To improve SEPTA, our Council members need to ride the bus

Earlier this month, City Council delayed a long-awaited overhaul of the city’s SEPTA bus routes. In doing so, Council members presented themselves as serious people making careful deliberations. In fact, their indecision reveals they haven’t done the work to understand Philadelphia’s public transportation needs. Council members need to spend more time on the bus.

The plan for revised bus routes, called Bus Revolution, has been under public review for more than two years. Public transit experts, SEPTA leadership, SEPTA riders, and community members have reviewed the plan, which has been adjusted in response to criticism.

The strengths of the new routes, summarized by Will Tung, an organizer with urbanist group 5th Square, include the creation of about a dozen more high-frequency routes, increasing service reliability and speeds, improving service at nonpeak travel times, and improving weekend service, which would have the greatest benefit for lower-income workers and those with no car access.

Critics point out that Bus Revolution fails to address fundamental flaws in our city’s transit system, including persistent shortages of operators, difficult traffic conditions such as double-parking in bus lanes, and projected SEPTA budget shortfalls. All of these factors are important determinants of whether SEPTA’s bus system works well.

But City Council did not delay the approval of Bus Revolution because it had specific concerns or suggestions for new remedies for specific bus routes. It did not postpone Bus Revolution to expand dedicated bus lanes that speed bus travel, or to expand the pilot program for camera-based parking enforcement on SEPTA buses, which helps to remove double-parked cars from existing bus routes. Rather, it delayed Bus Revolution approval because, apparently, Council members weren’t paying attention for the past two years.

Council Majority Leader Katherine Gilmore Richardson asked for the postponement, saying, “I still feel as though we have not had adequate time to engage our constituents regarding all of the numerous changes to this plan.” Richardson also pointed to new members of Council who need additional time to review the Bus Revolution plan. Council has postponed progress on the new bus routes to hold yet another series of public meetings and to have more time to think.

Reading reports of City Council’s response to the Bus Revolution plan brought to mind a student who has been napping through an entire class period. The student wakes at the closing bell and asks, “Sorry, can you say all that again?”

The problem is that Council members do not ride the bus enough. And the solution to a better Bus Revolution isn’t more public hearings, it’s legislation mandating that all Council members should ride public transit to work. At the very least, Mayor Cherelle L. Parker should eliminate any perks that encourage members to drive rather than take the bus. Instead of a city-owned car, give members a discount on SEPTA passes instead.

I have had plenty of time to think about the Bus Revolution plan because I ride the bus. Those of us who use SEPTA buses to get to work and to shop and to bring our kids to basketball practice have seen Bus Revolution placards and informational postings for years. While we wait for buses — often too long because of staffing shortages — we dream about the shorter wait times Bus Revolution will bring to some routes, and we dream that this is just the first step of many toward building a world-class bus system in Philadelphia.

I don’t think the plan will create a perfect bus system. In addition to Bus Revolution, we need better SEPTA staffing, more dedicated bus lanes, and more high-frequency routes. We need more reliable bus tracking so riders are aware when their bus is running late and know whether they can catch a different bus instead. We need the Philadelphia Parking Authority to start serving the city’s public transit users by dedicating staff to declogging obstructed bus lanes.

But the Bus Revolution plan is a step forward from the lazy status quo we’ve been living with for too long. Any Philadelphian who rides the bus regularly already knows all this. Unfortunately, we’re stuck waiting for the Council members who just started to pay attention.

Brendan J. Kelly lives and rides the bus in Philadelphia.