Why does this matter? Both Amtrak and SEPTA move enormous numbers of people, but always lurking for both agencies is the threat of unstable funding. SEPTA has a $1.5 billion operating budget, and paying $1.5 million more to use the land along the tracks isn’t going to break the bank, but the agency is concerned about that 2 percent annual increase, and the precedent of establishing Amtrak’s uncontested control of the land. SEPTA is earning less fare revenue due to shrinking bus ridership, and is looking ahead to 2022, when Pennsylvania must come up with a new way to fund transportation statewide.