The year in politics began with news from U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans, a Democrat whose 3rd Congressional District includes most of Northwest and West Philadelphia as well as Center City. He returned to Congress following a months-long recovery from a stroke, pledging a renewed focus on defending health care protections and opposing potential cuts to Social Security and Medicare in his new term.

“As someone with a pre-existing health condition, I’ll keep fighting to defend the Affordable Care Act for the millions of fellow Americans who have pre-existing health conditions,” Evans said after taking his oath of office.

But by summer, Evans, 71, announced that he would not seek re-election in 2026, setting off a wave of potential successors. (See today’s Opinion section in the Local for statements from several of the candidates.) His current term will conclude a career in public service spanning more than four decades.

“Serving the people of Philadelphia has been the honor of my life … and I remain in good health and fully capable of continuing to serve,” Evans said in a news release. “After some discussions this weekend and thoughtful reflection, I have decided that the time is right to announce that I will not be seeking re-election in 2026. I will serve out the full term that ends Jan. 3, 2027.”

Another major municipal story of 2025 came during the heat of the summer, when Philadelphia’s largest city workers’ union, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees District Council 33, went on strike after negotiations with the city reached an impasse. The union represents more than 9,000 city employees from several city departments, including Water, Recreation, Sanitation, Streets and Health. The most visible impact was the lack of trash and recycling pickups, with the city urging residents to use temporary waste drop-off locations.

As negotiations between the city and the union continued, trash bags began to pile up amid confusion about the temporary drop-off sites, and striking workers picketed at dumpsites including Domino Lane in Roxborough. An agreement was finally reached and approved by both sides, giving the workers a 3% pay increase each year over the next three years, plus cost-of-living increases.

But one of the biggest -- and still unresolved -- government stories of the year involved mass transit and its severe financial problems that threaten the gutting of service not only here but across the state.

In April, SEPTA announced a budget proposal that would see fare increases and drastic cuts, ending service to five Regional Rail lines, including Chestnut Hill West, if the state legislature did not act.

A 21.5% fare increase would go into effect Sept. 1, with the base fare increased to $2.90, along with a hiring freeze for SEPTA. The transit agency said it would eliminate the five Regional Rail lines on Jan. 1, 2026.

A group of Northwest Philly community organizations and residents, called the Save the Train Coalition, formed to fight for more SEPTA funding and against the cuts. The coalition and its policy director, Bob Previdi, who called the situation “dire,” held a rally, with residents taking the Chestnut Hill West line to SEPTA headquarters.

“Governor Shapiro and state leaders must avert this crisis and close SEPTA’s budget gap,” Previdi said at the rally. “But they must do far more than that. Our leaders need to embrace a bold, forward-thinking investment strategy for public transit as part of a comprehensive statewide transportation plan.”

In the last year, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed legislation funding SEPTA and other transit agencies three times, only for the bills to stall out in the Republican-controlled state Senate.

On June 26, the SEPTA board approved a 2026 fiscal year budget that would cut service by 45 percent and included the promised fare increases.

“This is a vote none of us wanted to take. … We have worked hard as an Authority to prevent this day from coming because we understand the impact it will have on our customers and the communities we serve,” SEPTA Board Chair Kenneth E. Lawrence Jr. said in a press release. “To be clear, this does not have to happen — if state lawmakers can reach an agreement to deliver sufficient, new funding for public transit.”

Beginning Aug. 24, SEPTA would eliminate 32 bus routes, shorten 16 others, and cut service to Metro and Regional Rail lines. Bus lines such as the 18, 23, 51(L), 53, 71(H), and 81(XH) in Northwest Philadelphia would see reduced service starting in August.

But on Aug. 29, a Common Pleas Court judge ordered SEPTA to halt all service cuts and fare increases that were not already in place. SEPTA said it would fully comply with the order, stopping service cuts and fare increases that were about to go into effect. Earlier cuts enacted on Aug. 24 remained in place.

In November, a state budget with no new funding for mass transit passed in Harrisburg. Then, on Nov. 24, Gov. Josh Shapiro authorized $219.9 million to be made available to SEPTA so it could make safety repairs to more than 200 rail cars, upgrade trolley infrastructure, and continue to deliver service.

To the Save the Train Coalition, it was too little too late. In an opinion column for the Local, Previdi and colleague Josephine Winter called the new funds “a mixed bag at best,” lacking “any long-term solution for SEPTA or for transit agencies anywhere in Pennsylvania.” The new funding, they wrote, meant “shifting dollars meant for capital improvements into the operating budget just to close this year’s and next year’s deficits. That’s not a real fix, and there’s no guarantee Harrisburg will deliver one in 2026 or 2027.”

They concluded: “Save the Train and its members will need to stay vigilant.”