by KYW's Mike Dunn
Public hearings on the SEPTA budget are set for this week and there’s little hue and cry because the transit agency is, for now, putting off any service cuts or fare hikes.
SEPTA has 50-million dollars in red ink, but rather than slash service and raise fares now, General Manager Faye Moore will hold off, hoping Harrisburg will save the day later this year:
“We are more in a wait-and-see mode. What, if anything, will come out of Harrisburg? What will come out of the studies? There might be some magical solution that we haven’t considered.”
Last year the magician was Governor Rendell, who diverted federal highway money to SEPTA.
If there’s no rabbit in the hat this year, Moore says riders should be prepared:
“Our options are limited. You’re either going to raise fares, reduce services or you’re going to do some combination thereof, if you don’t have subsidy money.”
That part of the annual SEPTA drama will play out in the fall.
Schedule of public hearings:
Monday, May 8, 2006 - 2 p.m., Montgomery County Human Service Center
(formerly Sacred Heart Hospital), Community Room - Main Floor,
1430 DeKalb Pike, Norristown, PA 19404
Tuesday, May 9, 2006 - 11 a.m. and 5 p.m., SEPTA Board Room, Mezzanine Level, 1234 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107
Wednesday, May 10, 2006 - 2 p.m., Bucks County Free Library, Pearl Buck Meeting Room, 150 South Pine Street, Doylestown, PA 18901
Thursday, May 11, 2006 - 2 p.m., West Chester Borough Hall, Council Chambers, 401 E. Gay Street, West Chester, PA 19380
(Note -- a hearing in Delaware County took place last week).
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