Funding heads off SEPTA fare hike

The state House approved a major transportation bill yesterday, providing enough money to avoid further fare increases at SEPTA this year and to repair highways and bridges statewide.

But SEPTA's plan to eliminate bus and subway transfers on Aug. 1 continued to rankle Philadelphia lawmakers, and some called for SEPTA hearings into the transfer issue.

The thousands of Philadelphia schoolchildren who relied on transfers on their trips to class will not have to pay more next school year, but likely will receive monthly or weekly passes instead of transfers, lawmakers said after meeting with SEPTA officials yesterday.

The House voted 124-79 to approve the sweeping transportation bill. It provides $300 million in new funding for public transit and $450 million in new money for highways and bridges this fiscal year, with the total rising to $1.07 billion by 2016.

A new Public Transportation Trust Fund, supported by tolls from the Pennsylvania Turnpike, anticipated new tolls on Interstate 80, and 4.4 percent of the revenue from state sales taxes may give SEPTA and the state's other mass transit agencies the stable funding they have long sought.

The measure, approved Monday by the Senate, is expected to be signed into law by Gov. Rendell today, with ceremonies in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Altoona.

SEPTA will get about $147 million in additional operating and capital funding, enough to prevent further fare increases and service cuts threatened for September. But SEPTA will proceed with a fare hike that took effect on July 9. That provides for subway, bus and rail fares to increase by an average of 11 percent and for transfers to be eliminated.

Relatively few passengers - accounting for 6.8 percent of all transit trips - now use transfers. About 42 percent of transit riders use TransPasses.

The elimination of 60-cent transfers, which will require riders to pay two full fares for a two-vehicle trip or buy a pass, prompted State Sen. Shirley M. Kitchen (D., Phila.) to call for hearings into the plan.

"This is an outrage. Many of our low-income citizens rely heavily on SEPTA for their transportation needs, and the increase of the Day Pass, weekly and monthly TransPass, as well as the elimination of transfers could leave many individuals stranded," Kitchen said in a statement yesterday. "This is a great disservice to the citizens of Philadelphia. I urge SEPTA to find another way to save funds."

Kitchen, along with fellow Philadelphia Democratic Sens. LeAnna Washington, Christine Tartaglione, Anthony H. Williams and Vincent Hughes, met with SEPTA officials this week to urge transfers be restored.

In the House, Democratic Rep. Jewell Williams, the leader of the Philadelphia delegation, said SEPTA and Philadelphia School District officials had agreed to avoid price increases for students who use transfers on their rides to school.

"We have an agreement that the school district kids will be held harmless," Williams said after meeting with SEPTA chairman Pasquale "Pat" Deon yesterday. "They're still trying to iron out the kinks."

SEPTA transports about 33,000 Philadelphia school students. About half of those students require a transfer. Currently, the school district provides free transfers, school district spokeswoman Amy Guerin said.

SEPTA officials told Williams that SEPTA expects the amount collected from the school district for student transportation to remain the same as last year.

Guerin said time was running out for developing a plan for the students.

"We can't let this linger on too much longer," she said. "We can't have chaos when the school year starts."

A look at funding levels (in millions) in the new state plan to help pay for highways, bridges and mass transit systems:

2007-08: $750

2008-09: $850

2009-10: $900

2010-11: $922.5

2011-12: $945.5

2012-13: $969.2

2013-14: $993.4

2014-15: $1,018.2

2015-16: $1,043.7

2016-17: $1,069.8

10-year avg.: $946.2

SOURCES: Pennsylvania legislature, AP analysis.

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