From Philly to Pittsburgh, mass transit leaders sound the alarm on funding shortfalls

The commonwealth’s looming public transit crisis was front and center in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh during fraught hearings on how local and state legislators can bridge funding gaps. 

On Tuesday, the state Senate Democratic Policy Committee held a hearing in the Steel City on the future of mass transit. A day later, Philadelphia City Council held a highly anticipated budget hearing with representatives from the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. 

With public transit systems across the state facing potential service cuts and price hikes, this budget cycle has become a make-or-break moment for system leadership, lawmakers holding the pursestrings and the Pennsylvanians reliant on those systems. 

State of the cities

Public transportation cuts could heavily impact both the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh regions if funding shortfalls remain unaddressed. 

In March, Pittsburgh Regional Transit announced plans to raise fares and slash the region’s transit service by nearly 40% – cutting 41 bus routes entirely, while making significant reductions to light-rail service, most bus routes and PRT’s paratransit service – unless it receives more funding from the state. The agency, which is facing a $100 million deficit starting July 1, also proposed to raise transit fares from $2.75 to $3. 

And last week, SEPTA made a similarly dire announcement, stating it would have to implement severe cutbacks amid a $213 million shortfall this year. In response, lawmakers from around the Philadelphia region rallied outside of City Hall Friday, where they called for the state legislature to step up and fund the system. 

SEPTA’s proposed cuts would also deal a massive blow to riders: The agency is proposing to end five regional rail lines and 56 bus routes. Additionally, the budget crunch would result in service cuts to the Broad Street and Market-Frankford subway lines and all trolley lines. Finally, fares would rise by 21.5%, service would be reduced by 45% and all rail service would end at 9 p.m. – unless funding is approved to replenish coffers.

Fare hikes would leave both systems charging some of the highest transit fares in the country – something that leaders of each agency stressed when addressing their respective crises. 

Statewide scope

Katherine Kelleman, CEO of PRT, testified at Tuesday’s hearing in Pittsburgh that although the fiscal position of Allegheny County’s transit is precarious, systems across the board are strapped for cash.  

“There is no doubt that our friends throughout the commonwealth are in very similar situations. Our friends who aren’t talking about bus cuts are facing very real shortfalls in their van-based services, which are the services that carry our most vulnerable folks back and forth,” Kelleman said. “Transit is not and should not be an optional priority – it is a foundational one.”

On Wednesday, SEPTA Interim General Manager Scott Sauer told City Council that cuts would reverberate throughout the Philadelphia region and limit capacity in 2026, when Philadelphia will host several major events. 

“On average, 150,000 to 175,000 daily riders would stop using SEPTA, and SEPTA would not be able to support the city’s 2026 transportation needs when the FIFA World Cup, the Semiquincentennial, and the other major national and international events put Philadelphia in the international spotlight,” Sauer said. “On the eve of welcoming the world, SEPTA would go from driving Philadelphia’s economy to holding it back.”

State Transportation Secretary Mike Carroll said Tuesday that communities in both Eastern and Western Pennsylvania rely on “a working transit system,” adding that the LANTA system in Lehigh and Northampton Counties recently announced a 4% reduction in services. 

“The cutbacks in terms of service for PRT and SEPTA will have a negative effect on the economies of the two regions, but more importantly, on the people that utilize those systems,” Carroll said. “When it comes to our fixed route service, 65% of the folks that use a fixed route bus have no other way to get from point A to point B … (and) there’s transit in every county in the state.”

Carroll noted that there are 53 public transit agencies across the commonwealth’s 67 counties, with more than 45,000 trips occurring daily outside the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh systems. 

“Transit is not just a service –it is an economic engine,” Carroll said. “These are investments that pay long-term dividends.”

The track ahead

With House Democrats and Senate Republicans each holding a slim majority in their respective chambers, a bipartisan deal is needed to get public transit funding out of the station. 

Funding discussions have centered around several different revenue sources, including a proposal to regulate and tax slot machine-like skill games, which could provide funds for transportation projects, including mass transit. 

In his budget plan, Gov. Josh Shapiro proposed a 1.75% increase in funding for transit systems statewide, which would bring in a total of nearly $300 million for systems statewide, including an additional $161 million for SEPTA and $39 million more for PRT. 

Shapiro and House Democrats have expressed support for utilizing skill games revenues to fund transit, but opposition from casino operators and differences over the tax rate on the devices has so far proven to be a stumbling block.

And while Senate Republicans agreed to a one-time funding increase of $80.5 million for mass transit, roads and bridges throughout the state in last year’s budget – which included roughly $51 million for SEPTA – they haven’t been on the same track as Shapiro. 

While Senate Republican leader Joe Pittman has stated that he recognizes the need for transit funding, and the GOP has said they could get on board – assuming that transit funding includes allocations to repair roads and bridges – they emphasized that the commonwealth’s fiscal future is the most important concern. 

“We have a structural budget deficit which must be addressed," Pittman said in a statement. “It is critical for our mass transit systems to demonstrate they are running as efficiently as possible, and that riders and local governments who benefit from their services are paying their fair share."

Sauer said Wednesday that Shapiro’s proposal would prevent “drastic measures from occurring” and that “action is needed now.” 

“We were clear, then, that this one-time action by the governor only delayed these severe measures,” Sauer said, referring to this year’s bleak outlook despite last year’s investments. “Now, with our new fiscal year starting on July 1 and a state funding solution still not in place, we cannot budget on hope, and have no choice but to budget based on the resources available.”