SAN FRANCISCO — Transit agencies in the San Francisco Bay Area have become the latest to say they’re facing massive service cuts without state action.
The San Francisco Chronicle reports a $750 million loan promised by Gov. Gavin Newsom now appears unlikely to be finalized before the state legislature ends its session on Friday, Sept. 12, which could lead to major reductions in service for Bay Area Rapid Transit, the San Francisco Municipal Transit Agency (Muni), and other agencies.
Legislators and Newsom announced a $2 billion transit deal in June that included the interest-free loan to prevent cuts over the next two years [see “California lawmakers announce deal …,” Trains.com, June 10, 2025]. But the loan was contingent on details of repayment, and an agreement has not been reached, with a Tuesday deadline looming. State Sens. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) and Jesse Arreguin (D-Berkeley) say they have been told that the state’s Department of Finance will not finalize those details before the legislature adjourns.
Wiener told the Chronicle that “BART in particular could collapse” without funding help, closing some station and limiting service to hourly on some routes. Muni could cut frequencies in half on some lines.
While Wiener and Arreguin have sponsored legislation enabling a November 2026 ballot measure in San Francisco, Alameda, and Contra Costa counties to increase transit funding, they say agencies still need money to survive until that point.
“It’s essential that this loan happen,” the two senators said in a statement released on Saturday (Sept. 6). “California has a long and bad history of not adequately funding public transportation, particularly compared to other large blue states. The state needs to step up and ensure we don’t see debilitating service cuts at BART, Muni, Caltrain, AC Transit, and other operators. …
“Public transportation is absolutely essential to meet our commitments on return to work, downtown recovery, improving air quality, combatting the climate crisis, and basic day to day life. While Republicans are defunding transit systems in Pennsylvania and other purple and red states, California must lead by example and protect the vital service our transit systems provide every day.”
Both issues are identical neither is able to cover their shortfalls. One can/has raised fares the other has not been raised since the mid 90’s. Likely if gas tax were raised to what it should be it would improve transit farebox revenue & make hwys self sufficient like they were suppose to be. Win..win!
At least it’s a loan unlike the outright siphoning from the Treasury of more than $150 billion + for the Hwy Trust Fund because deadbeat drivers don’t want to pay for their for their drive, but that’s a legitimate reason for inflating the deficit…right?
Galen, I could add to your list of deadbeats (a list that includes me as a Subaru owner who gas taxes fall short of paying for the highways). (1) EV drivers who don’t pay gas tax and in many states do not pay an equivalent vehicle weight tax, and whose public charging stations are courtesy of taxpayers. (2) Persons getting income transfers like SNAP who don’t pay income tax (which would be minimal) on the equivalent cash value.
To conclude, Galen. Revisit the first words of your post. Yes it’s a loan, as you say, not a grant. That said, not all loans get paid back and not all loans are collateralized. Loans sometimes do have a bad habit of looking like grants.
Galen, I’m all for taxpayer support of rail transit. I ride these trains. If BART (or SEPTA) needs more money, then find the money. Where I get touchy on these forum pages is when a needed subsidy gets hidden under a bushel full of {deleted word} funny accounting.
Senators Wiener and Arreguin are wrong. Pennsylvania Republicans are not defunding mass transit. Each party controls one house of the legislature and they disagree on how to fund transit, not on the amount. However, it is not just transit that is at issue. Two months in to the new fiscal year, the legislature cannot agree on a budget — period.
Loan? For operations?
Let’s face it, the economics of public transportation in USA don’t work anymore.
Cutting routes or frequencies is the worst thing to do. Only leads to more cuts, then your name is SEPTA. Instead, costs (and pensions) need to be lowered.
Won’t stop here. Next up is Chicago RTA and its three subsidiaries, CTA, Pace and METRA.
At the top of the economic pyramid, the federal government prints trillions of dollars it will never pay for. And has no idea how to pay Social Security and Medicare a decade from now.
At the bottom of the economic pyramid, individual families max out their credit cards or tap into Buy Now Pay Later apps on their phones. When all else fails, they borrow against the homes that they live in.
In the middle, you have state and local governments supposedly balancing their budgets. The governments float bonds for capital needs but supposedly cover day-to-day operations from tax revenue and fees. Not anymore. When a state or a local government agency borrows to meet payroll, the next step is the Second Great Depression.