Pittsburgh transit agency amends budgets to avoid FY26 service cuts, fare hikes

Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s (PRT) board has unanimously adopted the agency’s amended fiscal-year 2026 operating and capital budgets without making major service cuts and fare increases for the next two years.

The adoption of the amended budgets on Sept. 26 follows approval from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation earlier this month that allowed PRT to use up to $106.7 million in state capital funds to cover operating expenses. The move enables PRT to close a projected $100 million deficit for FY2026 and avoid a previously proposed 35% service reduction and 9% fare increase scheduled to begin in February 2026, PRT officials said in a press release.

The agency's amended operating budget totals $572.2 million and amended capital budget, $58 million.

 The reduced funding means some capital projects will be delayed, though no safety-critical projects will be impacted, agency officials said. PRT leaders anticipate having a list of the projects it plans to delay in the coming weeks.

“Using capital funding to support our operations allows us to maintain service and protect riders, but it strains our ability to maintain our system in the short-term and invest in our long-term future,” said PRT CEO Katharine Kelleman. “We will continue to advocate in Harrisburg for the long-term funding that our system needs and our riders and region deserve.”

PRT ended FY2025 with $394.2 million in operating reserves, but absent new funding expects to draw that down over the next two years. Without a sustainable funding solution, the agency will face another significant operating deficit in FY2029, PRT officials said.