State Rep. Ben Waxman, D-Philadelphia, doesn’t have to look very far to see the importance of public transit in his Central City district. Studies have shown a higher percentage of workers in Waxman’s district use public transit to get to work than any other district in the state.
That’s why Waxman told a transit rally in Harrisburg Wednesday that it would be “a catastrophe” for his constituents if massive service cuts occur later this year and next year because the Legislature fails to provide a substantial increase in the state subsidy for transit. More than 300 people attended the rally coordinated by advocacy group Transit for All PA to push for more state money for transit.
“We’re really at a crisis level,” said Waxman, who has been getting about 100 calls a week from constituents concerned about proposed cuts. “We need to keep hearing from you. This is the moment. The alternative … is not something we can allow to happen.”
Waxman was among more than 15 elected officials, advocates and riders from across the state who spoke for more than an hour outside the Capitol, where participants filled the plaza and outside staircases around the building’s main entrance. The last increase in transit subsidy was a 10-year allotment that ended two years ago, and agencies large and small across the state are proposing service cuts, layoffs and fare increases because emergency federal money awarded during the pandemic has expired.
In this area, Pittsburgh Regional Transit has proposed a 10-year budget with upfront cuts of 35%, eliminating 41 bus routes, boosting the base fare by 25 cents to $3, ending service at 11 p.m. and cutting out extra service for special events such as Steelers games and next year’s NFL draft. PRT’s plan is to make substantial cuts at the beginning so the remaining service is reliable for seven years or more rather than cutting a little every year.
Many of the elected leaders praised Transit for All PA for pushing a funding plan that calls for raising the state’s car rental fee from $2 to $6.50, increasing the car lease fee from 3% to 5% and charging a 6% excise tax on rides provided by services such as Uber and Lyft. That would raise more than $500 million a year for transit.
Additionally, Gov. Josh Shapiro has proposed a five-year program to increase the amount of state sales tax earmarked for transit to provide $292 million a year, an effort Republicans rejected last year. Advocates say both approaches are needed to fund transit appropriately.
State Rep. Aerion Abney, D-North Side and chair of the Allegheny County Democratic Caucus, said the Transit for All PA proposal “laid the foundation” for a package of bills he and Rep. Jessica Benham, D-South Side, introduced last week. Senate Republicans, in particular, say transit funding is a hard sell in non-urban areas because 87% of the money goes to agencies in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.
Democrats and advocates counter that every county has transit that is struggling and the billions of dollars spent in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia has economic benefits across the state through purchasing by the agencies and taxes paid by thousands of employees.
“It really shouldn’t be that complicated,” Abney told the crowd. “Mass transit shouldn’t be a partisan issue. Mass transit is a service for the public.”
He added that cutting transit service would put more vehicles on the road, increase pollution, and hurt workers and the businesses that rely on them.
Rep. Morgan Cephas, D-Philadelphia, called on her elected colleagues to recognize public transit is an important issue in all counties, urban or rural. Transit provided a lifeline for her family, she said, when she and her four sisters used buses, trains and trolleys to get to better schools outside her neighborhood.
“We know when transit stops, Pennsylvania stops,” she said. “Now is the time to deliver. This is a people issue. It’s a Pennsylvania issue. Show up for Pennsylvania.”
Dave Koser, director of programs at the Lancaster County Community Foundation, said Red Rose Transit does a good job of providing service in the City of Lancaster, but many others need service in more rural areas.
“[The service] works for thousands, but it doesn’t work for thousands more,” Koser said. “We need to do better for everybody.”
Rep. Paul Takac, D-Centre County, said the two transit systems in his mostly rural district are vital to residents.
“This funding is desperately needed,” he said. “We need to make sure Pennsylvania takes care of its rural communities as well as urban areas.”
Jaylah Fitzgerald, a rising senior, is among 200,000 public school students in Philadelphia who use the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority to get to school because the district doesn’t provide busing.
“Funding SEPTA funds our future,” she said.
Sen. Lindsay Williams, D-West View, said it is important to provide enough money for transit agencies to “thrive.” She recently was appointed to the Pittsburgh Regional Transit board and co-sponsored the Senate version of the Transit for All PA legislation with Sen. Nikil Saval, D-Philadelphia.
“No matter where you live, you shouldn’t have to own a car to get where you want to go,” she said. “We need to stop starving our transit systems.”
After the morning rally, advocates divided into small groups to visit the offices of individual legislators.
The state is facing a June 30 deadline to pass the budget, but budget battles have occasionally missed that by several months.
Ed covers transportation at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at eblazina@unionprogress.com.