PHILADELPHIA — The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority board has approved a fiscal 2026 budget including a 45% cut in service and a 21.5% fare increase to address a $213 million deficit.
“This is a vote none of us wanted to take,” SEPTA Board Chair Kenneth E. Lawrence Jr. said in a press release following the vote on Thursday, June 26. “We have worked hard as an Authority to prevent this day from coming because we understand the impact it will have on our customers and the communities we serve. To be clear, this does not have to happen – if state lawmakers can reach an agreement to deliver sufficient, new funding for public transit.”
Under the approved budget, service cuts will begin Aug. 24, with elimination of 32 bus routes and reductions in frequencies for all rail services, including the end of special-event service such as that offered for sporting events. On Sept. 1, the base fare for bus and Metro rail services will rise to $2.90, equaling the fare of New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority for the highest in the country. The agency will also freeze all hiring.
Another round of cuts on Jan. 1, 2026, will see service end on five Regional Rail routes, end of service after 9 p.m. on remaining rail lines, and more bus-route eliminations.
“This budget will effectively dismantle SEPTA — leaving the City and region without the frequent, reliable transit service that has been an engine of economic growth, mobility, and opportunity,” said SEPTA General Manager Scott A. Sauer. “Once this dismantlement begins, it will be almost impossible to reverse, and the economic and social impacts will be immediate and long-lasting for all Pennsylvanians – whether they ride SEPTA or not.”
The funding shortfall has developed through a series of factors including the end of federal COVID relief funding, inflation, and additional costs the agency says have developed with “emerging challenges — particularly crime, disorder, and the vulnerable population.”
SEPTA had outlined the potential cuts in April, while urging the state legislature to provide funding to address the budget shortfall [see “SEPTA prepares …,” Trains News Wire, April 10, 2025]. The agency avoided cuts and a fare increase last year only because Gov. Josh Shapiro transferred $153 million in federal highway funds to cover a deficit, but that was a one-time move [see “Pennsylvania governor’s move averts …,” News Wire, Nov. 23, 2024]. Republicans in the Senate, which has blocked bills to increase transit funding each of the last three years, criticized that action because it did not address their pursuit of increased funding for road infrastructure or for cuts by SEPTA because of reduced ridership.
This year, Shapiro has proposed $292 million for additional transit funding across the state, which would prevent the major cuts at SEPTA, as well as those faced by Pittsburgh Regional Transit [see “Pittsburgh transit agency outlines plans …,” News Wire, March 22, 2025]. The state House passed that proposal earlier this month, which would provide the funds by increasing share of state sales tax that goes to transportation from 4.4% to 6.15%. That bill also calls for an additional $500 million for roads and bridges [see “Pennsylvania House passes bill …,” News Wire, June 18, 2025]. The Senate has yet to act on that legislation.
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