Visit of Pope Francis to Philadelphia To Congest Traffic But Most Are Prepared
The traffic from the Pope’s visit is expected to be overflowing – are you ready?
September 25, 2015
While most seem worried about the traffic that will accompany the Pope’s visit, the CHS staff feels there is nothing to worry about. Being a public school, not much can be done acknowledging the Pope, but either way his presence will be known.
As it says on popenj.com, “It’s estimated that upwards of a million people will travel to the area to see the Pope, 50 percent of those arriving by car. It’s expected to be as many as 250,000 extra cars and 10,000 extra buses on the road.”
Route 130 will act as an artery for the “Pope traffic” flooding Philadelphia. The fact of the matter is that the Pope will be in Philadelphia. If students, faculty, and any residents of the local area can avoid heading into or through Philly the Popes arrival will not have a large impact on their travel. There are some local highways, such as route 130 and I-95, that will be heavily crowded throughout the weekend. To find out more go to www.popenj.com.
Many local schools have shut down their classes for the week because of the city’s special guest. Mrs. Julie Leetz feels that, “If the Pope knew what was happening (the school closings) he would not approve.” Leetz’s husband, along with many other workers, will be working from home because he will not be able to reach his work this weekend.
Much of the Pope’s visit has been covered by the media as something to fear (because of the large influx of people). However if prepared, it should not be too hectic for locals.
History teacher Mrs. Molly Quinn, who lives five minutes out of Philadelphia, sees the Pope’s visit as, “a figure to be admired.” She does not mind waking up at a quarter to five to get to work on time. She does not even mind that her husband will be on duty for the next 72 hours as a Philadelphia policeman. “I don’t mind losing him for the Pope,” Mrs.
Quinn admitted.
For those who want to avoid the congestion of the Papal visit, this situation should be viewed as a state of emergency situation.
Governor Chris Christie did declare a state of emergency so that traffic may be redirected, and the national-guard may be called up. This situation is a better state of emergency than others. In preparation Quinn has, “already gone to the supermarket [for this weekend]. I plan on parking my car in my driveway on Friday and not moving it until Monday. I don’t plan on traveling anywhere near the city.”
Being prepared and being paranoid are two different things. It makes sense to plan around the visit of the Pope, however Quinn feels that “Philadelphia has done a poor job in scaring people away. The media has scared people away from wanting to go in and see him.”
Whether planning a Papal visit, or just weathering out the weekend, there is nothing to be worried about. Officer Czarsty, the in school policeman shared that, “I don’t think it [the traffic] will be that major of a deal.”