Location: Italian Market 📍
March 23, 2022
Hey there SEPTA Rider! It’s Leslie here with a new location. This week I made a quick trip to the Italian Market in South Philly and explored everything it had to offer. The Italian Market is considered a historic market as it is America’s oldest operating outdoor market since the mid-1880s. The market is open all year round. It is located on 8th, 9th, and 10th street and is 20 city blocks long filled with nearly 200 food vendors, shops, and a visitor center.
This year the South 9th Street Shopping District will be hosting its annual Italian Market Festival on May 21st and 22nd. As one of Philadelphia’s largest block parties, I thought it would be great to tell our riders how easy it is to get there on SEPTA as the weather begins to break!
For this trip, I decided to take the Route 47 from 8th and Market. I didn’t look up the bus timetable because the 47 is a 15-15-5 Route which means the bus will run every 15 minutes or less from 9a-6p. So, it was simple for me to figure out the arrival of the bus without checking its schedule.
I made my way to the bus stop and waited no longer than 5 minutes before the bus arrived. I tapped on and took my seat. The 47 runs down 8th street which is adjacent to 9th street, so I was able to get dropped off close to the Italian Market.
Soon as I stepped off the bus and stepped foot onto the pavement, my nose was immediately caressed by scents of Italian foods and seasonings. There were so many shops, restaurants, and street vendors open and ready for business. Everything about this street exuded life and excitement. Anyone I ran into during my trip welcomed me with a warm greeting and friendly smile. Even the dogs going for a walk stopped to say hi. In my opinion, after Disney World and Chick-Fil-A, the Italian Market might be one of the friendliest places on earth.
After doing some light shopping and capturing photos, I decided to head back to the office. To get back to Center City, I had to catch the 47 on 7th Street. Once again, the bus stop was easy to find, and the bus arrived very quickly… too quickly. I missed the first one I saw going back but sure enough, another arrived in just 5 minutes.
The cost to ride any SEPTA bus, no matter the starting point, is $2.00 when utilizing your Travel Wallet on your SEPTA Key card and $2.50 when using cash (must be exact change). It is also important to always remember to wear a face-covering when riding ANY SEPTA mode.
If you’re in the mood for good eats and cool finds, then the Italian Market is the place for you, and the best way to go? SEPTA!
