by Alex Lloyd Gross
No one likes to sit in traffic, especially after leaving a major sports event or large concert. It can take as much as an hour just to leave the parking lot. Roads become jammed, and everyone is trying to get to the interstate or over the bridge.
Today, Governor Josh Shapiro joined John Middleton, chairman of the Phillies; Don Smolenski, president of the Eagles; Tad Brown of the Philadelphia 76ers; and Dan Hilferty, governor of the Philadelphia Flyers. A media event was held at Citizens Bank Park to showcase plans to alleviate traffic congestion.
Part of the project — a two-lane roadway going from Front Street to I-95 North — has already been completed. That improvement alone can move 800 cars an hour out of South Philly. There will also be AI-controlled traffic signals, which will free up manpower and allow for extended green lights when needed.
More than $20 million will be used to complete the collaborative’s near-term nine-point plan, with the improvements targeted for completion by the end of 2028.
Near-Term Projects to Reduce Traffic Congestion and Improve Safety
Work on the first aspects of the Shapiro Administration’s nine-point plan has begun, with significant infrastructure projects aimed at reducing traffic congestion and improving safety. In addition, the LSIRC will conduct a series of studies to support future improvements. These projects include:
- Conducting a Priority Corridor Study for South Broad Street through the Sports Complex to determine future upgrades;
- Completing a second left-turn lane from Front Street onto I-95 North;
- Constructing a new westbound entrance ramp to I-76 on 7th Street;
- Building a new event operations center — a centralized digital command center for real-time, on-the-ground traffic management — housed within the sports complex;
- Installing 19 new smart traffic lights throughout the area;
- Conducting a study on existing signage and wayfinding assets around the Sports Complex to improve navigation for visitors, event attendees, and emergency responders;
- Conducting a Priority Corridor Study for the intersection of 26th Street and Penrose Avenue to determine future upgrades;
- Conducting a Freight Network Study to determine the best routes for increasing commercial traffic between PhilaPort and the Bellwether District as both areas grow; and
- Developing a complex-wide Events Management Plan to improve coordination among stakeholders during major events.
“People now make a gamble to leave an event early,” said the governor. “It’s a question of sitting in traffic for over an hour or getting home at a reasonable time.”
ALEX LLOYD GROSS Photo Delaware Valley News.com John Middleton makes his remarks.
John Middleton said that even he has to deal with traffic issues. “After a game, I’ll go to my office, or after watching an Eagles game, I’ll go out to dinner,” Middleton said. “I look outside and see nothing but traffic. I think this will help people get home quicker.”
To avoid traffic, some people tailgate. There are restrictions on the number of parking lots that permit tailgating, as agreed to by the city when the stadium complex was built. That is why some parking lots do not allow it. At times, tailgaters simply remain in the lots and wait for traffic to clear.