SEPTA Lottery Registration Going Smoothly

So far, so good.

Registration began at 12:01 a.m. today for people who want passes to ride regional rail the weekend of the pope’s visit. Registration will end at 11:59 p.m. tonight.

“The lottery got off without major hitches,” NBC 10 reported, and added: “An analysis of the activity Monday showed 54,000 customers visited the e-commerce site within the first minute after it was launched, said SEPTA spokesman Andrew Busch.”

SEPTA expects to sell 175,000 of the $10 passes for each day of the pope’s two-day visit

Registration, of course, is just the first step. A lottery will be held, selecting winners from the registrants. On Thursday, winners will have an email telling them they won; they’ll have through Aug. 9 to complete the purchase online.

If you’re not a winner? You’ll have to find other ways to travel that weekend. “EVERYONE using Regional Rail during the Papal Visit Weekend, including Children over the age of 5 must have a Special One Day Regional Rail Pass purchased through the Lottery,” SEPTA says on its website. “No other SEPTA fares — tickets, weekly, monthly or Independence Passes, or cash — will be accepted.”

For more information, check out SEPTA’s special website for the papal visit.