Members of Philadelphia City Council and are urging leaders in Harrisburg to provide more money for SEPTA, which is faced with a $240 million budget deficit.
In this year's Pennsylvania budget, SEPTA received about $50 million in additional funding, but the authority said it's not nearly enough to sustain the transit system. When Gov. Josh Shapiro included the money, he noted it was intended to be a short-term solution until state politicians work out a permanent fix. The Pennsylvania General Assembly reconvenes this month for its new legislative session.
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In the interim, SEPTA has started taking measures to increase revenue and reduce its expenses. On Sept. 23, SEPTA will reinstate parking fees for vehicles at its station lots. And it has proposed ending discounts for riders who use SEPTA Key cards and other contactless payment methods on buses, subways, trolleys and Regional Rail trains.
Administratively, SEPTA has enacted a hiring freeze and ended non-essential employee travel, and earlier this week, it would stopped in-person ticket sales at 10 Regional Rail stations: Elkins Park, Fort Washington, Hatboro, Langhorne, Lansdowne, Manayunk, Queen Lane, Secane, Swarthmore and Wyndemoor.
But the agency needs to be "fully funded" long-term, Kenneth Lawrence Jr, SEPTA's board chair, said Thursday at a press conference with City Council members.
"These measures work for our operations, but they are not complete or long-term solutions. We still definitely need action in Harrisburg," Lawrence said.
Last month, Council President Kenyatta Johnson sent a letter, signed by every other councilmember, to Shapiro asking the state to make up the difference. Shapiro has proposed a plan for an additional $282 million to be spent on public transit in Pennsylvania, including $161 million for SEPTA. Negotiations about this funding begin again in the fall.
"A permanent funding solution is critical to ensure the sustainability of SEPTA for the greater Delaware Valley and Region," Johnson said.
The proposal to eliminate the discount for using a SEPTA Key card or other contactless payment would increase fares from $2 to $2.50. This would provide SEPTA with an additional $14.4 million in revenue this year. Public hearings on the proposal are planned for next month.
Asked whether more state money would allow SEPTA to avoid eliminating the fare discount, Lawrence responded that the transit system as not raised prices since 2016.
"We probably do need to right size our fares" Lawrence said. "I will say, we haven't voted on what we (proposed) last weekend, but that wouldn't be contingent upon something happening in Harrisburg."