scarves, jewelry, etc. Throughout the year, over 450 customers reached out to us via email in addition to social media and telephone inquiries about belongings they had lost.
STEWARDSHIP
Management Site Visits – Each month members of PATCO’s management team ride the trains and visit PATCO train stations. They are challenged to put themselves in the customer’s shoes and note any situation that needs attention, as well as to report on issues that a customer may not notice but that we know are important. They check the trains and stations for signage, cleanliness, announcements, comfort, and lighting; in addition, they check station AED/first aid kits and elevator/escalator status. In 2019, a total of 406 site visits/train rides were reported, and their observations were recorded and used to improve the customer experience.
Elevators / Escalators
Availability – Availability of all elevators was 99.18% for the month and 98.46% for the year. Availability of all escalators was 95.32% for the month and 96.55% for the year, exceeding our goal of 96%. Sixty-three percent (63%) of the escalator outage in December was at Haddonfield Station.
Performance of Preventive Maintenance - Monthly preventive maintenance was performed on all elevators and escalators in December. Note that the new elevators at Collingswood and Haddonfield are under warranty.
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