Traveling to and from Penn during the City of Philadelphia's reconstruction of the South Street Bridge may be easier than you think with the assistance of this website. Penn's location in West Philadelphia is well serviced by an excellent public transportation network. If traveling by car during the temporary closing, use this site to plan travel routes in advance. To find a resource, simply click on an interactive icon to the right that best fits your affiliation to the University. Once you click on the appropriate icon, a list of travel and commuting resources is displayed. To learn more about an option, click on the hyperlink and it will take you to the appropriate section. |
Is This Plan Right For Me?
Click on an icon below to find available resources and options for you!
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| Public Transportation |    |
There are a multitude of public transportation options available in the Philadelphia area, including SEPTA (Pennsylvania), PATCO, NJ Transit (New Jersey), and Dart (Delaware).
If you arrive by SEPTA Regional Rail there are two stops that serve Penn's Campus. The University City stop is located at South Street and Convention Avenue. The 30th Street Station stop, located at 30th and Market, serves SEPTA, Amtrak and New Jersey Transit.
Looking for even more convenience? SEPTA now offers real time Regional Rail schedule information. The system is called Train View and can be accessed by visiting: trainview.septa.org.
Getting to Penn from 30th Street:
SEPTA runs several transportation options that make it possible to easily arrive at Penn's Campus.
- Market/Frankford Line (EL)
The Market/Frankford sub surface line (also known as the "El" or "Blue Line") runs east to west along Market Street. You can take the El westbound from 30th Street to 34th & Market Streets which will bring you right onto the heart of Penn's Campus. - Trolley Lines
The Trolley Lines (or "Green Line") have several routes that run above ground along the same rail. The Trolley has stops on Penn's campus at 33rd Street & Market, 36th & Sansom Street and 37th and Spruce Streets. To travel to these stops, take the westbound 11, 13, 34 or 36 lines. - LUCY
The LUCY (Loop through University City) bus leaves the stations every 12 to 35 minutes. The route loops through University City serving, University of Pennsylvania, Drexel University, University City Science Center, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, Presbyterian Medical Center, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Children's Seashore House, and VA Medical Center.
LUCY is free to anyone with a valid Penn or UPHS ID. Riders may also use Trans or TrailPass, transfer, or pay a $2.00 base fare.
Changes In Service:
SEPTA has made several route adjustments in order to help with the increased ridership.
Faculty & Staff:
Penn faculty and staff have a number of options for hassle-free commuting, some at a rate substantially less than driving a car each day. These include:
- COMPASS Program:The University has negotiated an agreement with the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) enabling regular full- and part-time faculty and staff to purchase Transpasses and Trailpasses at 10% discount through payroll deduction. This discount program is made possible by a 50-50 match from the University and SEPTA. A Transpass enables you to travel and transfer with no limit on buses, trolleys and subways within the City of Philadelphia A Trailpass offers you unlimited travel up to the zone shown on the face of the pass on suburban bus routes, Regional Rail trains and all transit routes within the City.
- TransitCheks: Permanent full- and part-time employees of the University of Pennsylvania are eligible to purchase TransitCheks, vouchers that look like a personal check with a pre-printed amount. They come in denominations of $15.00, $30.00, $35.00, and $65.00. Up to $115 worth of TransitCheks may be purchased through payroll deduction on a pre-tax basis. The following regional transit providers participate in the TransitChek program: SEPTA, Dart, NJ Transit, Amtrak, and PATCO. For additional information regarding the TransitChek Program, call the Transportation and Parking office at 215-898-8667.
Students:
- PennPass: The semester based PennPass is a transit pass tied to the University's academic calendar. The PennPass program, sponsored jointly by the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) and the University of Pennsylvania, offers discounted transit passes to full-time Penn students.
More information:
- Penn Transportation Website
- SEPTA
- LUCY (Loop through University City)
- Amtrak
- New Jersey Transit
- DART (Delaware Authority for Regional Transit)
- PATCO (Port Authority Transit Corporation)
| Penn Ride Service | |
Penn Transit Services, 215-898-RIDE, operated by Penn's Division of Business Services, provides mobile escort services for all members of the Penn community, from 6pm − 3am daily (*on-call for emergencies, 3am-7am), operating within the following boundaries: 50th Street − 20th Street and Spring Garden Street to Woodland Avenue. A PennCard ID is required for use of these services.
Penn also offers a variety of services such as shuttles, buses, and van pools that you may be able to utilize.
More information:
| Walking Escort Services | |
The Division of Public Safety provides a 24/7 Walking Escort Service available to anyone living, commuting or visiting within the Penn Patrol Zone.
To obtain a walking escort, simply call 215-898-WALK or you can approach any guard (typically in bright yellow uniform) and request a walking escort.
You may also use any blue light phone on campus to call for a walking escort, report suspicious behavior or call for emergency help. Just pick up the receiver or press the button on the yellow box to speak to a dispatcher.
More information:
| Car/Van Pool | |
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Car Pooling:
There are a number of car pooling and car sharing options available in the region:
- AlterNetRides:Penn has partnered with a service called AlterNetRides to assist faculty, staff and students who are interested in joining a car pool.
The system allows you to connect with other interested members of the Penn community. You must create an individual username and password in order to use the service. Please note that while Penn is sponsoring this service for your convenience, all car pools formed through AlterNetRides are independent of Penn and are the responsibility of individual riders.
- Clean Air Council: The Clean Air Council's Philadelphia Mobility Alternatives Program offers a number of programs for people who want to share transportation. These include:
Share-A-Ride: The Share-A-Ride program is an easy and convenient way for employees to commute to work everyday. Share-A-Ride matches employees that live near or around the same area, creating an easy commute alternative to the Single Occupancy Vehicle. If one of the matched employees cannot join the other for the ride home as well, this program even offers emergency rides home!
Emergency Ride Home: Emergency Ride Home is a program created for commuters who share their ride to work on a regular basis, in the event that a registered commuters' ride home is not available. In the event of unscheduled overtime, a personal emergency or illness, or if the ride home is not available for certain reasons, commuters are offered a free ride to their car or place of emergency. This offer is only available to employees who are registered with the Share-A-Ride program, or employees that are registered with an employer who participates in MAP.
For additional information on Share-A-Ride and the Emergency Ride Home, visit www.dvrpc.org/transportation/commuter/map/sar.htm. - ZimRide: Penn Transportation and Parking is also piloting with ZimRide, a national car-sharing program, to promote ridesharing to campus.
- Park and Ride (DE):Park and Ride (P&R) lots are areas specifically dedicated for use by commuters to park vehicles while using public transit or participating in carpools or vanpools. Used as a common meeting spot, they provide adequate space and a convenient location for drivers to leave their cars while sharing the ride to work. They also alleviate community opposition to on-street parking problems in areas most suited for shared commutes.
View Brochure & List of Locations
- AlterNetRides:Penn has partnered with a service called AlterNetRides to assist faculty, staff and students who are interested in joining a car pool.
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Van Pooling: Penn Transit coordinates a van pool program which offers the faculty and staff of Penn, HUP, CHOP, Drexel and the Science Center a cost effective and convenient alternative to driving. The van pools travel to campus from areas in and around Philadelphia, at a individual cost ranging from approximately $60 to $100 per month, depending on the area served. Daily and part-time rates may also be available.
More information:
| Flexible Work Options |  |
Flexible Work Options are a valued tool for supporting employee efforts to balance the demands of work and personal life. They offer creative approaches for meeting business needs while providing greater flexibility than traditional work arrangements. Whether they involve non-standard work hours, location, and/or job structure, flexible work arrangements can provide benefits to both staff members and the University. They can improve staff morale, increase productivity, reduce absenteeism, and enhance customer satisfaction-and with the South Street Bridge project in mind, they may also provide some relief from rush-hour traffic tie-ups and rising fuel costs. Please visit the Human Resources website for more information
More information:
| Penn Walking Program | |
Incorporating walking into your daily commute can have a positive impact on your wallet, your waistline, and your frame of mind! No matter how far you live from work, you have options for making walking a part of your daily routine. If possible, try walking to work, or to your bus or train stop. Adding just a short walk to your commute can make a difference. The Penn Walking Program can provide you with the structure, support and inspiration to commit to a healthier lifestyle and decrease your commuting costs at the same time.
More information:
| Dependent Care Support | |
With the closure of the South Street Bridge, your commuting plans may change-which may, in turn, affect your dependent care situation. Human Resources offers free, confidential dependent care support through the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and Work & Family Services. You can find practical solutions, realistic answers, and customized resources on a full range of dependent care and family issues, from those involving care for newborns to special living arrangements for elders.
More information:
| Commuting &Visiting Penn via Bicycle | |
Choosing to ride a bike instead of driving a car to Penn's campus is a great way to not only save money, but also stay in shape. The University has many bicycle racks throughout its campus that can be used by anyone who needs a secure location to lock their bike.
U-Locks are the recommended method for locking bikes and deterring thieves. DO NOT USE CABLE LOCKS. Cable locks are easily defeated and are ineffective in deterring theft.
Click here for a graphic on properly locking your bicycle
Bicycle Registration:
Faculty, Staff and Students may register their bicycle with the Division of Public Safety. Doing so reduces the potential of theft and increases the chances of recovery in the event that it is lost or stolen.
- Faculty/Staff register at: www.upenn.edu/u@penn
- Student register at: www.campusexpress.upenn.edu
More information:
Bicycle Safety Tips- List of bike rack locations on campus
- Public Safety's new Share the Road brochure
- Learn how you can receive up to $25 back on the cost of a bike helmet
- View a Greater Philadelphia regional bicycle map
(Note: map's legend is on page 2)
To learn more about other bicycle related resources that are available to you, visit the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia's website http://www.bicyclecoalition.org/
| Penn / PhillyCarShare Program | |
Penn/PhillyCarShare Partnership: Penn has partnered with PhillyCarShare to provide 40 vehicles on or around campus for use by Penn faculty, staff and students who need to travel on University business. This joint effort offers special contract rates and insurance coverage to Penn employees and university organizations that use PhillyCarShare for official Penn business. Plus employees who set up dual business and personal accounts may receive free driving credits in their personal account.
To locate PhillyCarShare locations around Penn's campus look for the green pins 
on the Google map on our "Getting to Penn" section of this website.
More information:
| Parking | |
There are numerous parking lots on and around Penn's campus. Use the map on this site to locate parking lots in the Penn area. Please note that some lots are only available for faculty, staff and student use, while others are open to the public. Visit the Penn Parking website for more information.
Visitor Parking:
As a visitor to Penn, it is suggested that you take a few moments to plan your trip with the closing of the Bridge in mind. You can visit the Penn Parking website for more information or use the Maps, Detours & Directions portion of this website to help with planning your trip onto the University's campus.
More information:
