So, What’s Going On With SEPTA?
by Alex Lloyd Gross
SEPTA is getting the funding they need by using money they already have. In a move to stave off any more cuts and court dates, Governor Josh Shapiro is allowing SEPTA to use up to $394 Million they had squirreled away ,earmarked for capital improvements. This means the transit agency will have to get those funds elsewhere.
Alex Lloyd Gross File Photo Delaware Valley News.com SEPTA trolleys on Richmond Street.
This action ensures SEPTA will continue to provide critical transportation services ahead of and during high-profile events in 2026, including America’s 250th anniversary, the FIFA World Cup, and the MLB All-Star Game. Additionally, SEPTA will be able to continue to meet the needs of nearly 800,000 Pennsylvanians every day — including 52,000 students in the School District of Philadelphia and hundreds of thousands of workers who take SEPTA every day.
Governor Shapiro and his Administration have already taken several measures to support SEPTA and strengthen mass transit across the Commonwealth. For two years in a row, the Governor has proposed the first major increase in state transit funding in more than a decade, including $292 million in new funding in his 2025-26 proposed budget that would grow to $1.5 billion over five years. He also secured $80 million in additional funding for mass transit in the 2024-25 bipartisan budget and, last November, flexed $153 million in federal highway funds to prevent SEPTA from making immediate service cuts and enacting a 21 percent fare increase.
However, as Secretary Carroll notes in his letter, the Pennsylvania Senate has been unable to pass a transit funding bill that can reach the Governor’s desk:.
Alex Lloyd Gross Photo Delaware Valley News.com Lt. Governor Austin Davis at the Croydon Train Station.
“Unfortunately, Senate Republicans have refused to agree to a long-term solution that provides certainty and does not also unfairly raid mass transit capital dollars for unrelated expenditures – and the Shapiro Administration believes Pennsylvanians who rely on SEPTA deserve service that helps them get to work, school, or wherever they need to go.”
This is a band -aide approach. In 2027 SEPTA will again be asking the state for an allocation of funds. In the meantime, all SEPTA service cuts are rescinded and routes that were canceled will be reinstated by this coming Sunday. A fare increase is still on and it is going to cost $2.90 for a base ride.