travel from PHL to Ursinus

<p>My daughter is going to be attending the admitted students day and will be traveling alone for the first time. She e-mailed admissions and was told she can take a train and then a bus to get to Ursinus from the airport. Could anyone give me some more details about this? Does the train go directly from the airport or is there some kind of shuttle to get to the train station? I'd just like for her to have a bit more detailed explanation of getting there, as she is a little nervous about traveling alone to a place she's never been.</p>

<p>I don’t know about the bus part but there is a train departing from terminals. Runs every half an hour, stops at all terminals except terminal F. If she lands at terminal F, it’s an easy walk to terminal E train stop.</p>

<p>That sounds convenient – I’m glad she won’t have to do a shuttle first. And I think she’ll be landing in Terminal A. Thanks!</p>

<p>The local public transportation in the Philadelphia is supplied by SEPTA. You should visit <a href=“http://www”>www</a>. septa.org to look at detailed schedules. She will need to take two trains and a bus to get from the airport to Ursinus:</p>

<p>**From PHL, take the Airport Line to Market East Station. ** At the airport, after she deplanes / gets her baggage, follow the signs for Ground Transportation / Train to Center City. The Airport Line stops at every terminal.</p>

<p>At Market East, she wll need to switch to the Manayunk / Norristown Line. This is another train. She may or may not have to move from one platform to another to get on the Norristown Line – there should be signs.</p>

<p>Get off the train at the Norristown Transportation Center. Now she needs to switch to a bus. She will need to leave the train station and walk across a parking lot to get on the bus. She needs to get on the #93 bus that is headed towards Pottstown.</p>

<p>** Get off the bus in Collegeville at Main St & 9th Ave.**. This intersection is on the edge of campus. She should see the campus and the banners on Main Street immediately before this stop.</p>

<p>Train tickets can be purchased on the train; I’m not sure about the bus. She might have to buy a bus token (either from a person or a machine at the bus station) before boarding.</p>

<p>Honestly, this is not an easy trip for a beginner. Is your D a seasoned user of public transportation? My D has done the bus/train from Ursinus to Philadelphia, but the first few times were with a group (and at least one member of the group had made the trip before). She’s comfortable with it now, but that’s because she recognizes landmarks and is familiar with the area. </p>

<p>If your D is already apprehensive about traveling alone, maybe you should look into a cab or car service directly from the airport to Ursinus. It is probably not cheap, but might be worth the peace of mind.</p>

<p>mrsref, Thanks for the detailed instructions! She is used to public transportation. She doesn’t drive yet, so she takes the bus everywhere around town here. I’m going to show her your directions and see if she’d rather take a shuttle service or cab.</p>

<p>I don’t know where your daughter is flying in from, but she will have to leave incredibly early to get to Phila airport and make all of these train and bus connections in time for the program that day. In addition, I agree that this trip will be exhausting and confusing for a teenager alone. There are car services at the airport. Without traffic, it would probably take 40 minutes or so to get to the campus by car but there is always traffic- sometimes very bad traffic. Can she come in the day before, take a car service to a hotel near campus and then a cab to campus on Admitted Student’s Day? That would reduce the pressure of having to get there in time.</p>

<p>Yes, the flight schedules were weirdly inconvenient – the only way for her to do the whole program is to come in the day before and leave the day after. Luckily, Ursinus has agreed to host her in a dorm, so we don’t have to worry about hotels. Even so, a shuttle or car service is starting to sound better. I don’t want her all stressed out when she gets there!</p>

<p>If I arrange a shuttle or car service, what is a good drop off/pick up spot on campus?</p>

<p>When the cab gets to the campus, she should tell the cabdriver to make a right into the very first driveway toward the Admissions Building. The cab can drive her right in front of the Admissions Building and she can get out and go in there. They will probably offer to pair her with a student to help her along and get her to where she needs to be. I am sure those arrangements wil be made ahead of time, but if they don’t offer them, just ask them to do that. There is a very nice woman who is the main receptionist at admissions named Barbara who has always been very helpful to us. I would be happy to be a safety net for your daughter in case something goes awry. I live in NJ but not that far away. My daughter will be attending April 1 as well. The less stressed your daughter is in getting there, the more favorably she will view the place, I am sure. Staying overnight will be a great way for her to see if the fit feels right. Your new plan makes alot of sense! We use Rapid Rover as a car service when we need to but you’d have to see if they go out in that direction.</p>

<p>Oboemom, thanks for the info and safety net offer! I will pm you.</p>