Gateway Atlas Philadelphia, written to the world

Philadelphia has eleven sister cities, from Florence in 1964 to Frankfurt in 2015. This atlas paints each bond, finds the Philadelphians and places that carry it here, and helps hosts welcome every delegate, including Disabled visitors.

Field notes checked November 1, 2026

Closer in: seven sister cities from Aix-en-Provence to Nizhny Novgorod.

Map: Natural Earth land outlines (public domain), painted with SVG. Select any city name to open its page.

The journal

One page per sister city: the story of the bond, who carries it in Philadelphia today, and what a host needs to know to welcome every visitor. Every fact links to its source.

Welcoming every delegate

International delegations include Disabled leaders, older officials, and people who don't mention a need until the day of. A host who plans for access from the start never has to improvise on the sidewalk.

SEPTA buses and trolleys

SEPTA says all of its fixed-route buses are ADA-accessible, with a lift or ramp, and any rider can ask the operator to lower the bus. SEPTA vehicle accessibility

Regional Rail

At accessible stations, bridge plates are available on request. Riders who need one should wait near the first car. SEPTA vehicle accessibility

Check elevators that morning

An accessible station is only accessible if its elevator works. Check SEPTA's live elevator outage alerts before you set out, and have a backup route. SEPTA elevator alerts

Accessible stations near the places in this atlas

Stations with elevators near places named in this atlas
Station	Line	Near	Source
5th Street/Independence Hall	L (Market-Frankford)	Old City and Independence Mall	Elevators installed 2010
Jefferson Station	Regional Rail; connects to the L	Chinatown and the Friendship Gate, a few blocks north	Listed as accessible
Suburban Station	Regional Rail	Sister Cities Park and the Kopernik sculpture, on the Parkway	Wheelchair Travel list
15th Street/City Hall	L (Market-Frankford)	City Hall	Wheelchair Travel list

The host's access checklist

Ask every delegate, before arrival and in private, what would make the visit work for them.
Confirm a step-free entrance, an accessible restroom, and seating at every stop. Call; websites often don't say.
Book interpreters early: spoken language, sign language (which may not be ASL), and CART captioning.
Send slides and handouts ahead in an accessible digital format, and turn on captions for every video.
Build in rest breaks and short walking distances. Plan a quiet room for long days.
Check SEPTA elevator alerts the morning of, and arrange an accessible vehicle as a backup.
Name one person on your team as the access lead, so delegates know who to ask.
After the visit, ask what worked and what didn't, and write it down for the next delegation.

Build a delegation briefing

Pick a sister city and the parts you need. You'll get a one-page briefing for hosts, speakers, citizen diplomats, or students, ready to print or paste into an email.

Sister city

Include The story of the bond Philadelphia connections Accessible visit plan The host's access checklist Questions for students Sources

For Youth Diplomats and Global Scholars

Every journal page ends with questions for students. Here is a project that works with any of them.

Paint a postcard

Choose a sister city. On one side, paint a place in Philadelphia that a student from that city should see. On the other, write why, in plain words, in under 60 words.

Find the thread

Each bond started for a reason: trade, history, a gift, a school exchange. Find the thread for your city, then find one Philadelphian who carries it today.

Plan the welcome

Use the host's checklist to plan a visit for a delegate who uses a wheelchair and one who is Deaf. What changes? What would you need to ask?

About this atlas

The World Affairs Council of Philadelphia administers the Sister Cities program for the City of Philadelphia and hosts international delegations year-round. Gateway Atlas is meant to sit alongside that work: a free, open reference that hosts, speakers, citizen diplomats, and students can use to prepare.

Population figures are for the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington metro area, from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey five-year estimates, as compiled by Stacker. Where facts conflict between sources, the page says so.

An independent project by Nico Meyering, a Disabled civic leader in Philadelphia who speaks with international delegations. It is not affiliated with or endorsed by the World Affairs Council of Philadelphia, the City of Philadelphia, or any government or consulate named here. Corrections are welcome: meyeringn@gmail.com.