TBH, the Boulevard Subway needs to be a project that both SEPTA and PennDOT partner on. As it stands, Roosevelt Boulevard works for no one: pedestrians, cyclists, transit users, or even motorists. The solution is simple: The inner lanes of the Boulevard need to be buried between 9th Street and the city line, with PennDOT allowing space for a culvert carrying a Boulevard Subway. Simultaneously, the outer lanes of the Boulevard could receive a road diet, bike lanes, and pedestrian improvements. This solution would work for all users: the 100,000+ projected riders in the Northeast would finally have a proper rail connection to Center City, pedestrian and cyclist safety would increase exponentially, and motorists looking to quickly traverse the Northeast would have a much better trip.
Also, the BSL is nowhere near as bad as the El. I live in the Northwest and take the Regional Rail or buses into the city now. I recently took the El from 30th Street to Girard to enjoy a night out in Fishtown. I could NOT believe how bad it has become on the El: the cars are wholly unsanitary. The El wasn't even this bad when I was growing up in West Philly in the 2000s. The BSL feels a lot cleaner to me (although it can still get dirty), and at least we have acquired grant funding to make a significant portion of the BSL stops ADA accessible. I completely agree that 13th, 11th, and 8th Street need work. At this point, even 2nd Street doesn't look as good as it did pre-pandemic.
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Temple University '18 ']['
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