Philadelphia Transit Campaign

Philadelphia Transit Campaign

6703 Germantown Avenue • Philadelphia, PA 19119 • (267) 295-2040 • info@phillytransit.com • www.phillytransit.com

As one campaign ends, another one begins….

The outpouring of energy in the recently concluded political campaign and the extraordinary turnout of voters in the Greater Philadelphia area was incredible. We at the Philadelphia Transit Campaign urge you to stay involved politically and turn some of that energy to the fight for new dedicated funding for public transportation. You can begin to help in this effort by attending our

Rally for Public Transit

We are traveling again to Harrisburg to seek support for dedicated funding from Governor Rendell and the General Assembly.

Wednesday, November 10

Buses leave 10 am from JFK Boulevard on the West Side of 30th Street Station. We will be able to pick up groups from selected locations.

We will return to Philadelphia by 5:30 pm

Email info@philllytransit.com or call (267) 295-2040 to reserve a space on the bus.

The Transit Funding Crisis is Real

The transit funding crisis is real. And we need action soon to resolve it. We cannot allow SEPTA to enact the devastating cuts and fair increases they have proposed—a 20% cut in service; a 25% fare increase and the discontinuation of all weekend and night time service. But, we need more than stop-gap relief. We will not have the kind of public transit systems in Pennsylvania with out new, dedicated funding for public transportation.

Without new dedicated funding, we will be back again in Harrisburg next year, and the year after, and the year after that, seeking to avoid service reductions and fare increases. If all we get in response is one stop-gap solution after another, our transit systems will be sent into a death spiral. Every year there will be some reductions in service or increases in the cost of transportation. Every year there will be declines in ridership. And thus every year the fiscal crisis will get a little worse.

The Issue is Saving Public Transit not Saving SEPTA

What is at stake for us is public transportation in our region, not SEPTA. We have long been critics of SEPTA. We have been frustrated with SEPTA’s performance and its lack of responsiveness to all the communities it serves. We plan to present a series of proposals for improvements in both the governance and operations of SEPTA. And we will urge our government officials to to hold SEPTA accountable for its performance. But we are convinced that efficiencies and reform at SEPTA is not enough. Like any other public service--like, among other things, our highways and streets and our airports--public transportation needs to be subsidized by the government. Moreover, many of the reforms we seek will require more not less money.

Towards The Transit System We Deserve

With dedicated funding, SEPTA will be able to plan for the future. It will be able to spend money to selectively expand service; to make more information available to its riders; to make its trains, buses, and trolleys cleaner; and to make other improvements. New dedicated funding will enable SEPTA to work with the communities it serves to create the public transportation system that is central to so many of our hopes for this region: for economic development and job growth; for the protection of the environment; for preserving green spaces; for the inclusion of seniors and the disabled in our common life; and for the children who need public transportation to go to school or to take advantage of the cultural and educational opportunities available in our cities and towns.

For more information about the transit funding crisis and about the Philadelphia Transit Campaign go to our website www.phillytransit.com; email us at info@phillytransit.com or call us at (267) 295-2040.

Please forward this email to your friends and encourage them to go to our website sign up to receive our email alertss.

Steering Committee
Philadelphia Transit Campaign