The Wawa-Effect may be having an "Effect" in Media

Going into its fifth month of being open, the new Wawa in Media hasn't seen the dramatic increase in traffic congestion and inconvenience some expected, at least not to the level we were led to believe by Media Borough Council.

That's not to say this Wawa isn't having an effect on the immediate area.   A strong case can be made that the Lukoil gas station that closed across the street was due in part to the upcoming competition of the new super convenience store with is multiple gas pumps.  Another example might include the upcoming Starbucks move to a new building across the street that will be built on the former footprint of Lukoil.  Yes, it's probably true the current Starbucks had issues with parking and space that were independent of WAWA, but the superstore only emphasized those nuisances further.

Former hours of Swiss Farms Uppr Prov

Recently, a third observation may show how disruptive a Super Wawa can be in a community.  Last week, Swiss Farms cut back store hours of their Upper Providence location to 8am to 8pm, from 6am to 10pm.  In this competitive space that includes Wawa and Royal Farms, Swiss Farms pays close attention to historical data and store hours to analyze hours of operation.  In addition to analytics, you just have to drive by to see Wawa is buzzing almost every hour of the day.

With recent economic and housing development going on in Media, it would be great for the community to see what impacts these projects bring and a short summary of economic benefits or drawbacks.  (i.e. What kind of impact will the new Hampton Inn in Media provide to local restaurants and what kind of historical effects does a hotel like this contribute to similar areas.)