2M More Miles Driven In Philly Region With SEPTA Cuts: Study

PHILADELPHIA — A study projects 2 million additional daily vehicle miles will be traveled in Philadelphia and its four bordering counties if the proposed SEPTA cuts go through.

The Delaware Regional Planning Commission released a study about the impact SEPTA cuts would have on the Philadelphia region. The study states that commutes would be 30 percent longer on two key highways that run through the Philadelphia region, and highway congestion would increase.

It also found that at least 275,000 more cars would hit the road daily.

DVRPC found that with more cars on the road, vehicle trips on major corridors will be slower and take longer across the entire region. DVRPC’s travel model projects there will be 1 million additional daily vehicle miles traveled in Philadelphia alone and an additional 1 million in the four southeast Pennsylvania counties: Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery.

There will also be slower travel speeds throughout the suburban counties due to congestion, the study found:

• In Montgomery County, speeds on the already congested I-476 would drop from 37.1 mph to 32.5 mph.
• In Bucks County, the study stated that delays on Interstates 95 and 295 would be 30 percent longer in addition to any delays on Interstate 95 further south toward Philadelphia.
• In Delaware County, traveling on I-95 to Philadelphia would take 10 percent longer.
• In Chester County, delays on US 202 would increase by 40 percent after losing the Paoli line’s congestion mitigation impacts.

The increase of cars on the road will result in an 18 percent longer commute on I-95 southbound from Academy Road to Vine Street Expressway, and a 20 percent longer commute on the Schuylkill Expressway eastbound from US 422 to Girard Avenue.

The DVRPC travel modeling shows the SEPTA cuts would impact the quality of life for people, the air quality of local communities, and hurt the economy as well.

SEPTA faces a $213 million budget deficit starting July 1.

Without a permanent funding solution, SEPTA will have to raise fares by more than 20 percent and be forced to take drastic steps to irreversibly shrink the system, including eliminating 50 bus routes and five regional rail lines, reducing service by 20 percent on all remaining routes, creating a 9 p.m. curfew on Metro and Regional Rail routes, and eliminating all special services, such as sports express service to and from the stadiums.

Planning partners across the region are working together to highlight the value of SEPTA service and raise awareness about the impact of the proposed service cuts and fare increases. As part of this effort, DVRPC modeled potential impacts of these proposed changes on mobility in the region.

Fifty-five percent of the increase in travel due to the SEPTA cuts will take place on arterials, collectors, and local roadways, which will have quality-of-life, safety, and air quality impacts on communities across the region.

There will also be broader impacts of the proposed service cuts, planners say.

“These cuts and the related increases in traffic volume, delays, and reduced speeds, will impact goods movement and freight-intensive industries,” said Ariella Maron, executive director of DVRPC. “With 40 percent of freight movement across the Commonwealth coming through the region, the impact will be significant. Existing bottlenecks for trucks will get worse, and the impacts will be felt by businesses, workers, and the economy as a whole.”

Maron also noted how SEPTA’ s proposed service reductions will impact planned tourist events in the region in 2026, including the America250 celebration, the FIFA World Cup events, the Major League Baseball All-Star Game, and more. “Not only will this impact the ability for attendees, including over one million projected visitors, to get where they need to go, and impact everyone else already here who needs to get to work, school, doctor appointments, and other places, but it will reduce our region’s ability to attract future events, conferences, and visitors generally,” she said.

“With the proposed service cuts and fare increases, traffic impacts will be felt across the region by all drivers and in every community,” Maron said. “Further, it will hurt Pennsylvania’s economy and the region’s ability to compete on the global stage.”