AUGUST 2025 – Yes, it’s a little unfair to cite a Washington Post report on another city’s public transit woes. After all, for years The Philadelphia Inquirer has been diligently covering the funding crisis of Philly’s bus and train services run by the Southeast Pennsylvania Transit Authority (SEPTA).
But WaPo has national stature, and like it or not that puts the issue of funding urban mass transit into a broader focus. In the Post report there are of course references to other cities – Portland, San Francisco, Dallas and Chicago – that face similar challenges. Moreover, Tim Craig’s report uses tougher language – Philly’s mass transit is in a “death spiral” – than the local media can generally use. Sometimes the outsider brings greater perspective, and can cover a story in a way local media cannot. This is one example.
Craig’s piece appeared on Apple News this week, and caught on with readers.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2025/08/23/philadelphia-transit-cuts/