(The following article by Sean O’Sullivan was posted on the News Journal website on December 16.)
NEWARK, Del. — Riders who use SEPTA can expect higher fares and cuts in service under a plan approved Thursday by the board of the financially strapped public transportation system.
For riders in Delaware, the changes will likely mean the elimination of some service and increased fares.
The Delaware Department of Transportation has a $6.8 million annual contract with SEPTA and Amtrak to provide regional rail service between Newark and Philadelphia.
“This is bad news. Period,” DelDOT spokesman Darrel Cole said Thursday. “This really doesn’t come as a surprise to us. Of course we are disappointed.”
The exact trains that would be cut and the exact fare increases have not yet been worked out, Cole said. He said that since Delaware contracts with SEPTA to provide the service, there may be some negotiations on the changes.
Thursday’s 13-2 vote overrode an earlier veto of the plan by representatives from the city of Philadelphia and came despite a plea from Philadelphia Mayor John F. Street to delay the vote for a month.
“I am asking you on behalf of all the people who will suffer as a result of all of this to just say no,” he said, promising he would sue if the reductions were approved.
The plan is designed to cover an expected $62 million deficit in the SEPTA operating budget. SEPTA officials say the deficit was created when Pennsylvania state legislators did not provide adequate money to run the system.
DelDOT officials had lobbied against the fare increase arguing it could end what had been impressive gains for commuter rail service in Delaware.
Paul Murray, a Delaware member of the Delaware Valley Association of Rail Passengers said his group was “not happy” with the SEPTA move.
“We have made tremendous progress in Delaware in increasing ridership and this seems very counterproductive,” he said.
Ridership on the R2 in Delaware has grown 87 percent, to about 784,000 passengers a year, since it stared 10 years ago.
Murray faulted both the Pennsylvania Legislature for not working to close the deficit and SEPTA for mismanagement.
Also Thursday, Pennsylvania Transportation Secretary Allen D. Biehler met with transportation officials in Washington to explore whether federal highway money can be used to cover transit costs.
Since the early 1990s, Pennsylvania has transferred nearly $586 million into public transportation infrastructure, equipment and maintenance, but the current budget problems involve operating costs that have not been considered eligible for such transfers.
Federal officials said it may be possible to shuffle the money around, but made no promises.
“I think the conclusion that we walked out of the meeting with is, there’s no guaranteeing it,” said Roy Kienitz, deputy chief of staff for Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell.