it's not just New Jersey Transit facing budget woes without state aid septa is warning of potential deep service cuts and big fair hikes that spell trouble for South Jersey commuters the transit agency needs to plug a more than $200 million hole by July 1st where says it'll be forced to eliminate 50 bus routes and five regional rail lines including those that run into and out of Trenton critics of the plan say it'll dismantle public transit for Philadelphia and the region as we know it today ted Goldberg reports a budget fight on the other side of the Delaware River could leave New Jerseyians in a lurch particularly those trying to travel to Philadelphia it would be like inconvenient for me and I I I predict it's going to be very inconvenient for a lot of students who live in New Jersey and commute or live in even Pennsylvania and commute so I'm disappointed to hear that if they did do that I I probably had to switch up take the river line into Camden and take the speed line from Camden to Philadelphia it would be more expensive because I would either have to take Amtrak or Uber from here to Philadelphia we go from $10 to $50 for Amtrak $50 for Uber septa's most recent budget proposal would eliminate the Trenton and West Trenton lines next year which carry more than 7,000 people a day each it would also shut down all trains after 9:00 p.m and bump up fairs from 250 to 290 per ride we don't have as many bus lines we certainly don't have rail like the rest of the state so any minor cut to services that currently exists has a ripple effect that is massive due to the limited amount of mass transit opportunities that we have already without these regional trail lines thousands of New Jerseyians every day will have to find other ways to get around including driving in a state that already struggles with so many drivers on the roads we're trying to be more environmentally conscious we're trying to get people out of combustible vehicles and getting them on mass transit um in my 15 years in New Jersey Transit I've never seen a rail line eliminated i've seen bus service eliminated but never a rail line aaron Watson is the business administrator for Euing Township where the West Trenton station has welcomed riders for almost a hundred years quite frankly I just think it'll be a travesty to lose this this gym it's been here over 40 years i used to have to commute using 95 and as you know 95 is one ongoing construction project so it's just going to pour more traffic back onto that roadway any cut to the service is is um going to be devastating for area commuters on the northeast corridor we need more mass transit options not less trenton Mayor Reed Gosura says SEPTA doesn't need to look far for ideas on plugging their $200 million deficit they're facing this summer well we'd like to see them follow Governor Murphy's example by pumping money into New Jersey Transit the legislature has a proposal by Governor Shapiro to put more money into um the SEPTA system and we hope that that is favorable my proposal has been passed by the House Democrats three separate times and three separate times that has gone to the Senate of Pennsylvania where they've taken absolutely no action pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro spoke at an unrelated event last week and said the Commonwealth will figure out something we will all work together as we have in the past to find bipartisan agreement we've got to make sure we do so on mass transit this time meanwhile SEPTA riders are left wondering if these cuts are serious or just a negotiation tactic i doubt they'll make all those type of cuts is just politics and I think the the septus wants the city uh to pull out more money i think it's what they have to do and some in hopes that somebody's going to come up with some money i think it's a starting point for discussions i certainly hope it is not for real because it will affect so many people if it is for real and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania does not make up the difference then transit could be in dire shape for Trentonians and others trying to find their way to Philly in Trenton I'm Ted Goldberg NJ Spotlight News [Music]