‘We understand’: LANTA Executive Director speaks out about transportation funding, as group protests cuts | Lehigh Valley Regional News

LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa. – As the Pennsylvania Legislature works to finalize the State Budget, advocates in the Lehigh Valley are making a plea: don’t forget public transit.

The sound of a LANTA bus pulling up is something Ben Felker-Quinn has been hearing since he was a kid in Nazareth.

“Since I was a teenager, I’ve been riding the old Slate Belt Route to Bethlehem,” said Felker-Quinn.

So, he was concerned when routes got cut last month, and the fare jumped up a bit.

“Probably like 30 people I’ve spoken to in the last several weeks are experiencing difficulty with affording the 50-cent increase on the bus fare,” said Felker-Quinn.

The cuts to early and later routes are causing problems for Lehigh University students like Fernanda Casas.

“If it’s during the school year, and I do continue having my internship, the service cuts would just make me late,” said Casas.

LANTA’s Executive Director Owen O’Neil said he gets it.

“The types of cuts and things that we’ve been doing have an effect on people,” said O’Neil. “We understand that and we agree with that. It’s not things that we wanted to do.”

He said it’s something they had to do to keep the buses running without an increase in funding, and it could be something they have to do again.

“If nothing happens next year, then we are going to be in a cycle of kind of constantly having to do the type of cuts you’ve been seeing, just to kind of, to make sure that we can continue to afford the service that we have out on the street,” said O’Neil.

Governor Shapiro’s 2026 Budget calls for 1.75% of Pennsylvania’s sales tax to be directed into a transportation fund that would start providing $300 million every year, starting in 2027. But it’s not guaranteed to pass, and there’s no increase currently proposed for this year. Felker-Quinn said he hopes that changes.

“We’re asking legislators for more funds, and more consistent funding, so that LANTA isn’t every year trying, needing to shift their priorities,” said Felker-Quinn.

The group “Transit for All PA” plans to hold more events this month, trying to drum up support across the State for increasing transportation funding.