PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A lawsuit has aimed to force SEPTA to reverse its deep service cuts, claiming they unfairly affect minorities and low-income riders.
Attorney George Bochetto filed the suit against SEPTA in Common Pleas Court Wednesday, on behalf of minority riders who claim cutting bus routes hits them harder. “A couple of our plaintiffs are low-income people that can't get to school, can't get to their medical appointments, can't get to work,” he told KYW Newsradio.
Bochetto alleges SEPTA manufactured the crisis to get more state funding. “They have created a false financial crisis in an attempt to extort more money out of Harrisburg. And they're using the citizens of Philadelphia as pawns,” he said.
“They think if they inflict enough pain on low income and racial minorities in Philadelphia, they'll be able to intimidate Harrisburg to give them even more money that they're requesting.”
The suit claims that by cutting bus routes before reducing service on regional rail lines, SEPTA's actions hit low-income riders harder. “Ridership data consistently shows that bus passengers are disproportionately Black and Latino, and overwhelmingly low-income. Riders in these communities use SEPTA not as a matter of convenience but as a matter of survival — to reach their workplaces, attend schools, obtain medical treatment, buy food, and care for family members,” the suit said.
“Conversely, SEPTA’s regional rail passengers skew heavily white, higher-income, and suburban. For many of these riders, transit is an option, not a necessity; they have private cars and can absorb service reductions without losing access to their livelihoods,” it said.
To address a $213 million budget gap, SEPTA implemented a 20% service cut on Sunday, idling 32 bus routes and shortening 16 others.
No hearing date had been set as of Wednesday afternoon.
SEPTA spokesperson Andrew Busch, in a statement, responded that the transit agency would abide by any ruling of the court.
“SEPTA conducted a full equity analysis in accordance with all applicable regulations before proposing the plan for service cuts and fare increases to address our structural budget deficit. There has also been an extensive public process and education campaign surrounding the proposal, along with a series of public hearings that were overseen by an independent examiner,” Busch said.
“As we have said consistently, SEPTA did not want to take these steps. However, service cuts and fare increases are a necessary part of a larger plan to balance the budget. SEPTA is committed to continuing to work with Gov. Shapiro and lawmakers on a transit funding solution.”