The Daily Pennsylvanian found that a majority of SEPTA’s Board averages less than one trip on the system per month.
Credit: Abhiram JuvvadiMost of SEPTA’s board never uses the system or averages less than one trip per month, according to trip logs obtained by The Daily Pennsylvanian.
The SEPTA is the main public transportation authority that serves Philadelphia and is governed by a 15-member board. Under Pennsylvania’s Right-to-Know law, the DP acquired records of all trips taken by SEPTA board members on their SEPTA-issued passes from January 2023 through June 2024, indicating how familiar the individuals who lead the system are with it.
Board members are issued SEPTA ID cards that function as passes for unlimited use on the system without charge. The passes, which are also issued to all SEPTA employees, continue to be offered after board members’ terms end.
“SEPTA encourages current and former employees to ride the system,” SEPTA Director of Media Relations Andrew Busch wrote to the DP. “Their familiarity with the system allows them to serve as additional eyes and ears, which helps with our efforts to enhance safety and security on the system.”
Nine out of 14 board members — including SEPTA Board vice chair and Chester County Commissioner Marian Moskowitz — averaged less than one trip on SEPTA per month over the past 18 months. Four board members have taken no trips in that period.
SEPTA’s transportation offerings include bus, trolley, and rail service. In addition to serving Philadelphia, the system also services Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties.
Two members of SEPTA’s board are appointed by each of the five main counties serviced by SEPTA, with the two Philadelphia County members having veto power over all votes made by the board. The remaining five members are appointed by Pennsylvania’s governor and leaders in the state legislature.
One of the members of the SEPTA Board, Philadelphia County member Richard Harris, joined the board in July 2024 and was therefore exempt from the DP’s analysis.
In response to a request for comment, Moskowitz wrote that it is “very hard” to take SEPTA all the time, citing the inconvenience of traveling to Philadelphia from certain portions of the county.
“I do not like to drive to Philadelphia because I like to work on the train however, until we have more transportation options in all of Chester County I have to take the mode of transportation that allows me to be most efficient and flexible in my scheduling,” she added.
Six members of SEPTA’s board — 1982 College graduate Robert Fox, William Leonard, Mark Dambly, Scott Freda, Esteban Vera Jr., and Martina White — have taken no trips on the system since the beginning of 2024. Of this group, Dambly, Freda, Vera, and White have taken no trips since the beginning of 2023.
SEPTA Board chair Kenneth Lawrence, a 2008 graduate of Penn’s Fels School of Government, did not respond to a request for comment for this article.
The records included the trip logs for SEPTA CEO and General Manager Leslie Richards, who currently serves as a professor in Penn’s Stuart Weitzman School of Design. Richards, who received a master’s degree from the School of Design in 1993 and reports to SEPTA’s board, averaged more than 18 monthly trips since the beginning of 2023.
Busch cited the importance of the SEPTA Board’s oversight role, writing in a statement: “[Board m]embers are highly engaged in efforts to secure transit funding, along with core initiatives to enhance safety, security and service reliability for SEPTA customers.”
He added that each board member “brings unique insight, expertise and experience.”
“The number of trips each individual Board member takes on SEPTA varies due to a number of factors, such as the different geographical areas in which they live and work,” Busch further wrote. “The trip data from their SEPTA-issued ID cards also may not capture some travel that is taken for official business, and other trips for which they use their own SEPTA passes or tickets.”
While it is possible for SEPTA Board members to take additional trips on personal passes, which would not be included in the data acquired by the DP, such trips would cost the regular fare for SEPTA riders — ranging from $2 for standard trips to $10 for certain trips on regional rail.
The SEPTA Board oversees SEPTA’s budget. In June, the board approved a $2.6 billion budget for its 2025 fiscal year, consisting of a $1.74 billion operating budget and a $924 million capital budget. The budget allocated funding for trolley modernization, railcar replacement, and projects to improve accessibility, in addition to other goals.
SEPTA leadership has also warned of potential service cuts in recent years as a result of the agency’s existing budget deficit. In January, Richards warned that fares may be increased by up to 30% and that service may be cut by 20% in the future.
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