Marking roughly the halfway point in the delivery of its new Silverliner V regional rail fleet, SEPTA has rolled out an advertising campaign to pump riders up about the new train cars.
The campaign, modest in scope, was timed last week to coincide with the Philadelphia Auto Show, where SEPTA had a booth, according to director of marketing Richard DiLullo.
The $56,000 campaign consisted of brochures at the Auto Show, banner ads on Philly.com and three billboards on Roosevelt Boulevard, Interstate 95 and the Pennsylvania Turnpike.
The ads and billboards feature a picture of the new railcars with tell customers to “test ride one today.”
“We wanted to launch this campaign in time for the auto show,” DilLullo explained, noting that SEPTA does a brisk business tied to the show.
Though the Philly.com banner ads were only set to run for a week, DiLullo is looking to keep the billboards up “for another month at least.”
He added that SEPTA wanted to time the campaign ― which will also feature brochures at the Philadelphia Flower Show in March ― to launch at the halfway mark of Silverliner deliveries to maximize excitement over the new train cars.
As of last week, 71 cars out of 120 ordered had been shipped to SEPTA, with 60 of those having been accepted by the authority. Between 48 and 50 were actually in service, with the rest being used for testing or undergoing routine maintenance.
In-service cars are being taken out of service and retrofitted with “over 100 design updates and improvements” caused by changes in the railcar production process, according to SEPTA's January project report on the Silverliner.
Plagued by delays that have cost builder United Transit Systems more than $8 million in late fees, SEPTA now expects the last car to roll off the South Philadelphia production line in September, with six or seven cars ready every month.
The new fleet will replace aging Silverliner IIs and IIIs.
Contact the reporter at acampisi@planphilly.com
Comments
Why are you guys all complaining about this?
The passengers specifically said that they didn't like the 3-seaters, so SEPTA decided to please its passengers by removing more of the 3-seaters with 2-seaters
Also don't complain about how the trains look, look at the MTA and other transit systems.
All I hear in philly is people bitching about stuff
I ride regularly and am happy about certain improvements made in these Silverliner V cars such as the change in loading areas, no longer just front and back, but have to agree on the downgrade in atmosphere. It feels like a bus. The windows are bigger, but the glare from the intense lighting cancels it out. There is a reduction in seating, so more people end up standing --and for long periods of time, obviously -- but at least there are handles on the seats to grab to steady yourself. The colorful LED signboards clearly show the train route which is very helpful in the center city stations when your train magically appears on the wrong track. It is a shame that there is no fare reduction for standing passengers, but overall their Regional Rail ticketing policy stinks. If your going to operate a railroad division and separate so many thing, you should try to maintain the luxury feel of a railroad car. These Hyundai cars from Korea, although technically superior in many ways to the Budd Company cars (which were actually made here in Philly!), effectively make you feel like you're on a glorified bus. One that charges a much higher fare, too.
Is there a possibility they will retrofit with additional seating? When these cars pull into the station, our heavily-used suburban line turns into boxcars filled -- FILLED -- with standing passengers -- not enough seating. Some people can't even squeeze on to stand and are left on the platform. There's a sense of dread when we see the new cars coming down the track. People know they're going to have a rotten commute that day.
If we are trying to reduce use of oil and encourage use of public transit, then why was the decision made to order new cars that offer less seating than the vintage trains?
Will SEPTA's new fare schedule include a reduced cost fare for standing room only?
I rode on one unexpectedly on the Chestnut Hill West line. The seats were really comfy. There were flat screen tvs showcasing things around Philly. They were bright, shiny, and clean (the clean part probably won't last for long. This is Philly, after all). The only negative to it is that it does not have as much seating space as the old trains. It looks more like a subway car than a train.
I ride this train occasionally, when I have the misfortune to catch the train when they're in use, and I think they're atrocious. I would rather ride on the vintage 1983 trains with the seats falling apart. (The best cars are somewhat newer, circa 1990-2000? -- with the rainbow stripes on the seats.) The seat backs on the Silverliner are too high; the seats are hard and covered with vinyle; it's kind of like riding a bus. You can't take a nap sitting up on the Silverliner, unless you enjoy having your head pushed forward. There are video advertisements (silent, but still, it's video) that I would prefer not be there. The only feature I like is the floor, which is covered with some kind of sandpapery substance so people can't slip. It's great that the trains are accessible, but for all that money, I wish they'd been comfortable.
When SEPTA fixes its communications systems, the screens will probably display other stuff too and also don't be complaining about less seating, because railroads are slowly moving away from triple seating toward 2-seaters.
And also rarely would anyone take the middle seat in a Silverliner II/III at all.
Remember these were meant to replace the II/III's not the IV's
The trains you like, with the rainbow stripes on the seats, are Silverliner IIIs, rebuilt for Airport Line service 20+ years ago, originally delivered to SEPTA in 1967.
The "vintage 1983 trains with the seats falling apart" trains are Silverliner IIs, and were actually built in 1963. Needless to say, they have more falling apart than the seats.
Surely service careers of 45 and 49 years, respectively, are enough?
Testing out new things are always good but it could be a little scary for those taking a test ride on a new train or any other public transportation venue. This is some great information.
Giving people a test ride where some jobs are available is one way to find out if the system is going to work out well or not and if not they have the opportunity to fix things.