Main Line business leaders say proposed SEPTA cuts would be ‘absolutely devastating’

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The potential impacts of SEPTA’s latest doomsday scenario have reverberated all the way out to the Philadelphia suburbs.

“The closure of this network and this particular line would have an absolutely devastating impact on the local economy but also the regional economy,” said Ken Kearns, president of the Wayne Business Association.

SEPTA’s recently proposed cuts involve eliminating 50 bus routes, hiking fares and shuttering service on five Regional Rail lines — including the Paoli/Thorndale line, which connects nearly two dozen stops along the Main Line.

The Main Line wouldn’t be what it is today without the advent of the railroad. Passenger trains connected those communities in Chester, Delaware and Montgomery counties to a plethora of education and job opportunities.

Since the 19th century, countless passenger trains have chugged through Wayne Station. If SEPTA is unable to obtain enough funding from Harrisburg, trains would no longer stop at any of the three stations in the Radnor area.

Approximately 250 small businesses are members of the Wayne Business Association. Kearns, who owns 118 North and The Refectory, said SEPTA access is “extremely important as an economic driver” for the community.

Kearns, 54, organizes an annual summer music festival in Wayne. He also believes his home value would plummet if SEPTA were to shutter service. Local college students use the line to get to class. Workers ride the train to get to their jobs.

“If we don’t have a public transportation system that helps facilitate economic growth and development and get people to jobs, everything is going to suffer,” said state Rep. Lisa Borowski, D-Delaware. “Any attempts and efforts for us to bring new business to this area will suffer and be impacted.”

Her district includes six stops along the Paoli/Thorndale line. Wayne will host the 2026 PGA Championship at the Aronimink Golf Club. Borowski is concerned SEPTA’s funding woes will prevent it from providing special service for major events.

“It’s absolutely essential that we fund SEPTA and provide them with the resources they need to keep the system running,” she said.

The Democratic-controlled state House passed Gov. Josh Shapiro’s proposal to provide a major funding boost to the transit agency. The majority-Republican state Senate has stalled those plans.

“My hope is that we can also impress upon our Senate counterparts over on the other side of the capital to understand that the southeast is a huge economic driver for the state,” Borowski said. “The amount of revenue that comes from the southeast to support the state and go into the budget is significant.”