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Released:7/16/2014
Overview of Estimating PATCO Service Delays
Some of our customers have expressed interest in how we estimate delays in PATCO service. This is a description of our process in order to show our customers our commitment to providing as much information as possible in a timely manner and the challenges we face in predicting service delays:
We strive to provide our PATCO customers with the most accurate service information available as quickly as possible. When situations occur that may have an adverse impact on service, such as a disabled train or a passenger emergency, the number one responsibility of our train dispatchers is to resolve the situation safely and expediently. While resolving the problem, our dispatcher and support staff notify our PATCO customers about the cause and location of the issue and the estimated delay via public address announcements in the stations, Travel-Alerts via email and text messages, and Twitter/Facebook postings.
All train delays are based upon the scheduled arrival time at a terminal point, either Lindenwold or 16th and Locust Street Stations. When we have a delay, the dispatcher’s estimations are based upon: 1) the amount of time a train is stopped without moving and 2) how long it takes for that train to get to a terminal point. If for example, at 7:10 a.m., an issue develops with a train at Ferry Avenue Station that takes five minutes to investigate and resolve (a five minute standing delay) and that train is scheduled to arrive at 16th and Locust at 7:27 a.m., we would estimate that it will actually arrive at 7:33 a.m., five minutes late. Depending on the headway that is being operated (intervals between trains) all subsequent trains will arrive at 16th & Locust Street Station between five to ten minutes late. In this example, we would make announcements that westbound service will experience delays of approximately 5-10 minutes.
In the past, PATCO’s policy was to alert customers about delays when the length of the delay was more than 10 minutes. Given our customers’ recent requests for more communication, we decided to provide more frequent information on delays whenever possible, even if the delay will last less than 10 minutes.
The train experiencing the problem is often not the only train that will be delayed due to the issue. Residual delays are a result of the initial problem compounded by: 1) reduced train speed and trains stopping due to the closeness of trains, 2) track availability which is limited to only 1 track during the track outages from the BFB Track Rehabilitation Project and 3) by the longer dwell time (the length of time a train stops at each station to pick up passengers) required in order to pick up the increased number of customers waiting at stations. (When trains are unable to pick up passengers because they are stopped, customers continue to enter our stations. As more customers wait on the platforms, especially during rush hours, trains will need to wait at each station longer so everyone can board.) Even if the train experiencing the problem is up and running again within minutes, the residual delays affecting other trains can compound very quickly and can last for up to an hour.
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We attempt to resolve each situation as quickly as possible, however, each delay has its own unique circumstances which may impact and compound the delay. This sometimes results in later than anticipated arrivals and departures, thus making some estimated delay notifications inaccurate.
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Sometimes our customers will report an incident, such as a stalled train, via social media the moment it happens and are disappointed that PATCO has not issued a delay notification yet. It is important to note that when an incident occurs, our first priority is the safety of our customers. Once we understand what the problem is by speaking with the train operator and other staff, then we begin to address the problem. Next, we anticipate the length of the delay and create and send the notification. The information we push out must be as accurate as possible and thus takes time to produce. We ask that our customers be patient when waiting for delay notifications.
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At times only one train is leaving late. In that case, we typically chose not to send out a travel alert via text or email to all 26,000+ travel alert subscribers because we don’t want to inundate our customers with information that only affects a small number of passengers.
We understand the ramifications and inconvenience all delays have on our customers, especially during rush hours. We always try to provide the best level of service possible; however, problems and delays are inevitable. We are continually looking for ways to improve our ability to accurately communicate delay information to our customers so they will know what the problem is and how it will affect their trip. PATCO pledges to do our absolute best in keeping our customers informed. PATCO is active on social media presence and is monitoring and answering questions on social media from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Fridays. To receive service updates and delay information, please follow us on Twitter, “like” us on Facebook, or sign up for travel alerts (via text message or email).
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