“The bills are designed to not only save public transit but also allow it to thrive,” said Williams, who said she has heard from “hundreds” of constituents concerned about the proposed cuts.”
Pittsburgh, PA − May 1, 2025 − On Tuesday, Senator Lindsey M. Williams (D-Allegheny) joined transit advocates and riders for a rally in support of increased statewide investment in public transportation. Tuesday also marked the first of a series of public hearings that Pittsburgh Regional Transit will hold to hear feedback from riders and the community on a series of proposed service cuts.
During the rally, Senator Williams, who also serves on the board of PRT, announced that she and Nikil Saval (D-Philadelphia) will introduce the Transit for All PA! legislation package, a suite of legislative proposals to help secure full funding for transit agencies across Pennsylvania. Rep. Aerion Abney (D-19) and Rep. Jessica Benham (D-36) will introduce companion legislation in the House.
This legislation includes the following:
- A ride-hailing component, which will establish a 6% excise fee on transportation network companies (TNC) such as Uber and Lyft.
- A rental vehicle component, which will make nominal increases to the car rental fee.
- A leased vehicle component, which will similarly make nominal increases to the car lease tax.
Together, the components of this package are projected to yield hundreds of millions of dollars, enough to fully close the current funding gaps, prevent service cuts and fare hikes, and allow transit agencies to restore and expand services without exhausting reserves.
Read full coverage by Ed Blazina in the Pittsburgh Union Progress, the newspaper published by striking workers at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; excerpt below:
“Emotional testimony, Democratic funding proposal highlight hearing on transit cuts (4/30/2025)
For nearly seven hours Tuesday, Pittsburgh Regional transit heard from dozens of riders and transit advocates about the serious problems they would face if the agency follows through with service cuts of 45%, a 62% reduction in the area served by Access paratransit and a 25-cent increase in the basic fare to $3.
It was the first day of the public comment meetings at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Downtown Pittsburgh that are federally required when a transit agency makes major changes. The stories are just what PRT officials wanted to hear as they try to build a case for Senate Republicans in Harrisburg to approve the first increase in transit subsidy funds in 12 years and eliminate the agency’s projected $117 million deficit.
But the biggest news of the day came at a rally outside by riders during the afternoon break, when state Sen. Lindsey Williams, D-West View, announced she will sponsor legislation to provide reliable transit funding. She said the legislation will mirror the proposal from Transit for All PA, a riders advocacy group in which local group Pittsburghers for Public Transit is a main player.
The sponsorship memo for bills jointly proposed by Williams and Sen. Nikil Saval, D-Philadelphia, call for increasing the fee for renting a car in the state from $2 a day to $6.50, raising the fee for leasing a car from 3% to 5% and establishing a 6% surcharge for rides with services such as Lyft and Uber.
Transit for All PA has estimated those changes would raise more than $500 million a year for transit and allow agencies to restore service to pre-pandemic levels in 2019, plus 10% more for agencies in rural areas.
Williams said Senate staff is in the process of writing the language for the bills, which she called a “reasonable” approach to handling the funding problem. She credited Transit for All PA for strong research that went into a white paper explaining the proposed changes and the funds they could generate.
The bills are designed to “not only save public transit but [also] allow it to thrive,” said Williams, who said she has heard from “hundreds” of constituents concerned about the proposed cuts.
“It is an investment in every one of us,” she said.”
You can read additional coverage of Tuesday’s PRT public hearing, transit rally, and the Transit for All PA! legislation at:
- Pittsburgh Public Transit riders rally against ‘devastating’ service cuts, fare increases (WESA, 4/29/2025)
- Pennsylvania lawmakers push for funding for SEPTA amid budget crisis (ABC 27, 4/30/2025)
- Democrats introduce ‘Transit For All PA’ legislative package as potential lifeline for SEPTA, PRT (City & State, 4/30/2025)
###