SEPTA said it was left with no other option. Without critical funding from Harrisburg, service cuts began on Sunday across the Philadelphia region.
On Monday, SEPTA officials said service has been “off to a decent start” on the first workday.
SEPTA officials said they believe riders planned ahead for these cuts. They said they didn’t see any major issues with kids going back to school this morning. But they acknowledged it certainly wasn’t a normal day for the system.
“Things are moving a little bit slower than normal,” SEPTA spokesperson Andrew Busch said. “We’re seeing crowded conditions on subway trains and also on some buses. We’ve had some pass-ups, where some vehicles have been too crowded to stop at certain locations, but not to a point where it was significantly disrupting service.”
School District of Philadelphia Superintendent Dr. Tony Watlington said they’ll have to crunch the attendance numbers on Monday night.
The principal at Furness High School in South Philly told Watlington that normal attendance for Day 1 is usually around 90%. They estimated it was in the 70s on Monday.
City leaders said they are working on a plan to possibly provide some bus service to schools, but didn’t provide details.
Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker urged lawmakers in Harrisburg to acknowledge the importance of SEPTA to the region and get a deal done.
“It’s the heartbeat of the economic engine for an entire city and region,” Parker said. “It connects communities to jobs, to schools and health care and opportunity. And there’s no way to say it other than without it, our people will suffer.”
As for talks in Harrisburg, it appears the leaders from the Democratic and Republican parties in the State Assembly are each standing by their respective plans. It’s unclear where negotiations go from here.
SEPTA riders hope Harrisburg makes deal soon amid service cuts
CBS News Philadelphia monitored the impact of SEPTA service cuts all day on Monday.
Many riders said their buses and trains were more crowded, but delays were minimal, according to SEPTA.
“I was expecting the worst,” Stephanie Weatherbee, of Overbrook, said. “Three of our bus lines were canceled.”
The Route 31 bus was among the 32 bus routes slashed by SEPTA’s cuts.
Kevin Ratay now calls it the route without a bus.
“The 31, that’s very important,” Ratay said.
The signs up and down Haverford Avenue spell out the reality of division in Harrisburg.
The lack of a deal and absence of compromise in the General Assembly left the transit authority with a more than $200 million hole in its budget.
Some said the lack of a deal in Harrisburg to send SEPTA more than $200 million in additional funding was embarrassing.
With fewer routes, riders said their buses and trains were more crowded.
“Now there are more issues, you’re paying more to commute — it’s been a bit of a pain,” Liz Litta said.
Cuts are expected to go deeper, with reductions on Regional Rail service coming next week. There’s also a 21.5% fare hike that will take effect Sept. 1.
SEPTA customers now hold their breath and wait to see if state lawmakers can find common ground.
“They need to work something out because people were having difficulties this morning,” Weatherbee said.
