{"id":208590,"date":"2025-09-07T21:38:09","date_gmt":"2025-09-07T21:38:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/208590\/"},"modified":"2025-09-07T21:38:09","modified_gmt":"2025-09-07T21:38:09","slug":"septa-plans-to-undo-cuts-next-week-if-state-oks-capital-funding-request-metro-philadelphia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/208590\/","title":{"rendered":"SEPTA plans to undo cuts next week if state OKs capital funding request \u2013 Metro Philadelphia"},"content":{"rendered":"

SEPTA<\/a> will restore full service across all modes of transportation on Sunday, Sept. 14, if the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation approves its request to divert nearly $400 million in capital funding to cover operating costs.<\/p>\n

Scott Sauer, the authority\u2019s general manager, announced the plan Friday, a day after a Philadelphia judge ordered SEPTA to undo<\/a> the 20% service reductions implemented two weeks ago<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s the latest development in the authority\u2019s well-publicized effort to overcome a $213 million budget shortfall \u2013 an issue that has been the subject of debate from City Hall to Harrisburg.\n<\/p>\n

The court ruling did not bar the authority from moving forward with a 21.5% fare increase<\/a>. SEPTA will also roll out the hike on Sept. 14, with the base price for bus, subway and trolley rides rising from $2.50 to $2.90.<\/p>\n

SEPTA is asking for PennDOT\u2019s permission to use up to $394 million of its capital assistance funding, which comes from the Public Transportation Trust Fund. Pittsburgh Regional Transit is reportedly expected to pursue a similar path to deal with its deficit.<\/p>\n

The money would allow SEPTA to forgo any cuts for two years, Sauer said. Transit officials expect a decision from PennDOT early this week.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not a solution. This is a band-aid. This will get us through a couple years, but at the expense of future capital programming,\u201d Sauer told reporters at a briefing Friday. \u201cSo we still need a solution. We need something long-term.\u201d<\/p>\n

Equipped with the influx of dollars, the authority would be able to introduce its redesigned bus network, also known as Bus Revolution, and prepare for major events planned next year for the nation\u2019s 250th birthday<\/a>, he added.<\/p>\n

\"septaJody Holton, SEPTA\u2019s chief planning and strategy officer, holds up reduced schedules during a news conference Wednesday, Aug. 6.JACK TOMCZUK \/ METRO FILE<\/p>\n

However, Sauer said the move presents a \u201ctremendous risk to SEPTA\u201d because the agency will need to slash an equivalent amount from its capital program, which pays for vehicle replacements, major maintenance projects and other infrastructure improvements. SEPTA has $10 billion worth of deferred repairs, according to authority officials.<\/p>\n

Sauer\u2019s team deployed an initial round of service cuts Aug. 24, axing 32 bus routes, shortening another 16 and reducing frequencies on remaining bus, trolley and subway lines.\n<\/p>\n

Court of Common Pleas Court Judge Sierra Thomas Street on Aug. 29 halted any further action<\/a> associated with SEPTA\u2019s \u2018doomsday\u2019 budget<\/a>, delaying a plan to raise ticket prices and reduce Regional Rail frequencies.<\/p>\n

On Thursday, following a hearing, Street expanded her ruling, ordering SEPTA \u201cimmediately reverse\u201d all cuts and banning any further reductions, exempting the fare increase. SEPTA\u2019s legal team has filed an appeal.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the order remains in place, we will put service back as quickly as we can, as safely as we can,\u201d Sauer said, adding that the authority feels confident it can restore all trips by Sept. 14.\n<\/p>\n

The preliminary injunction was issued in relation to a recent lawsuit<\/a> filed by attorney George Bochetto on behalf of longtime consumer advocate Lance Haver and two SEPTA riders.<\/p>\n

Street\u2019s decision has no end date, even though Bochetto suggested in court that the injunction could be initially granted for a 60-day period. She also did not offer any explanation for her decision in the two-page written order.<\/p>\n

Lawyers involved in the suit discussed the impact the cuts had on minority and low-income riders; SEPTA\u2019s handling of public hearings and treatment of Haver at one such May meeting; and the role of the authority\u2019s service stabilization fund.<\/p>\n

Transit advocates and some elected Democrats, who have blamed the transit funding crisis on Republican leaders in the state Senate, have been skeptical of Bochetto\u2019s motives.\n<\/p>\n

The attorney has made headlines for his work representing defenders of two controversial statues \u2013 the Christopher Columbus monument at South Philadelphia\u2019s Marconi Plaza and the sculpture of former Mayor Frank Rizzo that previously sat outside the Municipal Services Building.<\/p>\n

Bochetto unsuccessfully ran in the 2022 GOP U.S. Senate primary, filed legal briefs in defense of President Donald Trump during his second impeachment trial and was hired as special prosecutor in the failed, Republican-led effort to remove District Attorney Larry Krasner from office.<\/p>\n

\"SEPTA\"Attorney George Bochetto speaks to reporters after a court hearing Thursday, Sept. 4, at City Hall.JACK TOMCZUK<\/p>\n

In the SEPTA matter, he argued that the authority should have dipped into its $300 million service stabilization fund before slashing service.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey don\u2019t want to use it because they want to create this false narrative of \u2018doomsday\u2019 to intimidate Harrisburg into giving them more money than they actually need,\u201d Bochetto told reporters a short time before Street\u2019s order came down.<\/p>\n

Sauer said that SEPTA intends to use $113 million from the account this year to support service levels. The authority\u2019s attorneys asserted that the agency is supposed to keep a base level in the fund to cover unanticipated expenses.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m outraged that SEPTA has decided to punish the riders and not wait for the state budget to be done,\u201d Haver responded when asked about his involvement in the suit. \u201cRiders should not be pawns in this game.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

SEPTA\u2019s decision to turn to capital funding was not directly related to the court order, Sauer said Friday, though he added that the case \u201cshowed us that there\u2019s problems.\u201d Rather, data indicated that the reduced system was not working, officials said.<\/p>\n

In the first week of the cutbacks, more than 4,400 people were bypassed because buses and trolleys were too full to stop, Sauer told reporters. The number of late bus trips was also up 26%, according to SEPTA.<\/p>\n

The authority\u2019s statistics<\/a> indicate total weekday ridership dropped 17% on buses and the Metro system, which includes the Market-Frankord, Broad Street and trolley lines.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think, until now, we were optimistic we would get a funding plan done,\u201d Sauer said. \u201cWe weren\u2019t able to get it done last year. We knew it would be tough this year, but it\u2019s clear now that it\u2019s a stalemate.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe think this is the best decision that we can make at this moment.\u201d
\n\"SEPTAIn this file photo, transit advocates and lawmakers rally for increased SEPTA funding Monday, May 19, 2025, outside the authority\u2019s Center City headquarters.JACK TOMCZUK \/ METRO FILE PHOTO\n<\/p>\n

GOP Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman, in a statement Friday, celebrated SEPTA\u2019s request and castigated Democrats for not advancing legislation last month that devoted dollars from the Public Transportation Trust Fund to operating costs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis money could have been utilized three weeks sooner \u2013 and there would have been no negative impacts to school children, seniors, and everyone who relies on transit services as part of their daily commutes,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is our hope that over the next two years SEPTA and PRT utilize this time to implement reforms and efficiencies to help ensure their long-term viability.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

The bill Pittman referenced would also have used the PTTF to fund road and bridge projects, outraging transit supporters.\n<\/p>\n

Gov. Josh Shapiro and lawmakers have yet to reach a deal on a state budget, and it\u2019s not clear what effect, if any, SEPTA\u2019s request to PennDOT will have on those negotiations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SEPTA will restore full service across all modes of transportation on Sunday, Sept. 14, if the Pennsylvania Department…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":208591,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5132],"tags":[5229,114563,114564,1448,2830,1311,114565,15940,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-208590","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-philadelphia","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-george-bochetto","10":"tag-joe-pittman","11":"tag-pa","12":"tag-pennsylvania","13":"tag-philadelphia","14":"tag-scott-sauer","15":"tag-septa","16":"tag-united-states","17":"tag-united-states-of-america","18":"tag-unitedstates","19":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","20":"tag-us","21":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115165181172329867","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/208590","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=208590"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/208590\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/208591"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=208590"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=208590"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=208590"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}