SEPTA beefs up service for soccer, Eagles, Phils

The sports complex will be crawling with fans this week, so SEPTA is stepping up service on the Broad Street and Market-Frankford Lines.

The traffic shouldn't be out of control, though, because each night has only one sports event. No concerts are scheduled at the Wells Fargo Center until an American Idol tour rolls in next week. Cars heading to the Shore, though, could compete with Phillies fans before Friday night's game.

Here's the rundown:

Soccer tonight. At 9 p.m., the United States' men's soccer team takes on Mexico at Lincoln Financial Field. It's rematch of the June 25 Gold Cup game that Mexico came back to win, 4-2. Some of the pricey tickets seemed to be available this morning through Ticketmaster.com.

SEPTA is adding 10 express trips to the Broad Street Line, leaving Fern Rock every 10 minutes, starting at 6:25 p..m. Extra Market-Frankford Line trains are scheduled to leave the 69th Street Transportation Center at 7:10, 7:20 and 7:30 p.m., and the Frankford Transportation Center at 7:05, 7:15, and 7:25 p.m.

Football Thursday. At 7:30 p.m., the Eagles host the Baltimore Ravens at the Linc, and interest could be high for an exhibition game, because new players have prompted talk of a "dream team," and many fans are eager for some football following a labor dispute that lasted for months. Tickets are available online through Ticketmaster.com.

SEPTA's Sports Express will depart Fern Rock every 10 minutes, from 6:08 p.m. to 7:38 p.m. Extra Market-Frankford trains will leave the 69th Street Transportation Center at 6:08 and 6:28 p.m. and the Frankford Transportation Center at 6:03 and 6:23 p.m.

Baseball, baseball, baseball. The Phillies begin a six-game homestand with three games against the Washington Nationals. Although all the seats are sold, the team puts 500 standing-room seats on sale before every home game. Sales will start at 4 p.m. at the First Base Gate ticket windows before Friday and Saturday's 7:05 p.m. games, at 9 a.m. before Sunday's 1:35 p.m. game.

SEPTA will add four express trains that start at Fern Rock for each of the three games. Friday, the trains depart at 6:08, 6:18, 6:28 and 6:38 p.m. Saturday, the times are 5:58, 6:08, 6:18 and 6:28 p.m. Sunday, the express times are 12:18, 12:28, 12:38 and 12:48 p.m., according to SEPTA.

For sports-related SEPTA service, go to www.septa.org/events/sports.html.

For traffic updates, go to http://go.philly.com/traffic.