Eagles head coach Doug Pederson holds up the Vince Lombardi Trophy while displaying it to fans gathered to welcome them in
Philadelphia a day after defeating the New England Patriots in
Super Bowl 52 in Minneapolis, Monday, Feb. 5, 2018. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)(Julio Cortez)
Philadelphia city officials urged Eagles fans planning to attend the team's Super Bowl victory parade in Center City on Thursday to exercise an abundance of patience and to bring food and snacks to safely navigate a crowd estimated to be up to 2 million along the 5 mile parade route.
Mayor Jim Kenney laid out steps revelers should take to safely enjoy the festivities.
"We're doing everything we can to make sure we're as prepared as possible for this type of celebration," Kenney said during a Wednesday afternoon news conference at City Hall. "We expect there will be long lines everywhere and just as you've waited decades for this, expect it will take you longer to get around and please be patient.
"Try to bring some food and snacks with you, because food establishments that may be open may be very crowded."
The mayor said fans can also text ReadyEagles to 888-777 for parade updates.
Kenney said he expected the crowd to be better behaved than the throngs who choked several major corridors immediately after the Eagles beat the New England Patriots 41-33 in the Super Bowl in Minnesota on Sunday.
"Sunday night was extremely annoying," Kenney said. "That was an event that was the end of a long day of partying and revelry. This event starts at 11 and unless you're a hardcore drinker, I don't think they'll be in as bad a shape at the end of the parade route as they were at the end of the game."
Kenney also advised people to dress warmly and in layers. Thursday's high is expected to be 34 degrees under sunny skies.
Officials suggested dressing small children in colors other than Eagles green to have them standout in a crowd. They also suggested taking a pre-event photo of your children in case you become separated.
Kenney advised people to use public transit into the city, but that may be impossible for some suburban fans who didn't get transit tickets on Pennsylvania and New Jersey regional rail lines. SEPTA sold out of a special one-day pass for regional rail lines just after 1 p.m. Wednesday. Transit officials said it had reached its capacity of 70,000 daily commuters. City train lines will operate with no fares on Thursday.
The PATCO line from South Jersey sold out of tickets before 7 p.m. Wednesday and will not sell any tickets Thursday. It reached its capacity of 80,000 riders when tickets sold out, an official said. Riders will only be able to board at Lindenwold, Woodcrest, Ferry Avenue and Broadway in New Jersey. All trains will be nonstop from each station with all going to 9th-10th and Locust streets, four blocks from the parade route on Broad Street.
The trains are scheduled to arrive every four minutes. Trains back to New Jersey will start running at 1:20 p.m. and all trains on the line will be eastbound until 8 p.m.
Police Chief Richard Ross told parents to keep children close by.
"Don't let them get much further than at arm's reach," Ross said.
Ross also urged parade-goers to contact police immediately if they see a discarded bag or anything suspicious.