Travel protips for Thanksgiving week:
Just as a reminder, while many ticket offices are open for extended hours tomorrow, they will be swamped by people trying to get out for Thanksgiving travel. This especially applies to the SEPTA and Amtrak ticket offices at 30th Street Station, as well as the Amtrak and NJ Transit TVMs there. If you still haven’t yet bought or picked up your train ticket for tomorrow, do it on your way home today. Some outlying ticket offices may have extended hours today as well; if they do, take advantage of that. Getting tickets a day or more early saved my bacon as an undergrad in the suburbs, when the lines at the ticket office could be up to 15 minutes long leading up to every midday departure on Wednesday.
Also, if your Regional Rail trip involves Trenton or the Airport, remember to get your ticket through to those points to save time and money.
If you have any choice in the matter at all, don’t pay cash on board tomorrow; that’s going to be a mess, and you will make a conductor’s already hard life even worse.
Amtrak, of course, is on a modified schedule throughout the holiday week, and if it’s part of your holiday plans you should have booked weeks ago. But, there are still a few seats available on most trains tomorrow to both New York and Washington, although your procrastination tax will be to pay through the nose for those last tickets. Reserved seating is in effect for all Keystone Service trains.
Travel safe, travel smart, and have a happy holiday!
Sic Transit Philadelphia 