Title
Authorizing the Committee on Transportation and Public Utilities to hold hearings examining strategies to address traffic congestion in the City of Philadelphia.
Body
WHEREAS, A draft report published in March 2018 by the Center City District found increased congestion on several Central Philadelphia streets. Cars moving between 23rd and Broad Streets experienced 20% longer travel times, when compared with 2013, and bus passengers experienced 25-40% longer waits on the same routes; and
WHEREAS, Philadelphia's narrow thoroughfares, combined with a boom of commercial and construction activity in Center City and beyond, have created conflicts for space among multiple modes of transportation. The increased traffic volume often results in congestion and increased travel time; and
WHEREAS, The burgeoning internet economy has contributed to the City's congestion through an increase in delivery vehicles on the City's streets. These vehicles often stop in travel lanes to facilitate deliveries, and seem to accept parking tickets as part of the cost of business. Citywide fines for delivery vehicles totaled more than $6.3 million, a 22% increase from 2013, according to data from the Parking Authority, with more than 80% of tickets being written for infractions in Center City; and
WHEREAS, Increased popularity of ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft has resulted in a greater number of cars on the road. According to the Parking Authority, an estimated 20,000 ride-sharing vehicles operate in Philadelphia, compared with only 2,000 medallion taxis. A study of Manhattan's Central Business District from 2013 to 2017 found a 33% increase in miles traveled by ride-sharing services, while traffic slowed by 18% over that period. The tendency of these vehicles to stop in travel lanes to pick up or drop off passengers creates unpredictability in the street and can exacerbate conflict for already-limited street space; and
WHEREAS, Philadelphia's growing populat...
Click here for full text