“This is not the budget we want, but the budget we must have. . . It will begin to dismantle our public Transit System”, said SEPTA acting General Manager Scott Sauer. A statement that isn’t true.
The day of the hearings began with a rally outside of the SEPTA’s Center City Philadelphia Headquarters. Democratic elected officials made speeches, chanted, and bragged about all they were doing to persuade their republican counterparts to fund SEPTA. But in the end, all the speakers placed the blame on Harrisburg, which has not proposed a single cut or fare hike, and not SEPTA, which is trying to cut service by 40 % and raise fares by 21.5%
SEPTA’s public relations machine has framed the issue successfully. Speaker after speaker testifies within the two minutes allowed, “we need SEPTA,” tell the republicans not to do this to us. No answers were given to those who asked questions.
The narrative was so crucial to SEPTA that they required everyone who attended the public meeting to sign in, so SEPTA could know who they were. When Hall Monitor Consumer Reporter Lance Haver objected to the requirement, pointing out that the public notice did not state that people had to identify themselves to attend, and that no law required it. Haver was stopped from attending the evening session and passing out flyers that showed SEPTA had more than enough cash to avoid the service cuts and fare hikes by 6 SEPTA police officers, handcuffed and shoved out of the building.
In the morning session, Reporter Haver did not have to identify himself and handed out the fact sheet. Only after SEPTA’s staff saw the flyer and television reporter Jeff Cole joined Haver in asking why the $300 million could not be used was Haver removed.
SEPTA appears to fear anyone challenging their narrative to such an extent that they refuse to follow the law, which states : (4) Reasonable and legitimate questions from members of the public are answered. Instead, they say, you can ask, but you will not get answers, you can write them down, and after the hearings end, after it is no longer possible for you to testify, you will get the answers.
In the morning session, SEPTA’s lawyer told Reporter Haver that SEPTA did not have to answer questions at the hearing.
Haver filed discovery requests. He received partial answers. SEPTA has over $ 300 million in its service stabilization fund, more than enough to avoid the cuts and fare hikes this year. He also discovered:
SEPTA refuses to contact its bondholders and renegotiate the payments until the State Legislature acts.
SEPTA is refusing to provide the value of its Center City headquarters and project how many millions will be saved if SEPTA’s headquarters are moved to 52nd and Market or Broad and Olney.
Discovery showed that SEPTA is offering to cut the City Transit Division before the Regional Rail lines, despite most of the savings being garnered by eliminating the trains. SEPTA states that cutting bus service and raising fares on the City transit division will only save $54 million, less than 18% of the money it has in the bank, while cutting the regional rail lines will save SEPTA $145 million.
SEPTA has refused to publish how many riders will lose service when the bus lines are cut to compare it to how many regional rail riders will lose service when the regional rail lines are cut; nor has it explained why it doesn’t cut the regional rail lines first, for the greatest savings.
There is no question that at some point, SEPTA will need additional state funding. But as the State Legislature wants to privatize bus service and SEPTA’s Acting General Manager says he is open to it, cutting 40 % of the service and raising fares by 21% means three things:
The Republicans will not have to dismantle the system; SEPTA will do it for them.
The Ubers of the world will get what their campaign contributions have sought: the right to take over bus and trolley lines and use “surge pricing” to take advantage of people when they need rides. The worse the weather, the higher the price, the greater the need, the more it costs.
And SEPTA riders will be screwed.
We still don’t know why all those elected officials don’t stop SEPTA from punishing the riders for the actions of the Harrisburg Senate.
Our reporters sit through hours of city council meetings, dig through piles of documents, and ask tough questions other media overlook. Because we’re committed to addressing Philadelphia’s poverty crisis — and challenging those who sustain it. If you think this work is important too, please support our journalism.
We’re counting on readers like you.
