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Archive for October, 2013

Doomsday Plan Could Wreck the Regional Rail Lines in SE PA

Update: November 20, 2013, Pennsylvania House voted 104-95 to give key preliminary approval to the $2.4 billion transportation funding program.

A Ticket to Ride

Last evening as I was boarding the Media-Elwin Regional Rail at the 15th Street Station, I watched as passengers streamed onto the train filling up the seats and then standing in the aisles. It seemed incredulous to me that considering both the crisis of global warming and the thousands of riders who depend on public transportation, that SEPTA (Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority) has presented a “doomsday” proposal to shut down the Elwin-Media line, as well as closing eight other regional rail lines.

Will deserted stations become the norm?

During the Pennsylvania State Transportation Committee hearing held at Temple University on September 12, 2013, SEPTA General Manager Joseph M. Casey stated that these changes would affect 89,000 daily transportation users. Yet, just two months ago, SEPTA announced an all-time high in regional rail ridership. Passengers made over 36 million trips in a year’s time, including 2.9 million on the Media-Elwyn line.

Leaving the Wallingford Station

Commuter Nightmare

The hardships created by such a shutdown are almost immeasurable. People with disabilities, senior citizens, and those unable to afford an automobile would be prevented from getting to their jobs and medical appointments. Paratransit service for the handicapped would be reduced. Students requiring transportation into the city from the Western suburbs would find it difficult to get to Penn, Temple and Drexel, and the 31 other universities in the city and surrounds. The young man sitting next to me was studying a medical textbook. Trains allow time for people to study, read, socialize or just relax, which is totally unavailable to automobile commuters. Increased car traffic would add to the congestion on our already crowded highways. Economic losses would befall Philadelphia as suburbanites rely on public transportation to bring them into the city for volunteer work, cultural activities and special events. Philadelphia could lose 60,000 jobs. According to a study released by SEPTA, home values would drop if Regional Rail service would be cancelled.

The average property value premium for houses located in counties is $7,900. Homes in communities with higher levels of Regional Rail service and parking capacity, the property value premium averages between $31,000 and $37,000 per house.

Closed Ticket Windows . . . the future for Delaware County Riders?

Funding Held Up in State House

Without funding from the state for SEPTA’s backlog of critical repair work to the tune of $6.5 billion, the Authority will have to significantly shrink the transit system over the next 10 years, SEPTA General Manager Joseph M. Casey reported during his testimony at the hearing. Four trestles, which are over 100 years old, need significant repairs. Unless Pennsylvania legislators approve this funding, commuter citizens will be held hostage by the politics of the State. A small minority of state legislators are set against it as lawmakers wrangle over funding allowances and tax increases. Currently, the bill is held up in the Republican-led house.

Cuts will cause layoff of hundreds of SEPTA employees.

Citizens Rally for Transportation

Delaware County citizens have been rallying support for SEPTA funding. A Swarthmore college student started an on-line petition and has collected over 3,200 signatures so far. At a press conference on October 18 at the Media Courthouse, (Former) Governor Rendell, standing with local Democrats as well as a few Republicans, expressed his objections to the possible closure of the Media-Elwyn line. Rendell encouraged supporters to support the passage of SB-1, the transportation bill that’s been proposed to fund SEPTA.

Protest at Media Courthouse

Rendell addressed the crowd stating,

There are 37 counties with transportation systems in Pennsylvania and all of them would benefit, in my opinion by the bill. The bill would have produced $400 million dollars a year annually for public transportation . . . something that is desperately needed, something in the past we wouldn’t be talking about closing the Media-Elwin line, we wouldn’t be talking about cutbacks not here in Delaware County . . . we should actually be talking about improving public transit.

Former Governor Rendell speaks to demonstrators.

End of the Line?

Later that week, after returning from Philadelphia on the Media-Elwin line, I watched as our train left the Wallingford station, fading into the darkness. I wondered if concerned citizens can rally lawmakers so that our public transportation does not disappear from sight.

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Old City Seaport Festival and Pirate Battle on the Delaware

Harking Back

The last time my sister, Jean, and I met pirates, we had just happened upon the Beaufort Pirate Invasion, taking place as we stepped into the battle scene a summer ago in the seaside village in North Carolina. We promised we would not let too much time go by before finding another similar event. The opportunity came along when the Independence Seaport Museum hosted its 2nd Annual Old City Seaport Festival, in a weekend-long celebration with music, crafts and Tall Ships, with a smattering of pirates. On the first evening, the festival began with the Parade of Boats as they came to port just below the Ben Franklin Bridge.

On the next evening, the AJ Meerwald, Gazela Primiero Pride of Baltimore II, Mystic Whaler Kalmar Nyckel, Virginia and Hindu were destined to clash in a pirate battle. We signed up to be aboard the Kalmar Nyckel. Built by the Dutch, the original ship dated back to around 1625. This flagship of Governor Minuit brought settlers to the New World, establishing the colony of New Sweden on the banks of the Christina River in 1638. An informative and lovely guidebook on the ship’s history is available on the web. The ship was rebuilt in Wilmington, Delaware, and commissioned in 1998. The Kalmar Nyckel is an example of a full-rigged type of pinnance, which is a kind of boat, generally modest in size, that was used either as a merchant vessel or small warship. Pirates prized these ships because they had maneuverability through rugged coastlines and good speed to outrun any vessel that might be in pursuit.

Cover illustration by N.C. Wyeth from 1911, Wikipedia

There is a degree of authenticity to a pirate battle. Mostly what we learn about pirates is from movies and television, while authentic history has been sorely neglected. My first introduction to pirates came through Treasure Island, a novel by Robert Lewis Stevenson, which popularized many of the associations with pirates, such as treasure maps, parrots, and the familiar ballad,

“Fifteen men on the dead man’s chest— Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum! Drink and the devil had done for the rest— Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum!”

A quick search into a few authoritative sources reveals the extent that colonial villages were affected by the onslaught and fear of attack from both foreign pirates, truly a multi-national representation including the French, Spanish, Dutch and English, as well as the local variety, with the first raid recorded in Lewes, Delaware, back in 1672. Seems that Blackbeard also frequented the Delaware, as he supposedly stopped into the many taverns along the waterway.

Wench Wear?

Jean had this idea that since we were going to be onboard during a pirate battle, we should dress the part. We cobbled together costumes from outfits in our closets (wardrobes should always include a few whimsical pieces when transformations are called for), and we were ll set to go with Jean’s orange and black-stripped socks and my hat, replete with feathers. Did we look like real pirates? . . . oh, not a chance, but maybe we could have fit in with Pirates of the Caribbean crew.

We took the train into center city and headed down toward Penn’s Landing. We shook our heads as we passed the closed and shuttered Constitution Center, thanks to those idiots in Congress, the scourges of the seven seas, who shut down the government. By chance, we happened to run into my son, John, who was participating in a demonstration against Monsanto, taking place just across from the Constitution Center. Activists had designated October 12 as International Day of Protest against the company because of questions around food safety. Fellow WordPress blogger, Jeff Nguyen, has written an excellent post on Agent Orange and Monsanto.

After bidding John adieu, we continued walking to the Seaport Museum. The wind whipped around the buildings as we approached the Delaware River, were we could see white caps on the churning waters. I thought back to a sail on the Amistad, which had to be postponed because of high winds and wondered if the battle would take place. We walked along the pier where vendors were selling everything from jewelry to “wench wear.” Several organizations had also set up information booths, and we spoke with members of the Steamship Historical Society of America.

Shiver Me Timbers! Striped Socks Spikes a Spirited Sentiment!

A green tug boat had been tied to the pier, and visitors were encouraged to tour the tug. Once powered by steam, the boat now runs on diesel fuel. We checked out the kitchen, boiler room, living quarters and bridge, and rang the brass bell. We were welcomed us onboard, with one of the crew distracted by Jean’s footwear, declaring, “I’m turned on by those socks! I’m old, I’m not dead!”

High Winds Scuttle the Voyage of the Kalmar Nyckel

The tall ships lined against the pier, but we were most excited to see the colorful Kalmar Nyckel. Parts of the boat had just been freshly painted, and we admired the detail work.

On either side of the ship, a carving of a dog rested on the railing, one eye open to the sea and closed to the inside.

The winds were blowing wildly by this time, so we were not surprised when the crew told us there was little chance the ship would be part of the pirate battle as they could not negotiate the vessel away from the dock. Our plans were not cancelled, however, as the smaller boats were still scheduled to sail. The crew reassigned us to the Mystic Whaler, a late 19th century coastal cargo schooner, for our pirate adventure.

A Bit of Shantying

Geoff Kaufman welcomed us onboard with songs of the sea. Accompanied by his concertina, an instrument made in England in the 1920s, Geoff offered a song for every activity on the schooner. He played songs that encouraged the crew to work in rhythm, and sang ballads for returning to port after the voyage. Geoff also sang old favorites, like “What to do with a Drunken Sailor,” with passengers joining in the song fest. Geoff’s music added to the rollicking motion of the ship. I wish I could have captured more music, but even my wind filter on the camera could not remove the sound the pounding gusts.

Ahoy, Me Hearties–the Battle Begins!

We buttoned our coats and secured our scarves as the schooner weighed anchor, sailing from the dock to face our opponents in battle. With the thunderous blasts of the cannon, the engagement was underway. The smaller schooners whipped through the water, cutting in front and back of the larger vessels. With Jolly Rogers fluttering, insults were hurled across the water. “You scurvy scallyways! Arrgh! We’ll have ye walking the plank! Someone on the A. J. Meerwald had the audacity to call us, “Dirty dogs!” Passengers joined the crew in hoisting the sails with a heave ho to Geoff’s rhythmic sea shanty. The battleship New Jersey and the Olympia, war ships from other eras, contributed their big guns to the melee.

Windblown, but throughly enraptured by the experience, we disembarked from the Mystic Whaler to the strains of “Leave Her.” We returned to our landlubber status, looking for a tavern to splice the main brace.