The World Meeting of Families Congress is expected to bring 1.5 million visitors to Philadelphia on September 22-25, 2015, concluding with a visit from the pope on Saturday and Sunday, September 26-27.

Preparations for the massive influx of visitors are underway at several levels of city, state and federal government, including law enforcement, all the way up to the U.S. Secret Service and Pennsylvania National Guard.

Residents should plan ahead

City officials are working to make sure Philadelphia is open and accessible to everyone. Those traveling downtown should keep a few things in mind:

• Be prepared to walk, perhaps as far as several miles, depending on where you are and where you are going.
• Private vehicles will not be allowed that weekend in Center City.
• Public transportation routes and schedules will be altered for efficiency and capacity.

The City of Philadelphia has established a Traffic Box for the papal visit.

• Private vehicles can exit but not re-enter the Traffic Box.
• The Traffic Box will stretch from Center City to 38th Street in West Philadelphia, and is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. on Friday, September 25, with other parts west of the Schuylkill River at 10 p.m. However, these times may change, depending on crowd size during the World Meeting of Families.
• Within the Traffic Box, Authorized Vehicle Access Roads will be arranged for emergency vehicles only. No other vehicles will be permitted to drive or park on them.

Traffic Box boundaries 

Boundaries are as follows for the Center City portion of the Traffic Box:

• Northern Boundary – Spring Garden to Ridge, Ridge to Girard, Girard to Schuylkill River
• Southern Boundary – South Street river to river
• East Boundary – Delaware Avenue from South Street to Spring Garden Street
• West Boundary – Runs along the edge of the Schuylkill River and cuts up Kelly Drive, stopping below the Girard Street Bridge

For the West Philadelphia portion of the Traffic Box, the boundaries will be:

• Northern Boundary – Powelton Avenue from 32nd to 38th
• West Boundary – 38th Street from Powelton Avenue to University Avenue
• East Boundary – Runs along the edge of the Schuylkill River and train tracks
• Southern Boundary – University Avenue to Grays Ferry

Bicycle and pedestrian traffic will be permitted within the Traffic Box. 

City government and services closures

In addition to transportation changes, operations of the City Courts, the First Judicial District, will be closed from Wednesday, September 23, through Monday, September 28. 

The City of Philadelphia will be open for services during this period, but there will be limited service plans from Thursday through Monday. 

Click here for a map of the Traffic Box. 

For more information on how these changes affect your projects, please contact Milrose Consultants.