What Happened to the Chestnut Street Transitway

Swimming Against the Tide

1. Buses go two ways on the Chestnut street transitway, 1978.

In 1959 city planner Ed Bacon wrote an essay in which he imagined, among other things, what Chestnut street in Center City Philadelphia would look like during the fair in the bicentennial year of 1976. Here you go: 

"But the great attraction will be the open-sided electric cars with their striped awnings that go up and down the length of Chestnut Street, which has been relieved of automobiles to provide enough room for the visitors to the Fair. Chestnut Street is the backbone of the Fair, connecting the historic areas with the main part of the Exposition that extends up both banks of the Schuylkill River from Convention Hall to Memorial Hall in Fairmount Park. It has become the Midway where the visitors spend their money for food, drinks, mementos and all the various necessities and frivolities that go with such an event, rather than in some temporary, soon to be removed bazaar. 

"Some of the stores have removed their front windows and carry on outdoor activities, loggia-like half in and half out of the building. Sidewalk cafes and outdoor bazaars add a festive atmosphere." (Scott Gabriel Knowles, ed., Imagining Philadelphia: Edmund Bacon and the Future of the City, 2009, pp. 1, 11-12.) 

2. Dreaming in color: Chestnut street transitway, 1974.

Needless to say, the bicentennial celebration in Philadelphia didn't look anything like this. The cute little electric-powered jitneys intended for people who wanted to explore the sights and shopping of the city's core were replaced with the usual suspects - a rampaging herd of standard-sized buses roaring and belching diesel fumes. And that was only one of the problems. 

The buses, however, were there for a reason. The federal government was willing to pay for a transitway, but it was not going to pay for a pedestrian shopping mall. 

Opening Day

So the buses were there to stay. After frantic construction ahead of the 1976 bicentennial, the transitway opened on November 24, 1975. The next day, Howard S. Shapiro reported on the front page of the Philadelphia Inquirer: "As prominent city officials and business leaders gathered at a podium at Broad and Chestnut Streets to praise the transitway as a boon to center city transportation and shopping, a monumental traffic jam was in progress." He went on: "The 40-minute ceremony - complete with a 180-piece marching band and drill team from Cardinal Dougherty High School, which ushered the first bus down the officially opened street - had brought noontime traffic, which is normally snail-paced, to a complete standstill." 

Shapiro also reported that the transitway, which extended between 8th and 18th streets, had cost $7 million, 80 percent of which was paid by the U.S. Urban Mass Transportation Administration. He further noted that Chestnut street merchants were very happy that the transitway had opened: "Merchants had feared that the streets would remain barricaded through the busy Christmas shopping season, which begins this week. ..." 

"Many merchants along Chestnut Street breathed a sigh of relief yesterday. Although most believe that the transitway's wide sidewalks, comfortable ambiance and convenient bus transit will attract more shoppers to center city, construction of the project has generally hampered business since May." 

From that point the transitway was, slowly, over many years, modified until it became the street we can see today. The original design was for two lanes of buses, one eastbound and one westbound. In the end there are two eastbound traffic lanes. One of the traffic lanes is supposed to be for buses and bicycles. There is also a parking lane. The sidewalks, which had been widened, have been narrowed. 

1987 Evaluation

The transitway has proved itself to be perennially controversial. 

In 1985, the City decided to conduct an evaluation of the almost ten-year-old transitway. In 1987 a report was issued with the title Chestnut Street Transitway Management Study Executive Study.  I found this document at Philadelphia's City Archives, 548 Spring Garden Street, in a box numbered A-12900. 

The report observes that, in its 1985 state, cars and trucks were not entirely banned from the transitway. Most notably, delivery trucks were permitted, with a permit, between 9:30 a.m. and 4 p.m. and between 7 p.m. and 7 a.m. Bicyclists were prohibited at all times. (P. 2.) 

There were a lot of buses, from both Septa and New Jersey Transit. The most heavily traveled section was between 7th and Broad streets, where on a typical weekday about 1,100 buses were passing through. (P. 2.)  This number includes bus traffic in both directions, but still it strikes me as eye-popping. 

Ridership numbers were also impressive, with peak loads at midday and during the evening rush. "As many as 1,600 passengers were 'on-board'  within the 1500 block of the Transitway during both peak hours." (P. 2.) 

And the sidewalks were very popular. "Pedestrian counts indicate that some Transitway sidewalks are the most heavily used in Center City. A total of about 5,800 persons uses each of the sidewalks (i.e., the north side and the south side) in the 1500 block during the noontime lunch hour. This is double the count in the same block of Walnut Street during the same period. About 5,000 persons use each side of the 1100 block of the Transitway during the peak noontime hour. This is double the volume in the same block on Market Street and triple the pedestrian volume in the 1100 block on Walnut Street during the same hour." (P. 3.) 

Bus Operating Speeds

Let's have a closer look at bus operations. "It is interesting to note that bus operating speeds along the Transitway are about the same as those noted along Walnut Street (i.e., four to seven  mph) and general delay patterns in terms of both time and cause (e.g., 'serve passenger', traffic signal, etc.) are similar along both streets. In addition, bus operation along the Transitway appears to have no significant impact on reliability of service in terms of 'on-time' performance. Finally, SEPTA and others have expressed concern to the City relative to increased use of the Transitway by other vehicular traffic - particularly for loading and unloading activities - and the impact of this traffic on bus movement. There are occasions when one or even both lanes within a given block are occupied by parked vans/trucks."(P. 3.) 

No Loading Zones 

It took me a while to pick up on this. The basic conflict on the Chestnut street transitway was between a vision of Chestnut street as a pedestrian mall and a vision of Chestnut street as a traffic sewer for buses - something like the Holland tunnel that extends under the Hudson river from Jersey City, N.J., to Manhattan in New York city, only with no roof, and for buses only. I assumed that the buses had won. I was wrong. There was no winner. We did not get a satisfactory pedestrian mall, and we did not get a satisfactory traffic sewer. And the reason was the failure to provide for loading zones adjacent to the street. 

Many buildings along Chestnut street have rear access, on little streets with names like Ranstead and Ionic and Stock Exchange Place. But a number do not. (In 2017 I wrote a whole article about this. To see it, click here.) Stores do not, in general, make the products they sell in the store. They bring them from elsewhere, and they need to be able to unload the boxes of sweaters or blue jeans, or what have you, and bring the boxes into the store. Then they can open the boxes and put the sweaters out on display tables, or hang the winter parkas up on a rack. Not being able to unload is an existential threat to the business. If there is no rear access, there must be front access. 

And remember, the new Chestnut street transitway, inaugurated in 1975, had no parking lane to unload in. It appears that no provision was made for loading zones. So all front-side loading would have had to take place in the traffic lanes. I think I'm prepared to call this a serious design flaw. 

(I should add that the City and the Philadelphia Parking Authority now seem fully aware of the importance of loading on Chestnut street. On April 1, 2025, the parking authority even introduced a new system of Smart Loading Zones, with activity monitored by license plate readers. Unauthorized parking for more than three minutes results in a hefty fine.) 

3. 1900 block of Chestnut, 2025.

How Mr. Yaffa Felt in 1965

I'd like to go back from 1987 to 1965, ten years before the transitway opened. Although many Chestnut merchants were in favor of the proposed transitway, a number were not. One of them was Lawrence I. Yaffa,  who was president of B.F. Dewees, Inc. (He, and many others, were interviewed for a three-volume report entitled Report on a Study to Determine the Economic Feasibility of the Proposed Chestnut Street Mall. All three volumes were published in early 1966.  His statement was dated November 15, 1965, and may be found in volume 3 on page 119. I found the report at Philadelphia's City Archives, in a box numbered A-1613.)

"Mr. Yaffa is opposed to the pedestrian mall proposal for Chestnut Street. In his opinion, walking is a lost art in this country, therefore, the basic premise of the proposal is faulty. 

"Americans will not walk any distance - if they can see their destination from where they alight from transportation, they will walk to it - if they cannot see it, due to distance or obstructions, they will not walk to it. Mr. Yaffa says there is something psychological about this. 

"He does not want the busses taken off Chestnut Street - they stop at Dewees' door. In his opinion, people arriving on busses which terminate on Market Street, won't walk to Chestnut Street to board the proposed Chestnut Street transport. 

"He pointed out, for the time being, at least, downtown businesses are dependent on bringing people into the City. The access expressways are inadequate, largely because of trucks that use any lane. In Michigan, Mr. Yaffa said, they must keep to the curb lane except when passing. He pointed out that Center City parking rates are prohibitive. Adequate and free parking make suburban parking centers successful, in his estimation. 

"Mr. Yaffa pointed out that all distinguished visitors to the City are driven down Chestnut Street to Independence Hall - an indication of the importance of the street for vehicular traffic. 

"He said that many people are afraid to walk on Market Street now, and suggested this might develop on Chestnut Street. 

"He likes the beautifying aspect of the proposal, but does not wish to achieve it at the expense of business. 

"Finally, Mr. Yaffa said that he always goes along with the majority - the inference being that if the majority think well of the idea, he will go along." 

I'd never heard of B.F. Dewees, so I poked around for a bit. The Hagley Museum in Wilmington, Delaware, has the papers of Kay Brownlee, director of personnel for the B.F. Dewees department store over several decades, into the 1960s. I also found some nice newspaper advertisements for Dewees in Pinterest; they gave a store address of 1122 Chestnut, with branches in Haddonfield and Drexel Hill. 

Here's a picture of the Dewees store at 1122 Chestnut street.

4. Dewees store, 1122 Chestnut street, 1966.

Here's what the block looks like today.

5. 1100 block of Chestnut in the rain, 2025.

Was Market Street Scary?

I'm interested in the idea that Market street was scary in 1965. But we should remember that the famous Chinese Wall, an elevated viaduct that brought Pennsylvania Railroad trains down to City Hall, was only demolished in 1953, and the whole area west of City Hall was being redeveloped.  Some buildings went up in the 1950s, but many of the ones we take for granted came much later. For instance, Centre Square at 15th and Market, with its iconic clothespin by Claes Oldenburg, opened in 1973. The building at 1900 Market street, former home of the Philadelphia Stock Exchange, opened in 1981. 

The commercial strip on Market street east of City Hall, and one block north of Mr. Jaffa's store at 1122 Chestnut, was also experiencing stress. For many years, there were six very large department stores on this strip. They were called the Big Six. Then, after World War II, they began to fall like very slow dominoes. Frank & Seder closed in 1953, followed by Snellenburg's in 1962. So, by the 1960s, the Big Six had lost a third of its complement. The rest followed at a leisurely pace. Wanamaker's, which had become Macy's, was the last to close, in 2025. (The Wanamaker building fronts on both Market and Chestnut, so the tribulations of Wanamaker's were shared directly with Chestnut as well as Market street. The Snellenburg's site, on the south side of Market between 11th and 12th, is now the East Market development.)  (For articles in the Encyclopedia of Philadelphia, click here and here.) 

I need to digress for a moment. The whole 1100 block between Market and Chestnut has now been redeveloped, with a mixture of new structures and refurbished buildings. The block now also has two small east-west streets, a new north-south pedestrian street, and Jefferson plaza on the southwest corner. Below is a picture of the pedestrian street, with the plaza and Chestnut street in the background. (For low-rise residential versions of this approach, see Big Mews and Little Walkways.)

6. The pedestrian walkway.

I love this block. There's even a grocery store.

We now return to our main story.

In 1965, Chestnut street merchants were also undoubtedly under stress because of the opening of the Cherry Hill Mall in 1961. I don't have data, but I don't doubt that the people who had recently moved to Cherry Hill from South Philadelphia found the Cherry Hill Mall an attractive alternative to Chestnut street. And so the merchants on Chestnut street would certainly look enviously at the free parking offered by the Cherry Hill Mall. 

Mr. Yaffa's store appears to have gone out of business in 1966, well before the arrival of the Chestnut street transitway in 1975. 

Muddy Tea Leaves

Meanwhile, west of Broad, Chestnut street was also in flux. But once again I find it hard to connect the flux with the transitway. To take just two examples, let's look at Brooks Brothers, at 15th and Chestnut, and Bonwit Teller, at 17th and Chestnut. 

7. 15th and Chestnut, 1982.

Brooks Brothers opened on Chestnut and 15th in 1974, the year before the transitway went in, and much later transferred its affections to Walnut street, opening there in 1997. It finally left Philadelphia in 2025. What prompted the move to Walnut? It's true that Walnut street west of Broad was assuming the mantle of "Fifth Avenue of Philadelphia," which had long belonged to Chestnut street. It's also possible that Brooks Brothers no longer needed all the space they had on Chestnut. The Walnut location does look smaller to me. But I'm just guessing. 

The Chestnut location is currently occupied by Staples, which is always busy whenever I go in. 

8. 15th and Chestnut, 2025.

What caused Bonwit Teller to close in 1990 after being at 17th and Chestnut since 1928? Its parent company, an Australian organization, went bankrupt. Among the stores closed was the flagship store on Fifth Avenue in New York. The Philadelphia location is currently occupied by Nordstrom Rack. 

In both these cases, I simply do not see any clear connection to the transitway. I do see other causes, either actual or speculative.

Shot by Many Arrows

Maybe the transitway was not the only, or even the major, problem on Chestnut. Certainly the shift of population to the new, car-oriented suburbs placed center-city retail at risk. The department stores, in particular, had grown up with the creation of a dense network of trolley lines, which started to disappear after the arrival of cars. 

There's also the question of style - the rise of blue jeans is one of the hallmarks of the 1960s. Women's fashions in particular underwent literally fundamental changes - the demise of the girdle, for instance - and more broadly there was the rise of sportswear. (If you'd like to know a little more about the rise of sportswear for women, click here and then scroll through until you hit a subhead that says "A Digression.") 

At his inauguration in 1961, John F. Kennedy wore a black silk top hat, which he removed for the swearing-in and the inaugural address. The legend is that this action caused the American hat industry to collapse. Hat sales had actually been declining for years, but Kennedy's inauguration is a good marker for the disappearance of men's hats in the United States. (Except of course for baseball caps.) 

Retailers faced a very fluid environment - one that called for keen perception, rapid reaction, and a bit of luck.  

Takeaways

My main takeaway from all this is the enormous power of a dream - a world of single-family dwellings connected to shopping centers by highways and cars. After World War II, the government strongly supported all aspects of this dream, as did real-estate developers, the highway lobby, the car lobby, and the oil industry. And the people bought the dream. They swallowed it hook, line, and sinker.

A part of this project was reinventing densely populated cities so they would be poor imitations of suburban sprawl - knocking down rows of townhouses near the commercial core to create surface parking lots was only one of the many crimes. 

Ed Bacon's idea for the Chestnut street transitway was a more imaginative approach. Even if it had been well executed, I think the larger issues that were confronting the whole country would probably have prevailed. With downtown department stores departing, Chestnut found a new role catering to a less affluent demographic, one less likely to arrive by car or taxi - or by foot from Rittenhouse square - and more likely to arrive by bus or subway or trolley (yes, Philadelphia still has a number of streetcar lines).  So, less like Fifth avenue in New York city, more like Times square.

And here we are, seventy years later, surveying the damage but also seeing capabilities. I do think the tide is turning. It seems there are actually quite a few people, these days, who want to live in walkable cities. Perhaps they are still a minority, but there are enough of them to create a market, and business has taken notice. On a weekend in good weather, go to 18th and Walnut and have a look at all the people walking around, shopping in the stores, eating in the restaurants, and just generally having a good time. 

Under the leadership of Prema Gupta, Center City District has taken to creating Open Streets events on Walnut west of Broad to Rittenhouse square, and also on 18th, by the square, from Locust up to Chestnut. If you think there are a lot of people walking around 18th and Walnut on an ordinary day, you need to go have a look at what happens when cars are routed around this area rather than through it. The Open Streets here have clearly been successful. It seems, every time I turn around, there's another flyer next to checkout at the greengrocer, announcing yet another Open Streets.

I think we have a real chance to turn the older parts of Philadelphia into a successful city that uses cars as part of a balanced transportation system, and as a result has streets that are safer, more pleasant, and more alive than the streets we have been used to. I'm very hopeful that walking is no longer, as Mr. Yaffa put it, "a lost art."

1. Richard Rosenberg, Philadelphia Evening Bulletin, April 10, 1978. In the George D. McDowell Philadelphia Evening Bulletin Photographs collection at Temple University.

2. Here's an interesting thought: Pavement doesn't have to be gray or black. Also, note that the bus stop is at the mid-block. I'm not sure why. But in today's world such a placement would reduce conflict with turning traffic. Courtesy of the Free Library of Philadelphia, Print and Picture Collection.

3. Photo: Bill West 

4. Photo: Parker and Mullikin. Courtesy of the Free Library of Philadelphia, Print and Picture Collection. If you look closely at the ground-floor windows, you will see posters that say "Going Out of Business." The negative is dated June 17, 1966. Mr. Yaffa's statement is dated November 15, 1965, so there wasn't a whole lot of time between his statement and the "Going Out of Business" signs.

5, 6, 7, 8. Photos: Bill West. 

On a personal note, I have been working intermittently on this story for two years. Other stories have shouldered and elbowed their way to the front of the line, and appropriately so. This one is not time-sensitive. And I think it may be a better story because my thinking had more time to evolve. However, I also think the daily diet of idiocy, insanity, and chaos in Washington does have a downside; it tends to keep us all riveted on the wave that is currently breaking onto the beach. This leaves less time for the waves that are still coming in, and the waves that have already landed.

See also Unblocking the Bus Lane on Chestnut, Chestnut Street: Loading Only, Loading Zones Are the Key, Taming Chestnut Street.