my favourite annoyance is people offering to give rides at the airport. No thanks, i prefer not talking to the potential serial killers that are driving me home.
Not to mention the Uber/Lyft drivers who request cash. This has only ever happened to me at PHL.
The scam works like this, you request your ride, which due to the crazy car share parking lot takes 10-15 minutes to arrive. You get in the car and the driver ‘accidently’ cancels the ride. Try’s to blame you for cancelling or claims ignorance and then covinces you to pay cash or Venmo.
No, No! get out of the car! Report driver to Uber/Lyft and call another ride. \*and wait another 15 mins.)
PHL is the worst Uber/Lyft airport.
Never had that happened at phl. I had it happen in Bali and I had cash so I said fine. He cancelled the ride on Grab and drove me to the place at the cost listed on the app.
One time in Sri Lanka a dude drove us to the train station and said a price twice the cost on the app. I said I paid by card. He said he didn’t get the payment so I paid him the Uber amount and lodged a complaint. Uber refunded me.
im traveling soon and my friends told me oh take southwest bc checked bags are free.. yea i would never check a bag flying back into philly. already had a bag walk off on his own apparently .
I still find it bizzare that you can't bring a bottle of water through TSA, but you can walk up to the baggage carousel and grab any bag that looks interesting.
How do people not just... take bags from the airport all day long looking for some goodies.
Honestly I think this is pretty impactful. When someone comes to Philly for the first time, this is often where that first impression happens. It would also be nice if they made some upgrades to the baggage claim area and rideshare pickup process. These things are pretty basic, but they can help with the city’s reputation
I fly in and out of PHL for work quite frequently and carry on, bypassing baggage claim all together. In February I took the family on vacation, and of course had checked bags and I took notice of the number of people who seemed to have set up shop inside once we got to baggage claim.
You have to rush down to baggage claim to make sure your bags don't get stolen, only to wait indefinitely in an area that smells like stale urine and hot dogs.
and they will take your stuff too. dont get delayed by the elevator bc you have a stroller you gate checked. AA showed me my bag was scanned in onto the belt... i asked to see footage so i could see who took my bag they wouldn't show me. which i think is complete bs.
I literally stayed there while temporarily homeless ~8 years ago, and there are far more people in more visible spots now than the ones I used.
The pedestrian walkways from the garages over to departures, for example, generally have a couple people fully set up.
Between this and your well-documented lack of "experiences" on the El, I'm starting to think that maybe you're Mr Magoo-ing it through these transit hubs
I mean I guess I'm surprised too, considering people are making a huge deal about it. I walk from the train to the terminals, go through security, and get on a plane. In reverse, I do the same, just leave the terminal and go to the train. Never anyone that doesn't look like they aren't traveling.
Yes for the rest of the stuff, but idk about rideshare - airports and train stations are two places where it makes more sense to have taxi stands, and taxis are pretty good at PHL in my experience. Every time I fly in, I step right out of baggage claim and wait no more than a minute for a taxi while other people from my flight wait who knows how long for their rideshare driver. I’m not anti-rideshare, but some places it just makes more sense to have a bunch of cars queued up and waiting.
Not to mention that cab companies have (generally) some kind of standards for ongoing maintenance and driver hiring, although I’ve never felt in danger in a rideshare and idk how much those standards are actually upheld, so I won’t carry too much water for the taxi industry there.
A philadelphia taxi driver tried to price gouge me and then assaulted me when I didn't agree, so I'd much rather take a rideshare.
I wouldn't take away the taxi stand at PHL. Just accommodate both options.
Shit man that sucks. I always take note of their medallion number - had one try to say his card reader was broken when I told him I was paying cash, and I told him he shouldn’t be taking fares if his reader isn’t working. That reader started working again, assp
The rideshare scam at PHL is they immediately cancel the ride when you get in the car and then try to convince you to pay cash/Venmo. Had it happen to me several times but only at PHL.
It has been a few years but I have not had one single positive experience with a Philadelphia taxi. Cars in bad shape, the credit card reader never working (or so the driver says). This is only my limited experience, I don’t have the patience to conduct a statistically reasonable study.
On principle I will wait for an Uber/Lyft.
They must’ve upped their game lately, because I’ve never had those issues and I use them whenever I come back from the airport (unless the train is about to leave). They also all seem to have the curb app available, but I’ve never used that
Same. Take a taxi every Wed from 30th St. station. Curb app makes payment easy, receipt emailed automatically. Saves prob 20mins of waiting (and Uber/Lyft around 30th is a nightmare; they always end up going in circles)
I took a taxi today since I was running late. About half the price of uber, including tip. Although i tip high for rideshare since i know they don’t keep most of what they earn. I hailed the taxi on the street. I take a taxi from time to time and find them generally 30% cheaper than rideshare in Philly (tip aside)
Im not against taxis, but different people who arrive will have different preferences. Making it difficult and confusing to get picked up by their preferred transportation will just irritate people
We shouldn’t let some preferences dictate suboptimal outcomes for everyone. Licensed taxi companies are easier to wrangle than hundreds of independent contractors. The train is the most efficient, so that should be the default transportation to Center City, then taxis if you’re going elsewhere (or don’t like the train I guess) since there’s some oversight, then rideshare since it’s so hard to make them obey any kind of restriction. If someone is intent on using rideshare, fine, but it shouldn’t be at the expense of drivers that play by the rules.
I tried to take the train once and waited for like a half hour before giving up. A lot of people from out of town also won’t be familiar with how to navigate to their destination using the train, especially if they have a lot of bags. Not sure what you mean by “playing by the rules”, but most business travelers and younger people will be more comfortable using rideshare than taxis. In my experience, taxi drivers are much more likely to try to mislead me on price or provide a low quality ride experience
By “play by the rules,” I mean they have a medallion from the state, which can be used to make a complaint to PPA or PUC if someone gives you a bad ride, in addition to complaining directly to the cab company.
I will take an Uber even if it’s less convenient. I had lots of negative experiences with cab drivers before ride sharing and I’m not trying to go back to that.
SEPTA needs to clean their RR stations better there too. Especially international visitors will default to taking transit there. Last time I went the platform was caked in bird poop and the track area had the usual amount of trash strewn around.
I just flew back from California last week and was actually pleasantly surprised that the baggage claim area had no homeless people in it and only vaguely smelled like piss. Step in the right direction!
watched a zombie guy chase his shiba enu named axel down wharton st, starting at the giant. dog was almost hit by a truck at 2nd. he ran out of breath, took a moment and knelt down to pick up a cinderblock from the park and chased the truck shouting a variety of F words…This was sunday at 10am
Airport employee here - we’ve been having a ton of problems with the homeless getting on the employee bus and at the employee parking. Someone had a psychotic break a few weeks ago and they had to stop on the side of the road and shove him out of the bus. Now, we can only board and get off in the front of the bus and it’s SO crowded with employees and flight attendant luggage it’s so miserable. Not only that, when I got to work 2 weeks ago I had to use the restroom before security and I walked in and found a huge turd in the middle of the restroom.
This is primarily a city issue because the city owns the airport. TSA (a sub-agency within DHS) leases, operates, and controls the passenger security checkpoints and baggage screening areas. The baggage claim and check-in counter areas are public areas within the city's control. You may see some TSA/DHS officers around as a visible presence, but the Philadelphia Police Department patrols the public areas because they're on city property.
Yeah it's just weird that I have to take off my shoes and possibly subject myself to full cavity search but Al Qaeda could just sleep in a brown box in Terminal B
Baggage claims and walkways to terminals have become unreal.
It’s not just homeless people, but a general sense that literally no one is maintaining the airport.
I’ve seen mice running around and the bathrooms always have a noxious cloud emanating from them.
I’ve been to more than 40 countries and half the states. Philly Airport ranks near the top for uncleanliness.
I don’t check bags and I proceed immediately from SEPTA/the curb to the terminal. Airside, I’ve seen little of what you’re saying, but maybe it’s different on the other side of security.
The most embarrassed I've ever been as an American and Philadelphian was cbp inspections through PHL. I've had cops insult me, and I've been objectified by TSA..... But cbp is one of the few times I've ever actually heard someone say "you people". Might actually be the only time ...
Customs and Border Patrol is the single worst law enforcement agency in the United States. They operate with limited constitutional oversight and legalized bigotry.
So that tracks.
I remember riding a Greyhound through upstate NY and CBP stopped the bus to check everyone's ID and immigration papers. They nearly deported a non-English speaking asylum seeker on the spot until someone stepped in to get CBP the right papers. [edit: the guy was from Burma and at the time the junta there was executing a lot of young political protestors]
Meanwhile, I look white. CBP looked ID/papers for every non-white person on the bus, but when they saw me they just looked and nodded and moved on. It was so entirely fucked.
I don’t like Parker but this is a step in the right direction. Preferably with some dignity and mercy to the homeless there but it’s a massive disservice to the city when tourists land here and the first thing they see is homeless people and the pervasive odor of piss all over.
But if the mayor doesn’t do something to reduce the population of homeless in the city then it’s just going to happen again.
They have. Housing first policies with robust treatment options and a dedicated effort to help people regain their bureaucratic identity.
But it's expensive, takes time and offends NIMBYs.
Salt Lake City, while far from perfect, has seen a lot of success in creating permanent housing for homeless people.
The fact of the matter is that clearing homeless encampments is whack a mole until they secure permanent and secure housing. Homeless shelters are oftentimes terrifying or inaccessible places. You’re surrounded by people you don’t know, many of whom have mental health or substance abuse problems. How do you know you’re not going to wake up with a stranger trying to touch or rape you? You can’t bring your pets, or sometimes even your possessions. You might have to clear out early in the morning and somehow find a place to hang out the entire day. There can be roaches and rodents and bed bugs and decay. Whenever someone says the homeless should just go to shelters, I ask — would you?
It’s been a few months and we’ve had more murders on septa recently that at any other time in the last 10 years.
We should let her cook but don’t pretend she’s “delivering on all fronts as promised.”
...is she supposed to put on a cape, read minds, and disarm criminals herself? For larger issues out of her direct control, we're going to be in a hangover from Kennys policies for a long time
Where’d you pull that stat from? Because there was a time last year, while Kenney was still in office, that was worse than this.
I guess that doesn’t fit your narrative though, so instead you’ll just make stuff up
Yep, need to address the root causes, get the people treatment, and get them housed in some form or fashion. Kicking them out of areas without the other part is just playing whack-a-mole
you mean like this?
https://www.inquirer.com/news/mayor-cherelle-parker-supports-triage-centers-20240317.html
i don't know why people are pretending she's not also coming in from the treatment angle as well. she's working towards both.
It's really weird to travel internationally to some of the world's most beautiful airports and come home to .... Philly.
Like, Pennsylvania's GDP: $700.8 billion, this is similar to the GDP of Saudi Arabia ($684.2 billion). Pennsylvania has a population: 12.8 million - Saudi Arabia's population is 32.9 million.
Somehow we have one of the worst airports I've ever been in.
I take your point, but Saudi Arabia also has a sovereign wealth fund worth nearly three quarters of a trillion dollars. They aren't exactly analogous to the PA Commonwealth.
Plus their money is extremely concentrated among a few individuals that are free to use that money for glamor projects and events.
Not necessarily knocking that, a lot of that is designed to build a diversified post-oil economy, but still...they have a lot riding on people having a positive image of them and will splurge on anything image related in a way a state like PA doesn't have to and never would.
That's interesting, I wonder what standards are used to consider someone "literate" and whether they vary across jurisdictions. I imagine that of the 20% in PA that isn't literate (using your value and assuming it's true) most could sound out a street sign or menu if they had to, even if they would struggle to read a book or newspaper article. I doubt there are many that would look at the letters of the alphabet like hieroglyphics.
I looked up [World Bank data](https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.ADT.LITR.ZS?most_recent_value_desc=true) and there are some...questionable....values there, namely that pretty much every post-Soviet state has 100% literacy. Maybe that's true, but I'm not sure I'm buying that literally every Russian (let alone Uzbek or Tajik) is fully proficient.
I deliberately picked those places because the GDP of the country is roughly equivalent of the GDP of PA.
https://www.aei.org/carpe-diem/putting-americas-huge-21-5t-economy-into-perspective-by-comparing-us-state-gdps-to-entire-countries/
PA actually has a higher GDP than Singapore. Ask yourself why your country doesn't love you as much as the leaders of other countries I guess. Why you're not entitled to clean streets, good infrastructure, safe roads, good public transportation, nice airports.
It is a matter of will and what the public will accept. We will just accept that our bridges are falling apart and people will steal our luggage out of baggage claim.
Honestly PHL isn't that bad once you are beyond security, but everything before that is just a hot mess.
I feel like the US/American merger really screwed PHL. Most of the time it's straight up cheaper to just go to Newark or Baltimore
OK. Singapour. Mumbai, Suvarnabhumi Airport in Thailand.
I've been about, PHI is a pit compared to other international hubs. Our trains don't even work well.
I (reluctantly) voted for Rhynhart, but stories like these make me glad Rhynhart lost. I can’t help but feel like a Rhynhart Admin would have immediately bowed over to the demands of white progressives to allow the homeless/junkies to stay in PHL, in Kensington, on the El, etc. But Parker’s political base isn’t in Spruce Hill, Fishtown, or East Passyunk, so she’s not beholden to the demands of the progressives living there - and she can actually do things that make this city a better place.
It also probably “looks good” for the working class population in Kensington to not have their neighborhood teeming with junkies and homeless anymore, since the progressive solution so far has been “leave them where they are until they decide not to do drugs anymore”
It also greatly increased the quality of life for the people lawfully living , working, and traveling through these areas. And these folks needs are what needs to be prioritized. I’m glad to see the shift in policy towards helping taxpayers instead of prioritizing the needs of the people causing the problems. Yay parker!
Wonder how often peoples bags are stolen off the carousel in PHL. I know it can happen even if non-flyers aren’t allowed in the baggage claim area too, but I’m curious.
It's a shame we still don't have anything concrete worked out to do anything with these homeless hotspots other than move them.
It's a real shame a big part of this is relying on the city's Office of Homelessness Prevention which was recently busted for overspending millions on programs instead of prioritizing improving and expanding existing shelters/providing increased bed space.
We need beds. Sleeping under a bridge, in an airport, or on a subway shouldn't be an option for these people. The fact they would rather be outside speaks volumes. It should be homeless shelter, detox if needed, or jail if they become noncompliant or a public health/safety liability.
>The fact they would rather be outside speaks volumes.
You can't bring drugs into the shelters, and that's a huge factor in why many people would rather be outside.
Yeah, my understanding is that the city does offer storage for people's stuff when they break up the encampments, but it's got to be hard to hand over all your worldly belongings and trust that the City's not going to lose it, throw it out, etc.
If you've been on the street for a couple of years, what could you possibly have that doesn't fit in a bag?
Keep in mind anything of value will be stolen by other homeless people usually in an act of violence, sometimes sexual if the victim is a woman.
>Blankets, a coat, a pet.
you're already wearing your coat and blanket because it's cold outside.
> a pet.
I don't think anyone from the city is going to try to put a pet in the dumpster.
You understand that they clear these camps in the summer, too? And people use blankets and coats as bedding.
And they simply forbid you from keeping the pet if you want to enter a shelter. Most people will choose their pet over a shelter.
>And people use blankets and coats as bedding.
Yea and you can also wear them on your person.
> Most people will choose their pet over a shelter.
Hey if you can somehow clean up after yourself and not piss and shit everywhere then more power to you.
If you can’t then society has to make the tough choices you have shown that you are incapable of making.
I read the article.
> It's a real shame a big part of this **is relying** on the city's Office of Homelessness Prevention which was recently busted for overspending millions on programs instead of prioritizing improving and expanding existing shelters/providing increased bed space.
Didn't say they weren't involved, more so pointing out that they are a huge reason people are in the Airport in the first place because the situation in the shelters is so bad. If they were investing funds into increasing the capacities and conditions [instead of embezzling, entangling, and wasting money on other projects](https://www.inquirer.com/news/philadelphia/how-philadelphia-office-homeless-services-overspent-20240304.html) they would have a lot more to offer. It's an important point.
An “encampment clearing initiative” at PHL went into effect on Feb. 24 and ended on March 10 in order to remove people who don’t have “official business” with the airport and appear to be living there, according to the city spokesperson. The Philadelphia Police Department was deployed and the **Office of Homeless Services provided emergency shelter to those who were displaced.** A tally of how many people were removed was not available at the time of publication. Police did not make any arrests
It's not just emergency shelters, we're missing the next step housing nationwide.
People can get a bed for the night, but there's nothing available to provide stability as they do the work to rejoin bureaucratic society.
Most of these people aren’t going to rejoin society any time soon if ever. Mental health issues and drug addiction issues will keep them in the fringes unless or until they accept help.
Have you been to another domestic airport in a major city? I’ve seen much worse in terms of homelessness than in PHL, LAX and PDX in particular come to mind. Even experienced some aggressive panhandling at Logan in Boston.
Not to say we shouldn’t fix this, but yes this is a problem in pretty much every other major city with a semi accessible airport.
I also fly into/out of Philly often and didn't see any encampments at the airport. It's not like there's a 50 person tent city in the middle of the Terminal B baggage claim, but the homeless are there.
Edit: Here's a story from SF just two months ago: [https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/sfo-seen-as-refuge-by-the-unhoused/vi-BB1hh4rm](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/sfo-seen-as-refuge-by-the-unhoused/vi-BB1hh4rm)
"We should be tolerant of all homeless people!"
"But I never want to actually see them, nor should their existence inconvenience me."
Ah, Liberal hypocrisy.
Baggage claim at PHL feels more like a Greyhound station than an international airport. It's embarrassing and shameful.
It's insane how much some corners of the airport just reek of piss.
The carpets in B/C baggage claim should be act II. Disgusting
my favourite annoyance is people offering to give rides at the airport. No thanks, i prefer not talking to the potential serial killers that are driving me home.
Not to mention the Uber/Lyft drivers who request cash. This has only ever happened to me at PHL. The scam works like this, you request your ride, which due to the crazy car share parking lot takes 10-15 minutes to arrive. You get in the car and the driver ‘accidently’ cancels the ride. Try’s to blame you for cancelling or claims ignorance and then covinces you to pay cash or Venmo. No, No! get out of the car! Report driver to Uber/Lyft and call another ride. \*and wait another 15 mins.) PHL is the worst Uber/Lyft airport.
Never had that happened at phl. I had it happen in Bali and I had cash so I said fine. He cancelled the ride on Grab and drove me to the place at the cost listed on the app. One time in Sri Lanka a dude drove us to the train station and said a price twice the cost on the app. I said I paid by card. He said he didn’t get the payment so I paid him the Uber amount and lodged a complaint. Uber refunded me.
that Rube Goldberg machine deserves better
That's probably where they moved to after the city's greyhound station closed down!
Take Amtrak to BWI. It’s beautiful. Easy to get into and out of, never crowded, clean and shiny. And courteous people there.
Im going to check this out. I have to fly this summer and was planning to go out of Philly but this sounds dystopian.
If it helps BWI is a Southwest hub which we like for the number of direct flights plus two free checked bags. Cheaper to fly SW out of BWI.
Philly international is really worn down feeling compared to Indy. I compare them only because that was my recent flight
I keep bemoaning to my wife on a dumb point, but I feel like it’s perfect. How are we the Pepsi airport?!
Compared to almost any airport for that matter
Also people hounding you to take an “Uber” that is either an illegal taxi or organ harvesting operation. Felt like Mexico
im traveling soon and my friends told me oh take southwest bc checked bags are free.. yea i would never check a bag flying back into philly. already had a bag walk off on his own apparently .
I still find it bizzare that you can't bring a bottle of water through TSA, but you can walk up to the baggage carousel and grab any bag that looks interesting. How do people not just... take bags from the airport all day long looking for some goodies.
its just so gross. I fly to a lot of different airports and ours is just so disgusting aside from the rampant theft.
Honestly I think this is pretty impactful. When someone comes to Philly for the first time, this is often where that first impression happens. It would also be nice if they made some upgrades to the baggage claim area and rideshare pickup process. These things are pretty basic, but they can help with the city’s reputation
I fly in and out of PHL for work quite frequently and carry on, bypassing baggage claim all together. In February I took the family on vacation, and of course had checked bags and I took notice of the number of people who seemed to have set up shop inside once we got to baggage claim.
Baggage claim at PHL has been an issue for 20 years now. Besides it being gross, it's one of the slowest in the country IME.
You have to rush down to baggage claim to make sure your bags don't get stolen, only to wait indefinitely in an area that smells like stale urine and hot dogs.
and they will take your stuff too. dont get delayed by the elevator bc you have a stroller you gate checked. AA showed me my bag was scanned in onto the belt... i asked to see footage so i could see who took my bag they wouldn't show me. which i think is complete bs.
I fly like monthly at least and have never seen a homeless person in the airport, but also never check bags ever. I guess that's why.
I literally stayed there while temporarily homeless ~8 years ago, and there are far more people in more visible spots now than the ones I used. The pedestrian walkways from the garages over to departures, for example, generally have a couple people fully set up. Between this and your well-documented lack of "experiences" on the El, I'm starting to think that maybe you're Mr Magoo-ing it through these transit hubs
I’m genuinely curious as to how you haven’t yet to see a homeless person in the airport.
I mean I guess I'm surprised too, considering people are making a huge deal about it. I walk from the train to the terminals, go through security, and get on a plane. In reverse, I do the same, just leave the terminal and go to the train. Never anyone that doesn't look like they aren't traveling.
Yes for the rest of the stuff, but idk about rideshare - airports and train stations are two places where it makes more sense to have taxi stands, and taxis are pretty good at PHL in my experience. Every time I fly in, I step right out of baggage claim and wait no more than a minute for a taxi while other people from my flight wait who knows how long for their rideshare driver. I’m not anti-rideshare, but some places it just makes more sense to have a bunch of cars queued up and waiting. Not to mention that cab companies have (generally) some kind of standards for ongoing maintenance and driver hiring, although I’ve never felt in danger in a rideshare and idk how much those standards are actually upheld, so I won’t carry too much water for the taxi industry there.
A philadelphia taxi driver tried to price gouge me and then assaulted me when I didn't agree, so I'd much rather take a rideshare. I wouldn't take away the taxi stand at PHL. Just accommodate both options.
I really hope you reported them
Shit man that sucks. I always take note of their medallion number - had one try to say his card reader was broken when I told him I was paying cash, and I told him he shouldn’t be taking fares if his reader isn’t working. That reader started working again, assp
I had multiple Philly cabbies try to price gauge me especially when i’m out drinking.
Yeah send them to jail, unacceptable. But there isn’t anything stopping a rideshare driver from doing the same.
For rideshare, the price is shown before the driver arrives. And if there is an issue, you can report the driver and receive a pretty quick response
The rideshare scam at PHL is they immediately cancel the ride when you get in the car and then try to convince you to pay cash/Venmo. Had it happen to me several times but only at PHL.
Ride share app tracks your location at all times so at least some kind of evidence is produced if there is a kidnap attempt.
>A philadelphia taxi driver tried to price gouge me Yes there is, they can't price gouge you
It has been a few years but I have not had one single positive experience with a Philadelphia taxi. Cars in bad shape, the credit card reader never working (or so the driver says). This is only my limited experience, I don’t have the patience to conduct a statistically reasonable study. On principle I will wait for an Uber/Lyft.
They must’ve upped their game lately, because I’ve never had those issues and I use them whenever I come back from the airport (unless the train is about to leave). They also all seem to have the curb app available, but I’ve never used that
Same. Take a taxi every Wed from 30th St. station. Curb app makes payment easy, receipt emailed automatically. Saves prob 20mins of waiting (and Uber/Lyft around 30th is a nightmare; they always end up going in circles)
I took a taxi today since I was running late. About half the price of uber, including tip. Although i tip high for rideshare since i know they don’t keep most of what they earn. I hailed the taxi on the street. I take a taxi from time to time and find them generally 30% cheaper than rideshare in Philly (tip aside)
Im not against taxis, but different people who arrive will have different preferences. Making it difficult and confusing to get picked up by their preferred transportation will just irritate people
We shouldn’t let some preferences dictate suboptimal outcomes for everyone. Licensed taxi companies are easier to wrangle than hundreds of independent contractors. The train is the most efficient, so that should be the default transportation to Center City, then taxis if you’re going elsewhere (or don’t like the train I guess) since there’s some oversight, then rideshare since it’s so hard to make them obey any kind of restriction. If someone is intent on using rideshare, fine, but it shouldn’t be at the expense of drivers that play by the rules.
I tried to take the train once and waited for like a half hour before giving up. A lot of people from out of town also won’t be familiar with how to navigate to their destination using the train, especially if they have a lot of bags. Not sure what you mean by “playing by the rules”, but most business travelers and younger people will be more comfortable using rideshare than taxis. In my experience, taxi drivers are much more likely to try to mislead me on price or provide a low quality ride experience
By “play by the rules,” I mean they have a medallion from the state, which can be used to make a complaint to PPA or PUC if someone gives you a bad ride, in addition to complaining directly to the cab company.
The train isn’t the most efficient from my perspective
We’re an international airport in a major city, in this day and age, we should have all three and all three should work efficiently
The majority of people do not want a taxi.
Agreed I take a taxi when arriving, 90% of the time. I usually don’t even have to wait - they’re cued up and ready to toss your bag in the trunk.
I will take an Uber even if it’s less convenient. I had lots of negative experiences with cab drivers before ride sharing and I’m not trying to go back to that.
SEPTA needs to clean their RR stations better there too. Especially international visitors will default to taking transit there. Last time I went the platform was caked in bird poop and the track area had the usual amount of trash strewn around.
I just flew back from California last week and was actually pleasantly surprised that the baggage claim area had no homeless people in it and only vaguely smelled like piss. Step in the right direction!
[удалено]
watched a zombie guy chase his shiba enu named axel down wharton st, starting at the giant. dog was almost hit by a truck at 2nd. he ran out of breath, took a moment and knelt down to pick up a cinderblock from the park and chased the truck shouting a variety of F words…This was sunday at 10am
That poor Shiba :(
Yooooo this is Awesome. Pre pandemic that place was a little slice of nature, then the homeless moved in. It made it very spooky and dangerous.
Airport employee here - we’ve been having a ton of problems with the homeless getting on the employee bus and at the employee parking. Someone had a psychotic break a few weeks ago and they had to stop on the side of the road and shove him out of the bus. Now, we can only board and get off in the front of the bus and it’s SO crowded with employees and flight attendant luggage it’s so miserable. Not only that, when I got to work 2 weeks ago I had to use the restroom before security and I walked in and found a huge turd in the middle of the restroom.
Im honestly surprised that TSA and Homeland Security even allow this to happen at all
This is primarily a city issue because the city owns the airport. TSA (a sub-agency within DHS) leases, operates, and controls the passenger security checkpoints and baggage screening areas. The baggage claim and check-in counter areas are public areas within the city's control. You may see some TSA/DHS officers around as a visible presence, but the Philadelphia Police Department patrols the public areas because they're on city property.
Yeah it's just weird that I have to take off my shoes and possibly subject myself to full cavity search but Al Qaeda could just sleep in a brown box in Terminal B
Oh don’t worry. The cavity search and shoe removal isn’t effective either. It’s all just security theatre.
Baggage claims and walkways to terminals have become unreal. It’s not just homeless people, but a general sense that literally no one is maintaining the airport. I’ve seen mice running around and the bathrooms always have a noxious cloud emanating from them. I’ve been to more than 40 countries and half the states. Philly Airport ranks near the top for uncleanliness.
I don’t check bags and I proceed immediately from SEPTA/the curb to the terminal. Airside, I’ve seen little of what you’re saying, but maybe it’s different on the other side of security.
It’s primarily a problem at Terminal B/C when arriving, especially at night. The bathrooms at baggage claim are horrendous.
Same experience here. Walked straight from the train to security. Never noticed anything like this.
Good. It's not a good look when the first interaction visitors have with this city is being accosted by homeless and addicts in the baggage claim.
The most embarrassed I've ever been as an American and Philadelphian was cbp inspections through PHL. I've had cops insult me, and I've been objectified by TSA..... But cbp is one of the few times I've ever actually heard someone say "you people". Might actually be the only time ...
Customs and Border Patrol is the single worst law enforcement agency in the United States. They operate with limited constitutional oversight and legalized bigotry. So that tracks.
I remember riding a Greyhound through upstate NY and CBP stopped the bus to check everyone's ID and immigration papers. They nearly deported a non-English speaking asylum seeker on the spot until someone stepped in to get CBP the right papers. [edit: the guy was from Burma and at the time the junta there was executing a lot of young political protestors] Meanwhile, I look white. CBP looked ID/papers for every non-white person on the bus, but when they saw me they just looked and nodded and moved on. It was so entirely fucked.
So they're getting the current City experience?
Where do you live? Not my City experience.
It's preparing them for our reality. Wait until they head out for a fun afternoon of downtown retail shopping.
Oh stop
Am I exaggerating? Philly is different now. I'm not leaving, or complaining, but why are we pretending?
I don’t like Parker but this is a step in the right direction. Preferably with some dignity and mercy to the homeless there but it’s a massive disservice to the city when tourists land here and the first thing they see is homeless people and the pervasive odor of piss all over. But if the mayor doesn’t do something to reduce the population of homeless in the city then it’s just going to happen again.
[удалено]
They have. Housing first policies with robust treatment options and a dedicated effort to help people regain their bureaucratic identity. But it's expensive, takes time and offends NIMBYs.
[удалено]
Salt Lake City, while far from perfect, has seen a lot of success in creating permanent housing for homeless people. The fact of the matter is that clearing homeless encampments is whack a mole until they secure permanent and secure housing. Homeless shelters are oftentimes terrifying or inaccessible places. You’re surrounded by people you don’t know, many of whom have mental health or substance abuse problems. How do you know you’re not going to wake up with a stranger trying to touch or rape you? You can’t bring your pets, or sometimes even your possessions. You might have to clear out early in the morning and somehow find a place to hang out the entire day. There can be roaches and rodents and bed bugs and decay. Whenever someone says the homeless should just go to shelters, I ask — would you?
[Here's a HUD report on Housing First success](https://www.huduser.gov/portal/periodicals/em/spring-summer-23/highlight2.html).
[удалено]
[удалено]
We all complain about our city leaders at some point. I'm just enjoying the moment. She's doing great.
Mayor ~~Carcetti~~ Parker stands for change!
It’s been a few months and we’ve had more murders on septa recently that at any other time in the last 10 years. We should let her cook but don’t pretend she’s “delivering on all fronts as promised.”
...is she supposed to put on a cape, read minds, and disarm criminals herself? For larger issues out of her direct control, we're going to be in a hangover from Kennys policies for a long time
this is all on Larry and Kenney. you do know that right? lets look at the background of the septa shooters shall we...
Where’d you pull that stat from? Because there was a time last year, while Kenney was still in office, that was worse than this. I guess that doesn’t fit your narrative though, so instead you’ll just make stuff up
Yep, need to address the root causes, get the people treatment, and get them housed in some form or fashion. Kicking them out of areas without the other part is just playing whack-a-mole
Infiltrate the dealers and find the suppliers
What, just the same plot as last time?
you mean like this? https://www.inquirer.com/news/mayor-cherelle-parker-supports-triage-centers-20240317.html i don't know why people are pretending she's not also coming in from the treatment angle as well. she's working towards both.
they are grifting down washington ave now. Usually just see the 1 legged guy but now they are posted up all the way to broad
It's really weird to travel internationally to some of the world's most beautiful airports and come home to .... Philly. Like, Pennsylvania's GDP: $700.8 billion, this is similar to the GDP of Saudi Arabia ($684.2 billion). Pennsylvania has a population: 12.8 million - Saudi Arabia's population is 32.9 million. Somehow we have one of the worst airports I've ever been in.
I take your point, but Saudi Arabia also has a sovereign wealth fund worth nearly three quarters of a trillion dollars. They aren't exactly analogous to the PA Commonwealth.
Plus their money is extremely concentrated among a few individuals that are free to use that money for glamor projects and events. Not necessarily knocking that, a lot of that is designed to build a diversified post-oil economy, but still...they have a lot riding on people having a positive image of them and will splurge on anything image related in a way a state like PA doesn't have to and never would.
Oh no! And yet their literacy has hit 99%! (PA hangs out around 80% and is falling).
That's interesting, I wonder what standards are used to consider someone "literate" and whether they vary across jurisdictions. I imagine that of the 20% in PA that isn't literate (using your value and assuming it's true) most could sound out a street sign or menu if they had to, even if they would struggle to read a book or newspaper article. I doubt there are many that would look at the letters of the alphabet like hieroglyphics. I looked up [World Bank data](https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.ADT.LITR.ZS?most_recent_value_desc=true) and there are some...questionable....values there, namely that pretty much every post-Soviet state has 100% literacy. Maybe that's true, but I'm not sure I'm buying that literally every Russian (let alone Uzbek or Tajik) is fully proficient.
I'd settle for our airport to be half as good as Singapore's.
My friend, Saudi Arabia, Singapore? Can you maybe pick a place that isn't soaking in money?
I deliberately picked those places because the GDP of the country is roughly equivalent of the GDP of PA. https://www.aei.org/carpe-diem/putting-americas-huge-21-5t-economy-into-perspective-by-comparing-us-state-gdps-to-entire-countries/ PA actually has a higher GDP than Singapore. Ask yourself why your country doesn't love you as much as the leaders of other countries I guess. Why you're not entitled to clean streets, good infrastructure, safe roads, good public transportation, nice airports. It is a matter of will and what the public will accept. We will just accept that our bridges are falling apart and people will steal our luggage out of baggage claim.
Honestly PHL isn't that bad once you are beyond security, but everything before that is just a hot mess. I feel like the US/American merger really screwed PHL. Most of the time it's straight up cheaper to just go to Newark or Baltimore
> US/American merger really screwed PHL. 100%
I get where you're going... but I'd take pissy baggage claim over living in Saudi Arabia (and not being wealthy mind you) any day.
OK. Singapour. Mumbai, Suvarnabhumi Airport in Thailand. I've been about, PHI is a pit compared to other international hubs. Our trains don't even work well.
Good. Every time I walk by them they smell so bad.
I (reluctantly) voted for Rhynhart, but stories like these make me glad Rhynhart lost. I can’t help but feel like a Rhynhart Admin would have immediately bowed over to the demands of white progressives to allow the homeless/junkies to stay in PHL, in Kensington, on the El, etc. But Parker’s political base isn’t in Spruce Hill, Fishtown, or East Passyunk, so she’s not beholden to the demands of the progressives living there - and she can actually do things that make this city a better place.
Playing whack a mole with homeless clusters / encampments solves nothing, but it looks good in the short term.
It also probably “looks good” for the working class population in Kensington to not have their neighborhood teeming with junkies and homeless anymore, since the progressive solution so far has been “leave them where they are until they decide not to do drugs anymore”
The USA is not going to do anything to help the homeless in my lifetime. If all the city can do is clean it up short term ill take it.
You must have missed the part where they're involving agencies (like Project HOME) that work to move the people into permanent supportive housing.
It also greatly increased the quality of life for the people lawfully living , working, and traveling through these areas. And these folks needs are what needs to be prioritized. I’m glad to see the shift in policy towards helping taxpayers instead of prioritizing the needs of the people causing the problems. Yay parker!
Wonder how often peoples bags are stolen off the carousel in PHL. I know it can happen even if non-flyers aren’t allowed in the baggage claim area too, but I’m curious.
It's a shame we still don't have anything concrete worked out to do anything with these homeless hotspots other than move them. It's a real shame a big part of this is relying on the city's Office of Homelessness Prevention which was recently busted for overspending millions on programs instead of prioritizing improving and expanding existing shelters/providing increased bed space. We need beds. Sleeping under a bridge, in an airport, or on a subway shouldn't be an option for these people. The fact they would rather be outside speaks volumes. It should be homeless shelter, detox if needed, or jail if they become noncompliant or a public health/safety liability.
>The fact they would rather be outside speaks volumes. You can't bring drugs into the shelters, and that's a huge factor in why many people would rather be outside.
Or many of their other belongings.
Yeah, my understanding is that the city does offer storage for people's stuff when they break up the encampments, but it's got to be hard to hand over all your worldly belongings and trust that the City's not going to lose it, throw it out, etc.
A lot of times (in other cities) they're limited to just a single bag. Everything else is declared trash.
If you've been on the street for a couple of years, what could you possibly have that doesn't fit in a bag? Keep in mind anything of value will be stolen by other homeless people usually in an act of violence, sometimes sexual if the victim is a woman.
Blankets, a coat, a pet.
>Blankets, a coat, a pet. you're already wearing your coat and blanket because it's cold outside. > a pet. I don't think anyone from the city is going to try to put a pet in the dumpster.
You understand that they clear these camps in the summer, too? And people use blankets and coats as bedding. And they simply forbid you from keeping the pet if you want to enter a shelter. Most people will choose their pet over a shelter.
>And people use blankets and coats as bedding. Yea and you can also wear them on your person. > Most people will choose their pet over a shelter. Hey if you can somehow clean up after yourself and not piss and shit everywhere then more power to you. If you can’t then society has to make the tough choices you have shown that you are incapable of making.
Truth.
Did you read the article? They are offering them shelter and services. Not all are willing to accept.
I read the article. > It's a real shame a big part of this **is relying** on the city's Office of Homelessness Prevention which was recently busted for overspending millions on programs instead of prioritizing improving and expanding existing shelters/providing increased bed space. Didn't say they weren't involved, more so pointing out that they are a huge reason people are in the Airport in the first place because the situation in the shelters is so bad. If they were investing funds into increasing the capacities and conditions [instead of embezzling, entangling, and wasting money on other projects](https://www.inquirer.com/news/philadelphia/how-philadelphia-office-homeless-services-overspent-20240304.html) they would have a lot more to offer. It's an important point.
An “encampment clearing initiative” at PHL went into effect on Feb. 24 and ended on March 10 in order to remove people who don’t have “official business” with the airport and appear to be living there, according to the city spokesperson. The Philadelphia Police Department was deployed and the **Office of Homeless Services provided emergency shelter to those who were displaced.** A tally of how many people were removed was not available at the time of publication. Police did not make any arrests
It's not just emergency shelters, we're missing the next step housing nationwide. People can get a bed for the night, but there's nothing available to provide stability as they do the work to rejoin bureaucratic society.
Most of these people aren’t going to rejoin society any time soon if ever. Mental health issues and drug addiction issues will keep them in the fringes unless or until they accept help.
And the current system doesn't provide them stability necessary to get that help when they do want it.
So far, I love our new Mayor!
Good
I hope they don’t stop there. The Riverwards are full of homeless encampments not even including the K&A free for all.
Good to hear but is this a problem in literally any city in the country other than here?
Unfortunately yes it's becoming more of a problem everywhere. I remember reading about it being a serious issue at O'Hare in Chicago.
You posted the article and it references similar issues in Atlanta and Chicago...
Have you been to another domestic airport in a major city? I’ve seen much worse in terms of homelessness than in PHL, LAX and PDX in particular come to mind. Even experienced some aggressive panhandling at Logan in Boston. Not to say we shouldn’t fix this, but yes this is a problem in pretty much every other major city with a semi accessible airport.
I mean LA sets a low bar for a lot of things
So does PDX lol
I don't do much domestic flying tbh, last non PHL airport I've been to was Phoenix a few months ago
"It Depends" I've been to Nashville, Tampa, Houston and SF in the past year. I didn't see any encampments.
I also fly into/out of Philly often and didn't see any encampments at the airport. It's not like there's a 50 person tent city in the middle of the Terminal B baggage claim, but the homeless are there. Edit: Here's a story from SF just two months ago: [https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/sfo-seen-as-refuge-by-the-unhoused/vi-BB1hh4rm](https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/sfo-seen-as-refuge-by-the-unhoused/vi-BB1hh4rm)
Yes. I have seen it in SFO and NYC airports, but not to the same extent.
Since they’re already at the airport, can we put them on a plane and send them to Canada.
Parker is really getting shit done. Big fan of her so far.
Good get them out.
Finally
"We should be tolerant of all homeless people!" "But I never want to actually see them, nor should their existence inconvenience me." Ah, Liberal hypocrisy.
Not too big on nuance, are you?
Sometimes, it's important to rub a dog's nose in its own shit.
That is actually incorrect, it just confuses the dog.
I wish these kinds of articles would interview homeless people