SEPTA’s Bus Revolution plan will cut bus routes, change existing routes to make up coverage and offer on-demand transportation in some areas. But not every rider is on board with this plan. NBC10’s Johnny Archer was at a public meeting where riders voiced their concerns.
SEPTA is still working to overhaul its bus network in what it's calling "the SEPTA bus revolution."
The plan includes cutting nearly 20 bus routes and reworking the remaining routes to make up coverage as well as offering "on-demand" transportation for people in some areas.
This is not a project about safety on SEPTA's buses, but rather a way to eliminate less traveled routes that are not generating as much money.
The agency is trying to make its entire bus system more efficient, but that comes with many riders concerned about the changes.
Get top local stories in Philly delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC Philadelphia's News Headlines newsletter.
SEPTA held a public meeting on Tuesday to discuss the possible changes to its 125 bus route system that they're calling the bus revolution.
SEPTA took public comments and tried to explain why they would be discontinuing and changing some of the routes.
Local
Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood.
Many riders are displeased by the possible changes.
"The problem is nobody knows what you're doing. And, I have gone on many buses around the city asking people 'do you know anything about the bus revolution?' and they say 'no,'" one person said during the meeting.
SEPTA right now says the proposed plan is to discontinue 20 routes. But, they say most of them will be covered by other routes where more than 99% of the riders within a five-minute walk of a bus stop now will still be within a 5-minute walk after the changes.
"The ridership of routes in this area over the last ten years they all lost 30 to 50% of their ridership. That's not a sustainable situation for transit to be in. Transit is not a business. SEPTA does not make money, but we do have to manage our resources effectively and efficiently and this project will help us do that," Dan Nemiroff of SEPTA said.
SEPTA plans to get consideration from the board in May and implement the new bus network as early as the summer of 2025.
But, at this point, many riders do not like what they are hearing.
"They really need to rethink their revolution. Their revolution is not a revolution. What it really is going to do is take away from a lot of people that already understand their transportation system," SEPTA rider James Ette told NBC10.
There will be seven more meetings to get public input and concerns going forward. SEPTA riders can also find extensive details and submit their concerns about it on the agency's website.
Sign up for our Breaking newsletter to get the most urgent news stories in your inbox.
