SEPTA funding update

As the funding deadline nears, the Senate approves a temporary plan to keep SEPTA running while Democrats push for a longer-term solution.

Pennsylvania Senate funds SEPTA but Democrats oppose plan

The Republican-led Pennsylvania Senate passed a bill on Tuesday to keep SEPTA funded through August and beyond, using money from the Pennsylvania Transit Trust Fund. The measure includes safety and accountability provisions and was approved with a 27-22 vote after an amendment by Sen. Joe Picozzi. The bill goes to the House, where Democrats say it does not solve the funding crisis and may require changes.

Governor Josh Shapiro’s office criticized the plan as not a serious long-term solution and urged both chambers to keep negotiating. Earlier, the House passed a Democrat-backed bill to prevent looming “doomsday” cuts, but Republicans in the Senate say the current plan would siphon money from capital projects to cover operating costs. Doomsday cuts could begin if no agreement is reached, threatening 32 bus routes, reductions on multiple routes and lines, and a fare increase of about 21.5 percent scheduled for September. The plan would directly impact tens of thousands of riders, including 52,000 School District of Philadelphia students who rely on SEPTA to reach school, and could complicate attendance and daily routines for families and workers.

The fight over SEPTA funding highlights a broader pattern in state budgeting, where temporary fixes replace longer-term reform. A so-called bridge plan can calm a crisis in the short term, but it risks delaying essential investments in maintenance and modernization. Relying on the Transit Trust Fund and shifting funds from capital projects to operating costs may keep buses moving, yet it also slow-wounds future repairs and capacity upgrades.

For riders, the political standoff translates into concrete daily costs and a sense that transit funding is a political football rather than a civic commitment. The deadline pressure pushes lawmakers toward quick pacts, but the debate hinges on who pays and what is protected for the long term. The outcome will test public trust in state leadership and in the idea that urban transit is a shared responsibility rather than a partisan concession.

Highlights

The next moves will test how far lawmakers will go to keep transit moving.