Press Release: Transit Funding Struggles Persists in Pennsylvania Amid Budget Deadline
Harrisburg, PA — As Pennsylvania’s June 30 budget deadline approaches, public transit funding has ignited heated negotiations among lawmakers. Key focus points include requests for additional financial support for major transit agencies like SEPTA and Pittsburgh Regional Transit, which face serious operational crises. Advocates are sounding alarms about potential fare hikes and service cuts that could exacerbate revenue declines.
However, the plight of the rural shared-ride transit program has received less attention despite its critical role for many. This service provides on-demand rides to essential locations for older residents and individuals with disabilities, but has faced rising fares and declining ridership in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to PennDOT, the service is experiencing a crisis characterized by dwindling passengers, increasing costs, and operational losses.
Established in the 1970s, the shared-ride program previously consolidated individual journeys into fewer vehicles, thereby lowering costs. Yet recent reports indicate that longer distances and rising fares have drastically affected its viability, leading to concerns for users who rely on these rides.
Governor Josh Shapiro’s budget proposal includes $38 million in new funding specifically for shared-rides, a point met with resistance from Senate Republicans, who are proposing more road maintenance funding as a condition for any transit budget increase.
A recently advanced House bill mirrors Shapiro’s transit funding goals while also addressing road projects, illustrating the difficult balance lawmakers must strike. Advocates, like Sheila Gombita of Washington County’s FreedomTransit, cast this financial instability as an opportunity for improvement rather than an endpoint.
"We need to stabilize our programs so that we don’t price ourselves out," Gombita stated, highlighting the urgent nature of the situation as negotiations remain contentious.
With the clock ticking, transit advocates and users alike are holding their breath, hoping for a resolution that ensures accessibility for all Pennsylvanians.
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