You can finally check SEPTA Key balance, add fare on a smartphone

SEPTA’s Key card conquest continues. 

Smartphone-carrying SEPTA riders can now add money to their Key Card on the SEPTA app. 

The days of running to make an incoming train only to be held up at the turnstile because your last two bucks were swiped the last time you barely made your train are over thanks to Jeffrey Knueppel and the gang. 

“Our goal is to bring everything customers need into one convenient app,” Knueppel, SEPTA general manager said. “This is a major step forward.”

Riders can open the app and press the “Key” icon on the top right corner and log in to their Travel Wallet account from just about anywhere in the city. There they can register their card, see and add to their wallet balance, and purchase a pass. There’s even an automatic reload function. 

SEPTA beta-tested the new feature earlier this summer and deemed it a success, though some bugs still need to be worked out.

Aside from a couple of hiccups entering card payment info, the process was pretty simple. However, I was stalled when I tried to add $5 to my travel wallet and a pop-up reading “Purchase Product Failed” halted the process. 

SEPTA said this error is the first time they heard of the issue, but they are currently working on a fix. Stay tuned. 

For those who don’t have any issues loading their travel wallet through the app, the minimum is $5. But for those who want to add less than that can do so at the kiosk, where the minimum is $1.

The maximum is $244. 

The next step for the SEPTA key card is to activate the Travel Wallet function on Regional Rail so riders can purchase single trips. SEPTA says there is “no firm date” yet of when that will go into effect.