Okay, so here's the breakdown regarding post-Sandy life as it stands now:
SEPTA: It really is up and running but with possible delays. and unforeseen circumstances—you know, like always. (We kid, we kid. They really are getting there! And come on, that was pretty fast turnaround.)
NJ Transit: Most rail service will remain suspended until further notice. No buses are running to Atlantic City. Many buses are back in service, but a number of them have truncations or detours, so check the site before you go anywhere. The Light Rail River Line (Camden and Trenton) is running on a Sunday schedule.
PATCO: Up and running on or close to schedule.
Power outages: Almost half a million customers are still without power in Pennsylvania. In our area, served by PECO, Philadelphia, Chester and Delaware counties each have between 5,000 and 10,000 customers without power. Bucks and Montgomery counties have many more. The total is 200,000-plus for PECO. They're working on it.
Philadelphia International Airport: Open and back in business—in theory. You must check with your individual airline or else you may end up crying into a copy of some stupid magazine you bought to distract yourself but now realize is completely uninteresting because you can't make the pages swipe. Also: expect long security lines, surly employees and flight delays that'll have you sitting on the floor next to an outlet so you can charge your phone. Oh, wait, that's just PHL on a regular day. Well, anyway, travel smart.
Trash: Back on schedule.
Roadways: Major roadways into and out of Philadelphia are open. The Atlantic City Expressway is closed. But there are plenty of closures in the suburbs, and traffic lights are out in many places. Here's something that might help for the hardest hit counties: List of Bucks and Montco roads that are closed due to storm damage.