As a daily SEPTA rider, I've always kept a close eye on any news concerning the public transit agency. An article in the Inquirer takes a closer look at the board of directors responsible for overseeing the nearly $1 billion SEPTA budget. The story, prompted by two appointments soon to be made by Mayor Nutter, highlights an ongoing pet peeve of mine: the small amount of representation given to Philadelphia despite the fact that we make up the majority of riders (and funders).
I'm all for regional cooperation, but the SEPTA board is closer to suburban domination. Just take a look at the regional composition of the board vs. the statistics provided by SEPTA about how is actually using the system on a regular basis. According to statistics from SVmetro.com, 78% of SEPTA's daily riders are Philadelphians. That means that the majority of revenue generated by riders, expected to be more than $300 million in FY08-FY09, comes from the pockets of Philadelphians. The membership of the SEPTA board has the opposite demographics.
Only four people on the board-- Jettie Newkirk, Denise Smyler, Christian DiCicco, and Herman Wooden-- actually live in Philadelphia. The rest come from the suburbs counties that, even when combined, make up the minority of those who use SEPTA. I am not saying that suburbanites don't care about the issues facing urban dwellers or that they should not have a voice on the SEPTA board. However, the fact remains that giving Philadelphia greater control over how revenue is used-- money that comes straight from our pockets-- is basic fairness.
City officials have tried two approaches for increasing our clout on the SEPTA board. The Street Administration basically went to war, suing the transit agency over fare increases and threatening not to renew the lease that allows SEPTA to operate the Market El and Broad Street subways. In contrast, Mayor Nutter seems to be trying a charm offensive. He has reached out to the new leadership at SEPTA and will be appointing two new members of the board in coming days. Nutter seems to believe that a soft touch is the best approach.
I'm not sure which approach is likely to yield results. Any thoughts out there about what needs to be done to increase Philadelphia's say over how our fare dollars are spent? Let me know in the comments.
Comments (1)
It is also telling that nearly all of the board's members are lawyers who neither have a background in transportation nor are regular SEPTA riders. That makeup has been a recipe for hands-off, absentee "management" for decades.
Particularly galling were the comments of Pat Deon, who stated there is no need for rider representation. Deon, remember, is the hack who once responded to complaints about poor train seating by saying that riders deserved only "stainless steel benches that could be hosed off at the end of the day", and who claimed that SEPTA's near-collapse during Live 8 was an example of "flawless" performance.
Mayor Nutter has a lot of work cut out for him.
Posted by Jeff Karpinski | May 9, 2008 5:32 PM