Heading into this budget season, public transit activists knew they had to ramp up pressure on legislators to support funding for public transportation systems throughout Pennsylvania.
Without action, transit systems across the Commonwealth wouldn’t have the money they needed to keep buses running, trains moving, and neighborhoods connected.
Due to a funding cliff from Act 89, a comprehensive transportation plan signed into law in 2014, Pennsylvania's public transit systems lost funding after 2023.
It meant that for transit systems to maintain the status quo, they needed over $200 million in funding. It's a significant number, but in the context of an annual $50 billion budget, it was not a substantial request, especially since the systems were not seeking new funding or programming. They just needed funding to continue providing the services they already offered.
In 2024, advocates and legislators were unable to reach a deal that included transit funding. Republicans questioned the safety and efficiency of the systems, especially SEPTA. They pushed the systems to reform and placed dedicated prosecutors for crimes on SEPTA.
SEPTA dutifully responded to the Republican requests and made material improvements across the board. There were more riders, fewer crimes, and greater efficiency. They procured new gates to help with fare enforcement.
But it wasn't enough. Republicans still refused to provide funding to the systems.
In place of a long-term solution, Governor Josh Shapiro repurposed federal funding to cover operating expenses for the transit agencies, providing the systems with important stopgap funding.
This year, the environment was right for a legislative solution. There was more urgency around a solution. Without funding, the systems would be forced to make deep cuts to service and raise fares.
Starting in January, transit advocates rallied at the capital and in legislative districts. They diligently highlighted reforms and showcased not just the major systems but the local systems that connected workers and seniors through smaller bus networks to jobs and doctors. They talked directly with legislators and made their case to the public, resulting in coverage throughout Pennsylvania that talked about the importance of local, public transit for communities.
After eight months, the hope of sustained funding for Pennsylvania's transit system fell apart.
Republicans in the Senate refused to budge, and the Shapiro Administration and the larger transit systems - SEPTA and PRT - patched together another short-term solution by repurposing capital funding to secure about two years' worth of operating funding.
Unfortunately, the smaller systems represented by Republican Senators do not have access to the same funding streams and many could face severe financial insecurity.
For some reason, Republicans took this failure and dysfunction as a victory. But for riders, workers, and local economies, it was a resounding loss.
Now, transit advocates are searching for their next steps, and it will have to come in the form of a political victory.
Politicians are responsive to their constituents, but sometimes that responsiveness must be demonstrated with electoral consequences.
Transit advocates need to show that their issue or their movement has political resonance.
At this point, it seems clear that legislators - especially Senate Republicans - will not respond unless they believe there are electoral risks to continuing to block transit funding, both in population centers like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, and in their own communities.
For transit advocates, pivoting to the 2026 elections will help them make the case that transit funding is not just good policy, but a winning political issue. If they’re successful, lawmakers might feel real pressure to invest in the systems that keep the Commonwealth moving.
