Latest news with #PhiladelphiaParkingAuthority
CBS News
26-05-2025
- Business
- CBS News
What's open and closed on Memorial Day around Philadelphia: Grocery stores, shopping and more
Memorial Day is a time for Americans to mourn and honor United States military servicemembers who lost their lives in the line of duty. As part of that observance, government offices, post offices, schools and courts are closed today. Some retail businesses and restaurants are also modifying their hours in observance of Memorial Day, though many national chains like Target, Walmart and CVS are open as usual. Below, see which stores and services in Philadelphia and around the Delaware Valley are open on Memorial Day or operating under a modified schedule. Parking and trash pickup in Philadelphia The Philadelphia Parking Authority will not enforce meters or residential parking time limits on Memorial Day, however the PPA will enforce parking regulations that impact safety and traffic flow. Trash pickup in the city of Philadelphia will be delayed by one day for the rest of the week due to Memorial Day. Neighborhoods with twice-a-week trash pickup will only have one pickup day, which will fall on the same day as recycling pickup. Some SEPTA service operating on a modified holiday schedule SEPTA Regional Rail will operate on a weekend/major holiday schedule on Memorial Day, and SEPTA subway, trolley and elevated lines will operate on a Sunday schedule. SEPTA will charge Regional Rail riders weekend fares on major holidays, including Memorial Day. On Memorial Day, buses will replace trains between Glenside and Jenkintown-Wynecote stations until the end of the service day. Customer service (215-580-7800) will be available to assist SEPTA riders on Memorial Day between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. Phillies team store closed on Memorial Day The Philadelphia Phillies' New Era Team Store at Citizens Bank Park will be closed on Monday in observance of Memorial Day. The store will reopen on Tuesday, May 27 from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Giant, Acme, ShopRite: See which Philadelphia-area grocery stores are open on Memorial Day Giant Food Stores, Acme Market locations, Weiss Markets and Redner's locations and will be open on Memorial Day with regular store hours. Most Whole Food stores are open on Memorial Day, but shoppers should check with their preferred location for more details and hours. ShopRite Memorial Day hours will vary by location in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. The Reading Terminal Market in Center City Philadelphia will be closed on Memorial Day. Wawa locations will also be open as usual on Monday. Memorial Day hours for area shopping malls, retail stores The Shops at Liberty Place will be closed on Monday, May 26 for Memorial Day. The Fashion District Philadelphia will be open during normal hours from 11 a.m. until 7 p.m., though individual store hours could vary. The King of Prussia Mall and Philadelphia Premium Outlets in Pottstown will be open as normal Monday, as will the Cherry Hill Mall in New Jersey.
Daily Mail
06-05-2025
- Automotive
- Daily Mail
Drivers face $76 fines as new 'automatic ticket' law takes effect
City officials are increasingly using technology to cash in on motorists who break the rules. Starting Wednesday, drivers in Philadelphia will be monitored by cameras mounted to almost 200 pubic buses driving around the city. The cameras scan streets for vehicles illegally parked in bus stops and no-parking zones. If one is spotted, the system snaps a photo and sends it to law enforcement, where an officer decides whether to issue the city's $76 parking fine. Philadelphia joins cities like New York and Los Angeles in using automated camera enforcement. While the technology is widespread in Europe — especially in the UK, where speed cameras blanket major roads — it's still relatively rare in the US. 'Gone are the days we're gonna tolerate people going through here with an attitude that, "I'll take my chances because I'll never get caught,"' said New York Governor Kathy Hochul. 'You will get caught.' Philadelphia Parking Authority executive director Rich Lazer said the initiative is a collaboration among three city agencies, aimed at improving safety and easing traffic. He added that the cameras will help reduce congestion and improve traffic flow. Officials praised the tech, saying it will aid a police agency that has reported record low staffing and record high department vacancies. They're also saying it will free up areas in bus stops where wheelchair users board, plus also speed up first responder times. 'It is another innovative step forward to keep Philadelphians safe and traffic moving smoothly,' Jim Kenney, the city's mayor, said. 'Thanks to these cameras, we are increasing efficiency in our streets to make our city even more accessible.' The city says 152 SEPTA buses and 38 trolleys will get the ticketing tech. On April 15, the city started sending warning tickets to drivers caught by the buses. They will replace the warnings with full-blown tickets starting May 7. The $76 fines are for drivers caught near the Center City, while car owners illegally parked in other neighborhoods will face $51 fines. New York City's MTA launched the automated camera enforcement (ACE) program that also mounted cameras onto hundreds of buses that monitor parking infractions. The city will send tickets up to $76 to car owners starting May 7 Los Angeles also popped the cameras onto public buses last year. Officials announced the tech generated $1.6 million in payments from around 10,000 citations. But as rule enforcement agencies are turning toward more technology to aid their enforcement, drivers are responding with other illegal tricks. New York officials launched a crackdown on drivers removing their license plates from the back of their vehicles. Without the plates, New York's buses — and its controversial Congestion Pricing tolls in Manhattan — are not able to assign fees to car owners.
CBS News
07-04-2025
- Automotive
- CBS News
PPA to ticket drivers caught on AI-powered SEPTA bus cameras illegally parking in Philadelphia
SEPTA, the Philadelphia Parking Authority and the city's Office of Transportation, Infrastructure and Systems are launching a new enforcement initiative using camera technology to crack down on illegally parked vehicles that block bus and trolley routes. Beginning April 16, forward-facing cameras mounted on some SEPTA buses will begin documenting drivers who stop or park illegally in bus lanes, at bus stops, or while double parked on routes 17, 21 and 42. Warning notices will be issued by mail at first, with fines starting May 7. Eventually, technology will expand to 152 buses and 38 trolleys. "There is no better example of intergovernmental cooperation and collaboration than our three agencies working together to use smart camera vision technology — to improve public safety and enhance urban mobility and local quality of life by reducing congestion and increasing traffic flow on some of our most congested city arteries," PPA Executive Director Rich Lazer said. The effort is part of the city's broader Vision Zero plan to improve street safety, reduce congestion and enhance public transit performance. It focuses on high-traffic areas from Spring Garden to Bainbridge streets and between the Schuylkill and Delaware rivers, including Market, Chestnut and Walnut streets. The program uses AI-powered cameras developed by Hayden AI. The cameras record license plates and images of the violation. Once a potential violation is flagged, it is manually reviewed by PPA staff before a citation is issued. Violators will receive tickets in the mail — $76 for Center City infractions and $51 when the program expands to other neighborhoods. People who ride SEPTA buses say blocked bus stops don't just slow commutes, they also create dangerous hazards. That's the case for Kwanesha Clarke, a daily bus rider who uses a wheelchair. "When the SEPTA bus loads on the curb, it creates a straight entry for the wheelchair," Clarke said. "If it is loading on the street, it creates a steep hill, which can cause the chair to tip back and injure the person using it." Clarke said she's faced with the choice of risking injury or waiting for the next bus, which is a hassle. However, not all Philadelphians are happy with this new technology. Dominique Tindal, who delivers for DoorDash and Uber Eats, admits she sometimes parks illegally while waiting for her orders but said she tries to be "in and out." "Please have grace with the drivers," she said. "Especially in Philly. It's a nightmare. Some of the blocks are really tight." But officials say the technology is needed to prioritize safe and timely transit. They said they ran a successful pilot program , which caught more than 36,000 bus stop and bus lane parking violations in just over 70 days. "Illegally parked vehicles obstructing transit throw buses off schedule, slow down service and create unnecessary dangers to riders and pedestrians," SEPTA Interim General Manager Scott Sauer said. "We are eager to see the improvements this program will deliver."
CBS News
27-03-2025
- Automotive
- CBS News
PPA will start charging for loading zones at 22 spots in Center City Philadelphia – here's the full list.
Parking in a loading zone in Center City, Philadelphia, could soon cost you a couple bucks — or get you a ticket for a lot more — under a new PPA policy rolling out soon. The Philadelphia Parking Authority on Wednesday announced its new Smart Loading Zone initiative to keep the city streets clear from delivery drivers and to get traffic moving in the Center City District. The initiative will add cameras to 22 loading zones near the intersections of Chestnut, Sansom and Walnut Streets between 12th and 20th streets. In the 22 zones, cameras will monitor vehicles that pull up and time their stay in the space. The first three minutes are free — so if you can get parked, pick up or drop off a delivery and get moving, you're OK. But for any stay longer than three minutes, drivers and fleets will need to be registered with a new service called CurbPass . Registering for the service allows cameras in the loading zones to read your license plate and then charge your card linked to your CurbPass account. Drivers will pay 10 cents per minute parked past three minutes. If you park in the loading zone for over an hour while registered for CurbPass, or over three minutes while not registered, you will get a ticket for $51. The cameras are also watching for double-parked vehicles, and those will be issued $76 tickets. The zones will be marked with white signs surrounded by a purple border. The sign will include information to help register for CurbPass - you can also text "PHIL" to 855-707-1211 to register. The PPA says the cameras are not capturing faces or other identifying features of drivers, only license plates. The head of the PPA said the move is aimed at combating congestion and increasing efficiency on busy streets. "On any given day, our Center City streets are severely congested—often due to delivery vehicles parking wherever they can, whether legal or not," Executive Director Rich Lazer said in a statement. "We believe our Smart Loading Zone Initiative is a significant step toward resolving these issues, bringing delivery drivers into compliance, and reducing illegal parking that leads to daily gridlock." A three-week warning period starts on April 1, and fines will start being issued on April 21, 2025. You can find more information on the Smart Loading Zones and sign up for CurbPass in Philadelphia on the PPA's website.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
PPA partners with SpotHero to help drivers reserve parking spots at Philly garages
The Brief Drivers can now book advanced parking at six city-owned garages in Philadelphia through SpotHero. The Philadelphia Parking Authority said the digital parking reservation platform is convenient and easy to use. PHILADELPHIA - The Philadelphia Parking Authority (PPA) is now partnering with SpotHero to offer advanced booking for parking at six city-owned garages through the digital parking reservation platform. "People have angst when they come to an area where they know there's going to be some traffic. It's going to be hard to park so I think to be able to do that ahead of time. They can go right to the location, go right to the spot, and it takes the angst out of it, and I think that's the goal. Make things convenient and that's why we want to do it," said Richard Lazer, Executive Director of PPA. The PPA garages that can be booked in advance through SpotHero include: 125 South 2nd Street - Autopark @ Olde City 41 N. 6th Street - Autopark @ Independence Mall 740 Arch St. (801 Filbert St.) - Parkade on 8th Garage 45 N. 10th Street - Autopark @ Fashion District 14 S 10th Street - Autopark @ Jefferson Garage 124 N. 15th St (1503 Arch St.) - Family Courthouse Garage "Driving and looking for parking in the city can be very treacherous and it could be like hours sometimes looking for parking, so knowing they have an app where you have parking reserved for you is pretty awesome," said David Bullard of West Oak Lane. "I have used SpotHero to reserve spots in New York when we were going to see a show. It was very convenient, and it worked well," said Stephanie Gonzalez Ferrandez of Ben Salem. "You get a much better rate and you get it in advance. You lock it in." Lazer believes SpotHero has the potential to introduce new drivers to its garages, and said PPA is already seeing new parking trends through the app. "We're tapping into folks that maybe are doing these pre-orders before they get here and not just somebody pulling in to park for the day," said Lazer. "We're getting longer stays of people who maybe are coming in for a few days, so they're booking their whole time and you get feedback also from the customer on what worked and what didn't." According to the PPA, the revenue generated at the six city-owned garages are comparable between this year and last year through the period of January 1 and March 17 at more than $1.6 million. However, online bookings increased this year compared to last year during this period. The city estimates about $2,000 in parking booked through the PPA run app "JPass" in January-March of 2024. Whereas this year, online bookings have already generated $62,117.60. SpotHero accounts for $46,860.50 of that total. PPA believes the partnership with SpotHero will help the city manage the garages better since they'll receive additional driver feedback through the service and additional parking data. The Source The information in this story is from The Philadelphia Parking Authority.
