Fire Worsens 2nd Day of Philly Transit Strike

Transport workers are seen on strike outside the Fern Rock Transportation Center in Philadelphia,...

Transport workers are seen on strike outside the Fern Rock Transportation Center in Philadelphia, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2009. The Philadelphia transit system's largest union went on strike early Tuesday, bringing the city's bus, subway and trolley operations to a halt a day after the World Series shifted to New York. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

(AP)

Commuters biked, walked, juggled carpool schedules and hitched rides as the city's transit system ground to a near halt for a second day Wednesday, a rush worsened when a regional rail train caught fire.

Regional rail lines are running because their workers are represented by a different union. But trouble hit around 7 a.m. when a car caught fire as it headed downtown, causing delays and confusion. Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority officials said it was likely an electrical fire and was not suspicious.

More than 5,000 members of SEPTA's largest union walked off the job early Tuesday, leaving thousands of people struggling for ways to get around without the use of subways, trolleys or buses.

"I can't take the whole strike off," said Niki LaGrone, 27, a Catholic school teacher in North Philadelphia, as she prepared to take regional rail as far as it goes and then walk a mile and a half to school. "I'm going to have to show up. ... Hopefully, I can find somebody when I get in to work to help me out."

The Philadelphia school district reported a 16 percent drop in high school attendance Wednesday. On an average weekday, about 54,000 public and parochial students take SEPTA to school.

At the J.R. Masterman high school, Robin Carpenter unloaded a bicycle from his father's car so he could make the 7-mile ride home in the afternoon.

"I do ride my bike sometimes but not during cross-country season," he said, adding that the strike was an inconvenience. "It's too tiring."

Karen Pollack scrambled to find ways to get her 16- and 13-year-old daughters to and from their respective schools.

Pollack lives in the city's Germantown section and left about 15 minutes earlier to drop off her younger daughter at Masterman. Her husband dropped off their older daughter at a school about 5 miles from home.

Getting them home could be a challenge, though, since her older daughter usually takes SEPTA. Now, she's going to walk the 15 or so blocks to her sister's school and hopefully find a spot in that car pool — if there's room.