House Democrats on Monday morning passed a quickly advanced mass transit funding bill in an attempt to meet a looming deadline set by Philadelphia’s main public transportation agency.
Senate Republicans, despite scheduling a voting session Tuesday, have not backed the proposal, which includes accountability measures proposed by Philadelphia Republican Sen. Joe Picozzi.
The bill, which passed the House in a 108-95 vote, would give the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority the $167 million SEPTA officials have said they need before Aug. 14 to avoid a 20% service cut potentially impacting tens of thousands of passengers.
House Democrats convened for a rare Sunday voting session over the weekend to meet the necessary three days of consideration on the legislation introduced last week.
During floor debate Monday, House Majority Leader Matt Bradford, D-Montgomery County, stressed the dire need to fund SEPTA, while criticizing Senate Republicans for not advancing any mass transit funding scheme this year.
Bradford’s sentiment was widely shared by Democrats on the House floor.
House Minority Leader Jesse Topper, R-Indiana County, criticized the bill, noting that SEPTA is in crisis but that the “current system is not sustainable” and that broader reform is needed before further funding is provided. He did not specify what reforms should be adopted.
The legislation does not solely fund SEPTA; it funds other transit agencies statewide, as Gov. Josh Shapiro proposed earlier this year, to the tune of $292 million from the state’s sales tax.
Beneficiaries include Pittsburgh Regional Transit ($40 million), Lehigh and Northampton Transportation Authority ($6.5 million) and Susquehanna Regional Transportation Authority ($5.7 million).
Richard Farr, executive director of Susquehanna Regional Transportation Authority and rabbittransit, said funding from the bill should allow the agencies to continue for the next five to 10 years.
“We have some of the fastest-growing counties, and so the need for transit has and continues to grow,” Farr said.
Susquehanna Regional Transportation Authority and rabbittransit cover 11 counties: Franklin, Adams, York, Cumberland, Perry, Dauphin, Union, Snyder, Northumberland, Montour and Columbia.
Greg Downing, executive director of South Central Transit Authority, which oversees Berks Area Regional Transportation Authority and Red Rose Transit Authority in Lancaster, said the $5.8 million his organization would receive under the House Democrats’ proposal would help cover the increasing costs of salaries, gas and equipment repairs.
“We’re still operating as normal,” Downing said. “But we’re operating with our fingers crossed.”
Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman, R-Indiana, on Monday did not respond to a question asking whether he would bring the legislation to a vote. He simply noted the Senate would return to Harrisburg on Tuesday for a 4 p.m. voting session.
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