PATCO

As far a public transportation goes Patco is fairly consistent. Expect delays every once and awhile (as with any other transportation service). They’re constantly changing their schedules which is annoying but they usually don’t change too much. I feel like I hit the jackpot when a new train pulls up. I just wish they’d upgrade all of the trains. The old ones are not appealing at all. It’s nice to start your day (and end) in a clean upgraded train but there are so few of them.

I’ve been here many times. Started using PATCO back in 2009 when I used to work in Center City. Such a good convenience since it will save you money on parking going into Philadelphia.

PATCO has been a reliable staple in my life for years. When I was younger, I would ride it into town to go nightclubbing. Now I take it back and forth to work every day, as I have been for over 16 years. Unlike SEPTA in Philadelphia which is frequently problem-​prone and at times a downright nasty commuting experience, PATCO is quick, pleasant, reliable and rarely are there problems or delays. Even with the current track rehabilitation project which is a huge, extensive ordeal, PATCO has managed to keep the trains running, albeit on an altered schedule, and kept riders well-​informed of scheduling changes. Also, I love the upgrades they are currently doing to the cars — overhauling the interiors completely. I will say, though, that there’s a part of me that is sad to see the ugly 1969 olive green and gold interiors go.
PATCO staff are courteous and helpful and most of the riders are well-​behaved. This has especially improved with the introduction of the «quiet car» a couple of years ago (the last car on the train during morning and evening rush hour), which provides a library-​like ride for those passengers like me who prefer a peaceful, zen-​like ride to 15 minutes of listening to people yell into their cell phones.
Watch the cute video they released to remind passengers of manners. I love the girl with the rash.

PATCO is a workhorse. I would love to know how many commuters go through this station, but I know it must be a lot.
PATCO is fast, inexpensive, and dependable. And free parking is provided (unless you want to park in a specific lot with closer spaces during prime time).
The train cars are mostly old– from the 70s– but this isn’t a long ride in a luxury rail line, and they are kept in working condition, so I can’t really complain.
Best, cheapest, fastest way to get from Camden County to Center City– period.

With all of Septa’s constant misgivings and imperfections, having the chance to ride PATCO has always seemed like a light at the end of the tunnel by comparison. because ultimately in a lot of ways its the efficient and flexible way that public transit should be.
The trains run ²⁴⁄₇ and for the most part manages to show up on time give or take a couple of minutes. The stations an trains are far cleaner (and less smelling of urine) than others that I’ve had the misfortune of riding, and there’s almost always at least one worker manning the station stop in case of any issues. And with access points through Philadelphia, the Camden Waterfront, Collingswood and Haddonfield, and a stopping point in Lindenwold that gives you easy access to Atlantic City; its gives you plenty of eclectic travel destinations that are worth the visit.
Grant it that there are a lot more slow downs given the track rehabilitation projects going on. But compared to the heinous waiting times that I’ve endured with Septa throughout the years its next to nothing.

By now I know better, that Patco is rather packed on weekday mornings. While I was working in Philly, I boarded the train at Woodcrest. This was largely because it was easy to get to and that early in the route I was usually able to grab a seat. No such luck for passengers coming on after Haddonfield.
The construction DRPA has been doing to improve Patco is a pain in the butt. I’m not sure when it’s scheduled to stop, or perhaps it already has. The frequent schedule changes were annoying to keep track of. Nonetheless, the trains themselves generally arrive on time. Five minutes late means people begin to grumble.
It would be quite helpful to install bars along the car ceilings for standers to hold on to. There is nothing but a grip on the corner of each seat and the padding of other upright patrons to keep one from falling this way or that.

I grew up in South Jersey, but not having lived here for almost 15 years now, the aggravation and traffic heading to either the shore or Philly drives my blood pressure to a dangerous high when I’m in town and need to run around. Therefore, I prefer to take PATCO whenever possible. Super convenient, fair prices, comfy and perfectly usable for where I need to go from either Cherry Hill, Collingswood, AC, Philly, Lindinwold, you name it. Thanks for keeping me sane!

Cheap train to Philly that is descent in price!!! $ 6.00 for round trip to Center City. and train station is close to home! Very convenient and the train is almost always on time.

You guys SUCK! Outdated dangerous trains from 1969 that break down on an almost daily basis.
The construction project of 2013 til ?? is/​was so poorly managed. Why wouldn’t you have the team work overnights and NOT tie up the bridge and trains during the busiest times of the day just boggles the mind.
I have been a daily rider for more than 23 years and can’t wait till this current project is finished!

For the price, you cant beat this. So, no complaints. It is the best way to get into the Philly from SJ. It is so cheap, commute to work or just get out and explore!

Four stars for being one of veryyy few useful public transportation systems in the area. Generally clean, on time and no excessive loiterers in my experience (although I should mention I haven’t been on the patco at night). Parking is only $ 1 (after 10am it’s free).
Some areas for improvement — 1) you can barely hear the stops being announced and I swear half the time they don’t say them at all (so pay attention to the stops!), 2) signs on the platforms are tiny! (The ones that tell you which side is heading to Philly and which side heads toward lindenwold), 3) highly annoying that you have to swipe your card on the way out AND I don’t see it clearly marked anywhere, on my first run I crumpled my ticket and fortunately someone noticed and stopped me from destroying it otherwise I wouldn’t have been able to exit at my destination), 4) I wish they had express routes during rush hour and 5) no discount for frequent commuting (ie a monthly pass would be nice). Another thing I find odd is that they have backwards seats in some segments — who wants to ride backwards? Not me.

I don’t know about «high speed», but in my brief experience with PATCO, I’m a fan. Trains always on time, friendly, personable conductors and staff, and it gets me where I need to go in Philly.
Thanks, PATCO. Job well done.

Train times can be off by a few minutes but all in all they run to schedule. Never had any big delays and I have been using this line to travel into Philly for 4 years now. The trains are decently clean, it’s public transport it will only be so clean.

I’ve never taken PATCO before, which is perhaps surprising because I have no car. I obviously need to get out more. Despite some hiccups in the beginning when three completely dark trains rolled by me between 8:00 and 8:15 am at the 11^th & Locust stop (sending me into a quiet panic as I had a work meeting that morning in Mt. Laurel and couldn’t find anyone to ask what the heck was going on), one finally stopped for me, and we were on our way. Make sure to check out the view from the Ben Franklin Bridge on your way over and into New Jersey! Last car is the is the quiet car during rush hour.

Patco is one of the things that makes me glad I live in Jersey. It runs so much more frequently than Septa Regional Rail, and its far cheaper! I usually catch the train in Haddonfield, where there’s plenty of parking, and take it all the way to 15^th/​16^th — about a 15 minute ride, for $ 5.20 round trip. Even on busy mornings, at Haddonfield you can usually get a seat.

Patco (sometimes referred to as the «High Speedline» or just «Speedline»), is hands down the best form of public transportation in the Philadelphia area, and the only train that connects Philadelphia & South Jersey.
It has 9 stops in Southern NJ (Lindenwold, Ashland, Woodcrest, Haddonfield, Westmont, Collingswood, Ferry Ave, Broadway & City Hall) and 4 stops in Philadelphia (8^th & Market, 9^th/​10^th & Locust, 12^th/​13^th & Locust, 15^th/​16^th & Locust).
The trip from the last stop in NJ (Lindenwold), to the last stop in PA (15^th/​16^th & Locust) takes about 25 minutes, and will cost you $ 3 ($ 6 for Round-​trip). The cost is less if you get on/​off at earlier stops.
A few stops have connections w/​other lines (for addt’l fare). Lindenwold station connects w/​Atlantic City Rail line, Broadway connects w/​NJ Riverline, 8^th & Market connects w/​Market/​Frankford line, & both 12^th/​13^th & Locust, and 15^th/​16^th & Locust have connect w/​the Broad Street line.
Trains are clean (most of the time), safe and usually always run on-​time. If you’re a regular commuter, it’s worth it to purchase a freedom card. It’ll cost you $ 5 for the card, but you can reload money onto it. You can also register it online, so if ever it’s lost or stolen, Patco will cancel it & transfer your funds onto a new card. Having a freedom card is also the only way to pay to get into the paid parking lots at the NJ stations.
Some tips of a frequent Patco traveler:
— The underground stops on the Philly side are color coded (Teal — 8^th & Market; Blue — 9^th/​10^th & Locust; Purple — 12^th/​13^th & Locust; Yellow — 15^th/​16^th & Locust)
— Most stations in NJ have free parking. The exceptions are Haddonfield (paid parking lots only) and Broadway & City Hall (no parking lots since they’re underground)
— Areas of the parking lot at the Ferry Ave station tend to flood in even just a small amount of rain, so check the weather before you park here
— If purchasing a ticket with cash (vs. credit), make sure to have small bills. The machines only give you change in gold $ 1 coins.

Other transit systems could learn a thing or two from Patco. It runs 24/​7, it usually is pretty clean and it usually is on time.
The late 60s era cars are going out for rebuild and interior updating so soon the fake wood grain and split pea soup green interiors will be a thing of the past. When one considers the cost of crossing the bridge and paying to park in the city the fares are very reasonable.
My only major complaint are the «emergency trackwork schedules» posted on weekends without an iota of trackwork being done — what is the true purpose of these schedules? The individuals who handle the text and email alerts could use some internet and English lessons — one day I received four blank messages from Patco Alerts.

What’s not to love about the PATCO experience? Aside from being wildly convenient, it provides one of the best people watching arenas in the area.
It’s also a great way to save some dollars when going into the city. The bridge toll is $ 5 and then there are the parking fees. A train ticket costs no more than $ 6 and that depends on which station you get on.
The stations in the city are all convenient and close to a bulk of the popular destinations for Jerseyites. If you need to travel further west or go north or south, you can always catch a Septa train.
My only wish is that the operators would give riders more than 10 seconds to step onto the train before ringing the bell and attempting to close the doors.

Whoah.
I signed up to go to NJ. I went back in time, too.
Love the old rail cars. I’ll do it again and again and again!

as someone having recently moved to this area from Florida, where public transport sucks, i gotta say PATCO is awesome! 24 hr service connecting the Dirty Jerz to the cosmopolitis of Philly, great! service seems very reliable and the stations are pretty clean, in comparison to say the New York subway, which is filthy and seems to always be undergoing maintenance. I have extensively used subway systems all over the World, and PATCO is pretty good! Importantly PATCO is FAST!!! the «high speedline» name is the truth! I wish the stations had restrooms and drinking fountains, but virtually no subway systems anywhere provide that, presumably due to both security reasons and the expense of cleaning them. The Lindenwold station does have restrooms, but they are only open on weekdays during the daytime.

I’ve been a Patco user for many years now and figured that it’s about time that I put in my two sense. I will both agree and disagree with many other reviews and will also outline what I feel can be the best possible Patco experience one can have.
Pros:
–Patco Freedom Card (can easily be loaded using the machines at the stations or online or have your balance checked)
–Train comes every few minutes during peak times (M-​F mornings and evenings)
–Easy access to Rutgers University, Cooper Hospital, Camden City Hall as well as Old City and Center City Philadelphia
–A good idea if you plan on partying in the city (I usually store the late night times in my phone so that I don’t end up waiting a long time for a train late at night)
–A train fare to Philly is close to $ 6. A bridge toll alone is $ 5, which does not include driving around aimlessly to find a spot, paying for parking or gas
–You can go online and check their schedule as well as «special schedule» when they are doing trackwork
–Parking in Philly can be a royal pain in the ass and Patco is a nice alternative
Cons:
–During off peak hours they are ALWAYS doing trackwork (I used to go to Rutgers and would sometimes miss the train at night because I had the scheduled train times but they would be off due to trackwork
–You can only load a minimum of $ 20 onto your Patco card and you cannot pay for a single or round trip ticket using a credit or debit card (You must have cash)
–The train only comes every 40 minutes during the night on weekends so plan accordingly!
–Compared to some other trains I’ve been on in major cities (Boston & NYC), they are a bit outdated meaning they have yet to embrace the digital age (some electronic signs with updated train times would be nice) and the cars are exactly as they appear to be, which is 40 years old
–Patco employees need to issue tickets to cars that take up more than one spot (depending on which station you go to, but I find this common at Lindenwold)
I have been to almost every station on the Jersey side during almost any time of the day at some point and here is my take on them…
Lindenwold-​A bit shady, impossible to find parking that isn’t a 10 minute walk during the week between the hours of 9AM and 2PM, spots are tight, people take up two spots (which also always seem to be much closer to the entrance), You’re much better off driving the extra 5 mins to Ashland
Ashland-​clean, safe, ample parking, before 10AM you must pay $ 1 to park in the main lot (a small fee compared to the stress you save v Lindenwold station), but you must also have a Freedom card in order to do this
Woodcrest (good if you’e coming from Rt. 295, no complaints), Haddonfield (no complaints), Westmont & Collingswood (parking can be tight during peak hours but no other complaints), Ferry Ave, Broadway, City Hall (have never driven to any of these but Broadway and City Hall provide easy access to landmarks in Camden)
So there you have it: Jeff’s Official Guide to Successfully Navigating Patco. Hope this helps!

I’ve taken many train lines in my day and PATCO is really and truly up there with the best. It’s a nice change to take a «speed line» that actually moves fast. You’d be surprised how many trains, subways, rails, and the like out there claim to be speed lines and instead run so inefficiently that one would be better off using a bus.
With PATCO, I don’t really need to look at a schedule. I know that I can arrive at my designated station during peak times/​rush hours and if I see I just missed a train, that another train will be there in about 5 minutes. Even better, when PATCO anticipates delays (track work, medical emergencies, etc.), they make regular, clear announcements at each station indicating what the problem is, and when it will likely be fixed, and how much of a delay there will be. It isn’t always foolproof, of course; sometimes a «10−15 minute delay» can really be more like 20 – 25, but they really do the best they can to be accurate.
PATCO has made a lot of positive changes both to their trains and the stations and continue to make improvements. As with any train line, some stations are cleaner than others, some have more parking, some are more secure, but generally you will see PATCO employees and security at each station, and they actually know what they are doing and will help you.
A PATCO oddity that out-​of-​area folks sometimes do not realize is that you have to swipe your ticket (or your Freedom card or PATCO Anywhere card) both when you go in and as you go out. You’d be surprised how many people forget this or don’t know this and are confused when they try to exit and cannot. If you lose your ticket or card during your ride, there are phones you could use to call for help once you get to your station and get let out.
A new addition to PATCO trains is the Quiet Car, which is typically the last car of each train and is in effect 24 hours a day Mondays through Fridays. I now try to use the Quiet Car each time I ride because it really does make my commute more peaceful. Be forewarned though: some people either don’t care or don’t read (or both?) and talk away in the Quiet Car. More often than not, though, these people are told to stop — and most actually listen!
I’m thrilled PATCO exists. The thought of driving in to Philadelphia each day and paying for parking is just scary. I’m glad that I have a much better option as a commuter.

Maybe it’s this hangover.
Maybe it’s because I’m afraid of falling off the bridge.
Maybe it’s because of this bullshiz that the DRPA does constantly:
But I effing can’t stand PATCO.
I appreciate the cheap ride into Philly so that’s the extra star, but if parking wasn’t $ 11/​day, I would much rather drive in.
The cars are almost always filthy… garbage is strewn about in the seats… some days you literally cannot see out of the windows because they are so coated in dirt.
Their «schedule» is hilarious… due to frequent breakdowns, it is impossible for them to stick to it. Also, because of these breakdowns, you end up with trains running 2 minutes apart during rush hour, one stuffed to the gills waddling down the track, the next completely empty.
If you are looking for a train outside of rush hour, good luck, as they run an hour apart. Good luck holding onto that buzz you worked on on a Saturday night while standing underground with no cell service for an hour. It’s super awesome. And sometimes, if you’re lucky, you’ll dribble down the track from Ferry to Collingswood.
They blow their horns to deafen us… I know some do it purely to make us crazy because some conductors will just do a little «beep! beep!’ as they go by if they are an express train. Others make me feel like I’m end scening on LOST: «BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP!»
I get it… you’re not stopping. I promise I won’t stand close to the ledge and pop in front of the train.
Oh…and they wait until the first warm day to turn the gotdamn heat on while you’re waiting for a train.

Realizing that my previous review update was probably bringing down PATCO’s overall rating, I wanted to update again to the four stars I feel they deserve. I do recognize that my experience last winter was a freak incident (that better not happen again). For the most part, PATCO is reliable and still the least expensive way for me to get to and from the city. The increased security has not gone unnoticed, and I give props to the officers who are on their game when the Drunky McSkunkies and Shady McShadertons start any bullshit.
Bonus: For anyone with an iPhone, the PATCO app with train schedules is solid.