Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority

Transit Briefs: SEPTA, STV, NYMTA, Amtrak/USRC

Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) system-wide ridership decreases 1% in November. Also, STV’s Quantico Station Improvement Project wins an American Council of Engineering Companies of Virginia (ACEC Virginia) Grand Award; Governor Kathy Hochul vetoes a bill that would require two-person crews on the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s (MTA) subway trains; and Amtrak and Union Station Redevelopment Corporation (USRC) leaders approve an agreement to restore federal control of the facility.

  • News

BLET Teamsters at SEPTA, CPKC Soo Line Ratify New Contracts

Six-hundred locomotive engineers at the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) and CPKC Soo Line represented by the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET) of the Teamsters Rail Conference have voted to ratify two new collective bargaining agreements, the union announced Dec. 12.

Transit Briefs: SEPTA, Metra, OCTA, Alto HSR Project

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) reaches a tentative contract agreement with Transport Workers Union (TWU) 234. Also, Metra’s Operation North Pole (ONP) Christmas train returns to the rails, and the agency opens its online merchandise store; the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) releases the 2025 update of its Next 10 Delivery Plan; and Alto’s Toronto-Quebec City HSR (high-speed rail) project likely won’t connect to Union Station.

Amtrak’s twice-daily Mardi Gras between New Orleans and Mobile, Ala., has served more than 46,000 riders since its Aug. 18 launch. (Photograph Courtesy of Amtrak)

Transit Briefs: Amtrak, SEPTA, TriMet, NJT, TTC, MBTA

Amtrak’s newest service, the Mardi Gras, is seeing strong demand. Also, Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) is taking delivery of 10 leased coaches from MARC (Maryland Area Regional Commuter Rail); Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon (TriMet) promotes Alan Lehto to Executive Director of Planning, a newly created position; New Jersey Transit (NJT) earns the 2025 Combating Human Trafficking in Transportation Impact Award; Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) considers advertising installations in subway tunnels; and Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) and Keolis Commuter Services (Keolis) release a year-in-review report.

Transit Briefs: SEPTA, Baltimore Red Line, Metrolinx, DART

Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) ridership for October 2025 decreases 3% from last year. Also, Baltimore’s Red Line project is slow moving; a new transit hub that will eventually serve Metrolinx’s Eglinton Crosstown is now open in Mount Dennis; and Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) launches new ticket vending machines for easier fares.

Transit Briefs: SEPTA, Santa Clara VTA, TriMet, Metra, NJ Transit, BART

The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) completes Federal Railroad Administration (FRA)-mandated inspections of its Silverliner IV fleet. Also, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) awards more than $750,000 in transit-oriented communities grants; TriMet receives nearly 5,000 responses to its Service Priorities Survey; Metra wins $19.3 million from Union Pacific (UP) for fare collection lapse; NJ Transit issues a Request for Proposals (RFP) to prepare the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the 10-mile Hudson-Bergen Light Rail (HBLR) extension; and Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) sees the highest average weekday ridership since the pandemic.

(Courtesy of NTSB)

NTSB Recommends Sidelining SEPTA Silverliner IVs (UPDATED 11/3)

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) on Oct. 1 released a report that “urged the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority to act immediately to eliminate fire risks in its fleet of Silverliner IV railcars.” It stems from the government agency’s ongoing investigation of five fires involving Silverliner IVs this year. The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) on the same day issued an Emergency Order to SEPTA, which on Oct. 31 reported nearing completion of the 14 safety-related requirements outlined within it.

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