Transit Fiscal Cliff –– SEPTA is Planning Service Cuts and Fare Increases to Avoid Falling Off
Written by David C. Lester, Editor-in-Chief
Photo by David C. Lester
David C. Lester
PHILADELPHIA –– Railway Age and RT&S have been reporting for some time on the looming fiscal crisis about to befall many transit agencies in the country as money provided to survive the fallout from the COVID pandemic is about to run out.
Our colleagues at Railway Age have done most of the reporting, and if you’re a subscriber to their news feed, you may go to railwayage.com and search for stories and commentary written by David Peter Alan and also search on Transit Fiscal Cliff and SEPTA.
This RT&S report, however, is focused on SEPTA’s announcement this week that service cuts will begin on August 24 and fare increases will go into effect on September 1.
In a statement on SEPTA’s website, the agency said:
“New state funding has not yet been approved, and SEPTA must budget with the funds we have available. Therefore, we have no choice but to move forward with Phase 1, which implements 20% service cuts on August 24, August 25 and September 2 and a 21.5% fare increase on September 1. Riders will first see the elimination of 32 bus routes and significant reductions in trips on all rail services (including the end of special services like Sports Express), longer commute times and more crowded conditions onboard.”
Note that this statement discusses Phase 1 cuts. SEPTA added that another round of service cuts will take place on January 1, 2026 if additional funding is not obtained.
An interactive map is available on the SEPTA website where riders can look to see which routes will see service reductions or elimination on August 24. The agency further added:
“SEPTA faces a $213 million budget deficit starting July 1, 2025. While SEPTA is already one of the most efficient transit agencies in the country, additional austerity measures such as a hiring freeze and administrative cuts [have] reduced the size of this deficit from $240 million to $213 million.
There is nothing left to cut from the budget but service.
Without a permanent funding solution, SEPTA will be forced to take drastic steps to irreversibly shrink the system.”
Here is a document you can download with additional detail on the methodology for determining which services to cut, both in August and in January 2026 if additonal funding is not made availalbe.
