The City is off for Columbus Day today, which means administrative offices and courts are closed. Public schools and libraries are also closed. Post offices are closed, too, and there will be no mail delivery. Some banks are closed, too.

There will be no trash and recycling collection today. Monday collections will be picked up on Tuesday and collections for the remainder of the week will be delayed one day.

SEPTA will operate on a regular weekday schedule today.

Here are some more details on Saturday’s incident in Cedar Park when a pedestrian was hit by a car. Police say a 25-year-old woman was hit at about 6:20 p.m. at the intersection of 48th and Cedar and taken to the hospital (no word on her condition yet). A 74-year-old female driver who struck the young woman remained on the scene, according to police.

Two more incidents happened over the weekend, both on Friday morning. A pedestrian was struck by a box truck near 45th and Baltimore and taken to the hospital (no word on this person’s condition) and a bicyclist was hit by a car on the South Street Bridge and had minor injuries, according to witnesses.

Some West Philly Local readers took to social media to discuss intersections where two of the incidents took place.

“The intersections of Cedar and both 47th and 48th are dangerous. Cars fly down Cedar to beat the trolley on Balt[imore] and 48th is treated like a highway. Anyone have any ideas on making this safer?” posted one of them on West Philly Local‘s Facebook page.

“The 45th & Baltimore intersection is also dangerous because vehicles exiting the A-Plus onto Baltimore feel they can either (1) go with the green light along with the cars going north on 45th AND/OR (2) make a short right turn onto Baltimore, light color of no significance. I’ve witnessed at least 4 incidents out my window,” wrote another reader.

A pedestrian was struck this morning by a box truck near the intersection at 45th and Baltimore, according to media and witness reports. The incident happened shortly after 7 a.m. We’re trying to get more information on the person’s condition. Police remained on the scene for a while investigating the incident and inspecting the truck, which could be seen parked at the Gas and Mini Mart at 46th and Baltimore.

NBC reports that there was another incident on the west side of the Schuylkill this morning, when a pedestrian was struck by a car on the South Street Bridge and taken to HUP. UPDATE: Witnesses say that it was a bicyclist and appeared to have minor injuries.

UPDATE (10/1/2014): Some readers asked for more information about the extended hours for trash pickup and what will happen if they set trash and recyclables out later (after 7 a.m. the day of collection) or earlier (before 5 p.m. the day before collection). Here’s what we learned:

“As the days are getting shorter, trash is permitted to be set out while it is still daylight at 5 p.m. [the] night before…,” the Streets Department tweeted today. The extended hour policy for trash collection is effective from October 1 through March 31. From April 1 through September 30 trash set-out times are from 7 p.m. the night before and 7 a.m. the day of collection.

“Residents will get fined by the city if they put their trash out too early (before 5 p.m. the night before collection day) or too late (after 7 a.m. collection day),” according to a Streets Department message we received today. For more information, visit their website.

9/29/2014: Philadelphia Streets Department announced on Monday that starting Wednesday, Oct. 1 residents can put their trash and recyclables outside after 5 p.m. on the night before collection day. This is two hours earlier than the current policy. The latest time you can set your trash out is 7 a.m. on the day of collection.

Some readers contacted us regarding Cedar Avenue, some of which was stripped of pavement last month. It looks like repaving will begin soon. Today a neighborhood resident tweeted that he saw a “tow truck… going down Cedar Ave warning people to move vehicles or they’ll be towed.” “Hopefully, they’re re-paving today!,” he added.

We turned to the Streets Department for more information and they referred us to the Streets Department Planning Paving for the 2014 Season page on their website. According to information posted there, the 2014 Planned Paving Program for city streets and roadways started in June and will go on until November. Usually, the paving process takes place in three stages over a 3- to 5-week period due to utilized by the city conventional paving method, which “mills off the top asphalt surface, preps and repairs utility manhole covers and any roadway base areas, then applies a new asphalt top surface.”

Here is the list of streets and roadways included in this year’s City Paving Program. By the way, Cedar Avenue will be re-paved all the way from Baltimore Avenue to 63rd St/Cobbs Creek Parkway (there is no schedule currently available). Re-pavement work is also taking place on S. 52nd Street from Woodland to Whitby Avenues and on other West Philly streets.

Here you can find more information for this week’s (the week of Sept 29) street improvement work and please make sure to move your car from the work sites when temporary “No Parking” signs are posted so that your vehicle is not towed. If it is towed, contact your local Police District to find out your car’s location.

Legal services can be costly, so here are some opportunities for West Philly residents to get free legal help.

Cedar Park Neighbors and the Drexel University School of Law are inviting residents to a free will and estate planning workshop next Wednesday, Oct. 1, at 6:30 p.m. The workshop is for those who are seeking help with the following questions:

• If you own your home, do you know what will happen to it after you die?  
• If you get sick and can’t speak for yourself, do your doctors know what your wishes are?
• Do you need a power of attorney to have someone pay your bills and make financial decisions for you?  Continue Reading