U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy was at Philadelphia International Airport to talk about the government shutdown on Friday.
While there, he addressed SEPTA's race to finish inspections of Silverliner IV rail cars by next week's deadline.
"I don't want to talk about consequences. I want action. We'll talk about what comes next," Duffy said.
READ MORE | Public, City Council confront SEPTA over Silverliner IV safety inspections
This comes as SEPTA appears likely to miss the deadline set by the Federal Rail Administration to inspect all 223 Silverliner IV rail cars by the end of the month.
The order came after a series of fires earlier this year.
As of midday Friday, 88 inspections have been finished.
SEE ALSO | NTSB issues urgent safety warning to SEPTA over fire risks involving Silverliner IV railcars
This comes amid an ongoing budget crunch for the agency. SEPTA has announced it will postpone multiple improvement projects in order to continue service, including deferring the purchase of new buses.
Duffy penned a letter to Governor Josh Shapiro saying, "It's time to get SEPTA's fiscal house in order."
"I agree we have been historically underfunded," SEPTA General Manager Scott Sauer said. "And we need capital investment to run the best service we can, but right now our focus is meeting this deadline."
The transit agency says even if it takes time, they're making sure they thoroughly assess each rail car.
The deadline is October 31.