Legislation providing historic funding amounts for public transportation has passed in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.
The Public Transportation Trust Fund Transfer Act, introduced by state Rep. Ed Neilson (D-Philadelphia), chair of the House Transportation Committee, would invest nearly $300 million into mass transit without raising the state sales tax. The bill would create funding for across the state and in all 67 counties, officials said.
“Throughout Pennsylvania, including cities, suburbs and rural areas, more than 1 million people use public transportation every day. This is the most significant transit funding increase in over a decade, and no one will see an increase in their taxes. With an additional $500 million in funding to repair roads and bridges, this comprehensive bill will bolster Pennsylvania’s transportation infrastructure in a way that benefits us all,” Neilson said.
The funding would increase the amount of money allocated to public transit funding from 4.4 percent to 6.15 percent by reallocating the money the state already collects to better invest in transit systems across the state, for a total of $1.5 billion to public transit over the next five years.
“This will help transit agencies avoid the worst-case scenarios of major service cuts and fare increases, allow roughly 39,000 people employed by public transit agencies to remain gainfully employed and continue moving hundreds of thousands of workers to and from their jobs,” Neilson said. “Public transit, both directly and indirectly, is a major contributor to our state’s economy; every dollar invested in transit, returns $5 to our economy.
The bill now moves to the Senate for consideration.