SEPTA’s bus route overhaul is getting another look in public meetings. Many say they are still baffled or frustrated.

They vented about crime and fare evasion.

They complained of gentrification eating away at low-income neighborhoods.

And, yes, people also leveled sharp questions at SEPTA representatives about the transit agency’s proposed overhaul of the city bus network during a often-heated, two-hour community meeting Wednesday night at Strawberry Mansion High School.

It’s a fraught subject.

After more than two years of outreach, SEPTA paused the project in February, just as its board was poised to adopt the fourth draft of route changes. City Councilmember Katherine Gilmore Richardson said she and some colleagues needed more time to make sure the voices of Black, brown, and lower-income constituents were heard.

SEPTA and Council members collaborated to organize eight more in-person meetings in disadvantaged communities in March and April to explain their plans and take questions. Implementation of route changes has been pushed into 2025, officials say.

“We hope this moves the needle in a more positive direction,” said Tariem Burroughs, chair of SEPTA’s Citizens Advisory Council, who believes changes are necessary. “What we don’t want to have happen is that [the process] turns out be performative and nothing comes of it.”

In the fall of 2021, SEPTA launched the first-ever comprehensive revamping of the bus network, spurred by an alarming drop in riders that began well before the pandemic — 20% between 2013 and 2019.

A number of U.S. transit agencies have streamlined their bus routes to make trips more frequent and reliable. They, and SEPTA, have found that slow rides and delays drive away customers. In addition, old-style commuting has declined and demand has jumped for off-peak and weekend service.

SEPTA has tweaked its meetings for the overtime round, offering people a specific analysis of bus service tailored to their Council district and having more presenters, including from different parts of the agency than just the planning department. At Wednesday’s meeting, the explanation of the project seemed shorter and the time for audience questions longer. Staff searched people out at the end to give questioners more specifics.

As a result of community input, planners decided to keep the Route 32 bus as is. It had been slated for elimination, sparking protests in a number of areas, including Strawberry Mansion, which it serves.

While that was welcome news, there are trade-offs. One woman said she was dismayed to learn other bus routes in the area would be less frequent.

The redesign needs to be budget-neutral because SEPTA has limited resources to draw from in paying bus operators and running the vehicles, said Brandon Miller, senior operations planner at SEPTA. So increasing service one place means it will have to be trimmed elsewhere.

“I want to be clear: That is not something that we want to do,” said Melvin Young, director of SEPTA’s CCT paratransit service, who was one of the presenters. “Without increased funding, we do have to balance the cost.”

The agency’s approach has steadily improved, said Connor Descheemaker, coalitions manager of Transit Forward Philadelphia, an advocacy group. “If they had this level of engagement earlier, or the level in spring 2023, we might be in a different position now,” they said.

People who’ve attended multiple meetings say that the temperature seems lower than it has been, though not always. In Strawberry Mansion, residents were frustrated. Some said they do not trust SEPTA.

Naderah Griffin said she believes the overhaul, called Bus Revolution, is driven by gentrification.

“We don’t want any changes with the bus routes,” Griffin said. “We Black and brown people kept Philadelphia up when no one else wanted to be here. … Now people have come here with their fancy cars and all of their big money buying people out.”

The issues raised ran the gamut, as if the residents were determined not to waste the opportunity to communicate with SEPTA.

“I’m seeing 80% of the people that get on the bus — they don’t pay. Nobody says anything to them,” said Calvin Williams, who rides the 32 bus nearly every day. “I don’t understand … the youngsters, middle-aged people, everybody does it. They just hop on the bus and walk to their seat.”

Others expressed concerns that have been present throughout the process, like the seemingly minute changes that would disrupt their lives.

“There hasn’t been a real big change in 100 years” so that is to be expected, Burroughs said. “But we should be thinking of ourselves as a city of neighborhoods that need to be connected and not be too individualistic.”

As it turns out, the delay is happening as SEPTA faces a $240 million deficit and is drawing up contingency plans for a 20% cut in service in the event it is not able to win more state funding from Harrisburg this year.

Gov. Josh Shapiro has proposed a bigger state investment by increasing the share of the state sales tax revenue earmarked for operating subsidies for transit systems, raising a projected $282 million in the first year. A similar proposal failed to pass last year over opposition from the Republicans who control the state Senate.

“A lot of folks were confused about the Bus Revolution or didn’t really know anything about it,” 5th District Councilmember Jeffery Young Jr., who represents Strawberry Mansion, said in an interview. “I don’t know where the disconnect is, but now it’s my responsibility to make sure people in the district are kept updated and informed.”

He credited SEPTA for trying to understand “the truth as it is to the community.”

Meanwhile, the planners will consider other adjustments and meet with City Council.

“It’s clear the status quo is untenable, and it’s becoming more so every day,” Descheemaker said. “The only way to do better is to move forward.”