SEPTA supporters demand Senate Republicans finish the budget, fund transit before service cuts begin

Hundreds of people turned up the heat on state Senate Republicans for lack of action on transit funding Wednesday, even as SEPTA said it needs millions in new state money by Aug. 14 to avoid slashing service later this month.

A coalition of transit advocates and elected officials rallied in front of Philadelphia City Hall to demand the GOP-led Senate end its recess and return to Harrisburg to finish the budget, now more than a month late.

The crowd chanted “do your job” and booed the Senate in absentia for what multiple speakers described as a lack of urgency.

“There’s no way in the world that if I was in leadership, that we would be on recess and not dealing with this issue 24 hours a day, 365 days out of the year,” said City Council President Kenyatta Johnson to roaring applause.

If the money does not arrive in time, SEPTA said it will start a 20% reduction in service on Aug. 24, including the elimination of 32 bus routes and the shortening of 16 others. All buses, as well as trolleys, subways and Regional Rail would have less frequent trips. Fares will also rise by 21.5%.

“We’ve been waiting two years for a solution from Harrisburg,” SEPTA General Manager Scott A. Sauer said at a news conference when asked if the transit authority could wait a little longer before the drastic cuts.

“At some point we have to make a decision that’s in the best interest of our customers and our employees, to stabilize the system,” Sauer said.

The transit agency has a $213 million operating deficit, driven, it says, by underfunding and rising costs. For months, transit supporters have raised the alarm.

Some midday Regional Rail riders could wait two hours between trains under the austerity plan. On Sept. 1, the cost for a one-way ticket would rise from $2.50 to $2.90.

Speakers at Wednesday’s rally shared the myriad ways they used SEPTA, including getting children to school or going to doctors’ appointments.

For Kevin Aikens, a 59-year-old Philadelphia International Airport worker living in Chester, the Aug. 24 cuts threaten his livelihood. He doesn’t own a car and relies on the 37 bus, which is slated to end service without new funding.

“I don’t know how I’m gonna get to work,” he said. “I’m not walking from the Philadelphia International Airport home to Chester.”

Wednesday’s rally was only the latest demonstration in a public pressure campaign to secure more funding, though these appeals have done little to move the needle so far.

In light of the stalemate, SEPTA on Wednesday released its new transit schedules reflecting cuts, a few blocks from where its supporters gathered. By Friday it plans to have an updated trip planner on its website to help people find alternate routes.

“We are now at the point where we have to focus on making these changes as smooth as possible for our customers,” Sauer said. The agency needs a “bare minimum” of 10 days to complete the tasks required to implement the new, leaner schedules.

At the City Hall rally, Daniel Bauder, president of the Philadelphia Council AFL-CIO, called funding for SEPTA a moral issue.

“There are folks behind me who are in wheelchairs and other devices to help them get around the city and navigate the city, they can get onto those buses, as long as we still have buses that can run,” he said, urging the crowd to call Sen. Joe Picozzi (R., Philadelphia) and Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R., Indiana).

Funding for SEPTA and other strapped transit agencies is just one of several tough issues holding up an agreement between Senate Republicans, House Democrats, and Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat. The Senate GOP holds the balance of power in the negotiations.

Pittman and most Senate GOP members have resisted giving more to SEPTA, saying they see the transit authority as mismanaged and needing to be held accountable for fare evasion and public safety.

SEPTA currently receives $1 billion from the state annually, 67% of its operating budget.

Shapiro has proposed $292 million in new money for mass transit over five years by increasing the allocation it receives from the sales tax. SEPTA estimates it would get about $168 million in this fiscal year, which would, with other measures, enable it to close the deficit.

Democratic lawmakers and transit advocates emphasized that funding the transit agency is not a “Philly thing.”

Sen. Steve Santarsiero (D., Bucks) warned of an increase in traffic across the region and the financial impact cuts would have on Southeastern Pennsylvania.

Sen. Sharif Street (D., Philadelphia) said five of Pennsylvania’s six revenue-positive counties — Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia — are the most dependent on SEPTA.

“If you don’t fund mass transit, you will shut down the economy of this commonwealth,” said Street. “That means we won’t have money to fund anything else.”