The Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce (GPCC) and the Allegheny Conference on Community Development today lauded the introduction of Pennsylvania Senate Bill 1 as an important next step in addressing the transportation funding crisis.
Both business and civic leadership organizations commended the Republican and Democratic chairs of the Senate and House Transportation Committees for working in a true bipartisan manner to develop legislation to address Pennsylvania’s $3.5 billion transportation funding gap. Earlier this year, Governor Corbett kicked off the effort to make a new commitment to transportation funding in his budget address, building on the recommendations of his Transportation Funding Advisory Commission (TFAC).
On behalf of the thousands of employers that make up their membership, both the GPCC and the Allegheny Conference support legislation to raise revenue for all modes of transportation, including transit systems that are critical to the economic viability of southeastern and southwestern Pennsylvania. Sufficient funding for public transit is particularly crucial, and must be predictable, with growth potential to address future operational and capital needs.
“A strong transportation system is the lifeblood of a robust economy. The primary issue in some areas of the Commonwealth is maintenance of bridges, roads, and highways. In other parts, the top priority might be improving ports or railways or airports. But residents in every county in the Commonwealth rely in one way or another on public transit. That is particularly true in the Pittsburgh and Philadelphia metro areas, which together account for roughly two-thirds of the state’s economic activity,” said GPCC President and CEO Rob Wonderling.
Mr. Wonderling added, “We applaud the introduction of this measure and look forward to working with the Administration and General Assembly to ensure that a comprehensive multimodal package has adequate funding for SEPTA, for the Port Authority and other transit systems across the state.”
“Transportation investment drives job creation and infrastructure improvements help our Commonwealth be competitive in attracting business expansion and investment,” said Allegheny Conference CEO Dennis Yablonsky. “We have thousands of structurally deficient bridges, miles of deteriorating roads and highways and transit systems that need sustainable, ongoing funding. Senate Bill 1 offers a comprehensive framework for funding all forms of transportation, and we hope that it will be debated and moved forward as soon as possible.”
Mr. Wonderling and Mr. Yablonsky served on Governor Corbett’s Transportation Funding Advisory Commission. Both the Allegheny Conference and the GPCC have endorsed the framework of the TFAC report which would raise additional revenues through user-related fees and require money-saving operational reforms of PennDOT and transit systems across the state.
