SEPTA CEO to step down at end of November

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SEPTA CEO Leslie Richards will resign at the end of November, bringing her five-year reign as the lead of the troubled transit agency to an end.

In a news release, Richards announced she will step down from her position as CEO and general manager of the agency Nov. 29. She said she will look to expand her role as a professor at the University of Pennsylvania’s Weitzman School of Design and look to pursue “other opportunities to serve the community.”

“It has been an honor to lead SEPTA, and especially to lead our 9,500 employees, each of whom brings incredible expertise, dedication and heart to serving our community,” Richards said. “I’m proud to have led a workplace known for its collegiality, dedication to efficiency and equity.”

Board Chairman Kenneth Lawrence said a nationwide search for Richards’ successor is expected to occur in the coming weeks. Chief Operating Officer Scott Sauer will serve as the agency’s interim general manager until a permanent successor is chosen.

The agency, which serves Philadelphia along with Bucks, Montgomery, Chester and Delaware counties in the metro area, has faced a number of issues in recent years as its budget sees a significantly reduced share of expected state funding.

Residents were recently able to ride on the system for free because a technical glitch rendered the SEPTA Key fare card system unable to add money to existing cards or buy new ones.

The agency announced budget cuts, a spending freeze and a possible fare hike earlier this year to help manage its anticipated fiscal issue amid its budget woes. SEPTA faces a $240 million annual deficit as funding from federal COVID-19 relief runs out.

In its release, the agency credited Richards with managing “SEPTA’s continuing recovery from the COVID pandemic and its dramatic impact on the agency’s ridership and finances,” as well as “working to secure additional public funding for transit amidst the reality of a $240 million projected FY2025 operating deficit.”