The Obama administration budget for next year proposes to give SEPTA $333 million to make some of those repairs, about triple what the agency got this year.
Rogoff visited some of SEPTA's showpieces of need: the dank subway concourse beneath City Hall, which needs $100 million to fix leaks, crumbling platforms, falling ceilings, and general deterioration; an 80-year old electrical substation in Jenkintown that provides power for four Regional Rail lines and will cost about $36 million to replace; the cramped Paoli train station that is overwhelmed with parking limitations and restricted access; the 105-year-old Norristown bridge that would cost $10 million to replace.
The FTA chief was joined for part of the tour by U.S. Sen. Bob Casey (D., Pa.), U.S. Reps. Chaka Fattah (D., Pa.) and Jim Gerlach (R., Pa.), and Mayor Nutter.
Nutter, standing on Dilworth Plaza outside City Hall, said repairing SEPTA's facilities would provide the added dividend of creating jobs.
"We need to get people back to work, and infrastructure is the best way to do it," Nutter said. The planned rebuilding of Dilworth Plaza will include better access to the City Hall station below.
With state funding for transportation cut because of the inability to place tolls on Interstate 80, federal funds are expected to provide more than half of SEPTA's money for capital projects such as bridge repair, station replacement, and the purchase of new vehicles.
The FTA estimated last year it would take nearly $78 billion to bring the nation's transit infrastucture into a state of good repair. SEPTA's portion of that was estimated to be $4.2 billion.
