The end of the line?

If SEPTA is forced (a term the transit agency uses with credibility) to enact its doomsday contingency plan next year, it might as well abandon the entire transit system. Already beleaguered by hour-long waits and a limited rail service that stops running somewhere around the witching hour, many Philadelphians won't even bother with public transportation.

Imagine a world-class city easily accessible only during the peak hours of the five-day workweek. Don't worry. We can't either.

Pathetic isn't too strong of a word to describe this year's funding crisis, especially considering that every rider interviewed for this week's story virtually expected SEPTA to hike fares and threaten service cuts. What's worse is that most seemed willing to accept the measures as long as their monthly transit bills didn't outweigh the potential parking fees.

It's tempting to attribute this defeatist attitude to the city's vortex of perpetual failure, from its tax policies to its sports teams.

However, reality tells a different, oddly more depressing story.

SEPTA in Philadelphia and the Port Authority of Allegheny County in Pittsburgh do not face red ink death alone. More than 70 of the states transit agencies are also suffering. And the problem resonates with the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (D.C.'s Metro), which, unlike Pennsylvania's transit agencies, receives virtually no dedicated funding for its operational or capital costs.

While SEPTA benefits from some state funding, the amount has been quickly outpaced by inflation, workers' healthcare costs, pension funding and fuel costs.

Road projects appear to be the darling of both our state and federal governments. While the Congress is currently wrestling with a federal appropriations bill for transit, it’s been decades since the feds have shown a serious commitment to public transportation.

In fiscal 1980, federal subsidies covered nearly 19 percent of SEPTA's operating budget. Twenty-five years later, the feds cover just 3.4 percent of those expenses, leaving state and local governments to pick up the slack.

The current scenario mandates the state legislature find a way for further dedicated funding or contend with the economic devastation such drastic measures would visit on Philadelphia and the state's other municipalities. Surely, communities like Chestnut Hill and Mt. Airy would see a loss in quality of life and property value if their two rail lines were subject to SEPTA's plan.

But more importantly, for some transit isn't a choice. Fare hikes, the elimination of all weekend service and a reduction in off-peak trips holds little promise for a vibrant Philadelphia, and would hurt those who are paid the least.

As the Philadelphia Transportation Campaign contends, SEPTA is not completely innocent in what the agency's spokesman calls the "systematic dismantling of public transit." While there is no question SEPTA tightened its administrative belt in recent years, the results of an external state audit initiated more than a year ago have yet to released.

Like many have suggested, SEPTA would be wise to revisit its management structure.