[10], On November 21, 2019, Richards was named as SEPTA's new General Manager, replacing Jeff Knueppel in January 2020.[1]. PDF Testimony Of Leslie S. Richards General Manager Southeastern She also started a new initiative called PennDOT Connects for the planning and delivery of capital and maintenance projects. Its how we live. May 30, 2023 SEPTA warns of fiscal cliff as pandemic relief runs out - Audacy And whether people want to walk that first mile, last mile whether they want to hop on a bike, theres the bike share thats already available in a lot of the SEPTA region, whatever it is we know that public transportation is a piece of that.. GM Leslie Richards: SEPTA's current bus system is broken Richards -who previously served on the SEPTA Board -has been the driving force behind the Authoritys strategic plan: SEPTA Forward - advancing major initiatives including Bus Revolution, Trolley Modernization, and Reimagining Regional Rail. After attending Germantown Academy, she went to Brown, the only time in her life, she noted, that shes lived outside of SEPTAs service area. Incumbent councilmember Allan Domb and another newcomer Katherine Gilmore Richardson also support ditching the fees. police SEPTA is considering cutting 26 routes to improve on-time service. The Chief Equity & Inclusion Officer is a newly-created role and demonstrates SEPTA's commitment to ensure a healthy, vibrant, and rewarding environment for everyone who works at or does business with the Authority. WHYY is one of over 20 news organizations producing Broke in Philly, a collaborative reporting project on solutions to poverty and the citys push towards economic justice. [2] Leslie S. Richards General Manager Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority Philadelphia City Council Fiscal Year 2022 Operating Budget May 10, 2021 Good morning Council President Clarke, Transportation Committee Chair Johnson, members of City Council and other guests. She launched the Transportation Investment Plan, a metric-driven strategic investment approach for the 12-Year Capital Program. Among her accomplishments at PennDOT was the launch of the Transportation Investment Plan, a metric-driven strategic investment approach for the 12-Year Capital Program. (function() {var phplive_e_1497314496 = document.createElement("script"); phplive_e_1497314496.type = "text/javascript"; phplive_e_1497314496.async = true; phplive_e_1497314496.src = "https://customerservice.septa.org/chat/js/phplive_v2.js.php?v=0|1497314496|2|"; document.getElementById("phplive_btn_1497314496").appendChild( phplive_e_1497314496 );})(); Copyright 2023 SEPTA. The rebrands have earned SEPTA more than $17 million in additional revenue that goes toward the operating budget. Just months into her SEPTA tenure, Richards began guiding the agency through the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. "I know it sounds kind of simple, but its really at the heart of everything weve been able to accomplish at the commonwealth., READ MORE: Meet the most influential man in Pennsylvania youve never heard of, Richards prioritized diversifying PennDot, a mission she intends to keep at SEPTA, with her own milestones as a burgeoning leader in the male-dominated field of transportation earning her titles like Woman of the Year," Female Innovator of the Year, and Female Executive of the Year.. We continue to strive for a better SEPTA -one that our customers can count on to deliver service that is reliable, safe, and secure. Richards added: I am honored to have the opportunity to lead SEPTAs talented and dedicated workforce in the coming years. Richards has led efforts to implement a more equitable fare structure, and prioritized capital improvement projects that are making the system more accessible for riders across all modes of travel. WHYY provides trustworthy, fact-based, local news and information and world-class entertainment to everyone in our community. Plus, SEPTA can still sell ad space at the stops, says spokesperson Andrew Busch. Consumers Eye Magazine COVID-19 Bus Revolution During his tenure, Knueppel ensured that SEPTA would become one of the first railroads in the nation to fully install Positive Train Control (PTC) the federally mandated automatic safety system used to halt dangerous speeds. 2023 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. SEPTA is a billion-dollar business, and we cant make these decisions in a vacuum.. flower show I dont even know if well ever reach full implementation because were going to be able to have flexibility and change things, said Richards. The executive experimentation comes at a pivotal moment. milestones In-depth, original reporting on housing, transportation, and development. The SEPTA Board provides high-level governance of the authority's operations, including approving the budget and hiring a general manager. As the pandemic stretches into its third month, Richards and SEPTA are working as fast as they can to keep laborers safe and play a productive role in stopping the diseases spread. Bookmarked content can then be accessed anytime on all of your logged in devices! Learn more about Social Responsibility at WHYY. Many, like SEPTA, were strapped for cash and relying on aging infrastructure even before the pandemic. For translations of other content on the site, use the Google Translate tool. Richards, who served as Pennsylvanias secretary of transportation and on the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners before taking her current job, has studied the ways that infrastructure and transit can improve quality of life since she was a freshman at Brown University in 1985. safety The new title comes with a big raise, too shell trade her $158,373 annual salary at PennDot for $329,732 at SEPTA. We have accomplished a lot together, and I truly believe that the best is yet to come.. Tom Wolf in 2015 to serve as secretary of transportation and confirmed to another term in April. Equity is a "big priority" for new SEPTA general manager Leslie Richards. A staunch advocate for women and diversity in transportation and government, Richards has been recognized for her leadership in the industry and commitment to public service. It's got a pretty sweet location right . But it does create a situation for us, in that we want it to be neutral in terms of cost to SEPTA. The Montgomery County resident previously served on the SEPTA board. She returned to the agency this year eager to improve the system, which has been plagued with problems since its introduction in 2016. Jesse Bernstein's writing has appeared in The Philadelphia Inquirer, Tablet, The Forward, and the Jewish Review of Books. Please give today. Baltimore Jewish Times It's official: PennDOT Secretary Leslie Richards will be the new general manager of SEPTA starting January 2020. Her private- and public-sector backgrounds give her a unique perspective on understanding stakeholder issues. During the latest webinar, GVF, along with close to 40 attendees, welcomed Leslie Richards, General Manager of SEPTA. Council newcomers Jamie Gauthier and Kendra Brooks have said they, like Gym, support eliminating transfer fees. Read more SEPTA Board news or subscribe to the RSS feed. SEPTA staff is looking at potentially establishing more direct connections to Center City and University City. Please give today. . Join now to see all activity Experience General Manager Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) Jan 2020 - Present3 years 7 months PennDOT Secretary Commonwealth of. She has extensive leadership experience in the The box replacement is necessary to swap out vintage units from the 90s that cant be repaired, and wont accept payments. Leslie Richards (Courtesy of Leslie Richards) A previous version of this article stated that Leslie Richards was the first woman to serve as the General Manager of SEPTA. But a Key card payment system allows you to take a look at all that data, and how it may or may not be a good thing for this transit agency. The last fare increase was in 2017. She received a master's of regional planning from the University of Pennsylvania. That number, however, is expected to plummet to $50 million in FY2023. Fresh Air opens the window on contemporary arts and issues with guests from worlds as diverse as literature and economics. #APTAxUITPxRail. Myrthil will report to SEPTA General Manager and CEO Leslie S. Richards. [6] Richards also serves on the board of SEPTA. PDF NationBuilder Knueppel has been general manager since 2015, though his career with SEPTA spans three decades. In the meantime, Richards says she is eager to get to work on projects such as the expansion of platforms on the Market-Frankford Line to accommodate eight-car trains, the, While there, Richards advocated for cyclist and pedestrian experts to sit at the table alongside highway experts when it comes to setting national standards, according to one, . Her focus on innovation has helped make it easier for citizens to use PennDot services and improve planning for projects across the commonwealth.. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. Richards is chair of the Turnpike Commission, AASHTO Active Transportation Council, and Pennsylvania Public-Private Partnership boards, and holds degrees from Brown University and the University of Pennsylvania in economics, urban studies, and regional planning. I am Leslie Richards, and I am honored to appear before you today as the General Manager for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA). A recent Pew study found Phillys transfer fees negatively impact low-income riders more than other riders, including straphangers in other cities, concluding that when expressed as a percentage of income, the fares that Philadelphia residents pay are higher than those in all of the comparison cities. The finding pushed forward a local conversation about eliminating the fee, providing a talking point for policy change advocates, including City Councilperson Helen Gym and the citys top transportation officials. The University of Pennsylvania-educated city planner began PennDOT Connects, a program that seeks input from local stakeholders before a transportation project begins to ensure it will be a good fit for the community. Today - Thursday, May 25, 2023 - SEPTA announced the reappointment of Leslie S. Richards as the Authoritys General Manager/CEO. Together we can reach 100% of WHYYs fiscal year goal. Jay Soni of Havertown owns a convenience store in Upper Darby. PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) SEPTA's proposed budget for next year holds the line on fares, but warns of a fiscal cliff looming the following year as pandemic relief runs out. The new GM says the $1 transfer fee, a target for transit equity advocates, is also on the table. Testimony of SEPTA CEO / General Manager Leslie S. Richards FY 2023 Philadelphia City Council Budget Hearing May 3, 2022 2 I am honored to lead a resilient and determined 9,000-person strong workforce who have seen their personal and professional lives upended over the past two years and who have continued Among her accomplishments at PennDOT was the launch of the Transportation Investment Plan, a metric-driven strategic investment approach for the 12-Year Capital Program. Richards, who previously served on the SEPTA Board, has been the driving force behind SEPTA Forward, the Authoritys strategic plan advancing major initiatives including Bus Revolution, Trolley Modernization, and Reimagining Regional Rail. Plus, she noted, SEPTA has more public transit riders in Philadelphia than in the collar counties. The former PennDOT secretary says her desire to remove barriers to using the service is one of the reasons she accepted the offer to run the $2 billion-plus transit agency. "This is our last budget that will show the federal relief. I look forward to joining friends and colleagues to discuss how we bring more riders back to transit for the 2021 Rail Conference on June 9. When he did assume the office a few years later, Wolf asked her to serve as the commonwealths secretary of transportation, which she did for five years. PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- SEPTA's CEO and General Manager Leslie Richards said Monday that bus routes in the city have been mostly the same for 60 years and the transportation authority's current bus system is broken. Leslie Richards general manager of the Southeastern Pennsylvania transportation authority, or SEPTA runs the transit system in the Philadelphia area. Which, maybe, could be an opportunity. Her productive relationships with our funding partners in Harrisburgas well as at the local and federal levelhave served SEPTA well during what has been a very challenging time. ""She is a shameful hypocrite for cashing in on such a huge salary increase" Transit Workers Union Local 234 newsletter "Septa G.M. He was there as structural failures plagued its Silverliner V trains, but also as the region hosted some of the biggest events in its history, including Pope Francis visit in 2015 and the Democratic National Convention in 2016. Sixers The authority ought to have a decision in the spring, which is right around when city agencies present their budget proposals for the coming fiscal year.