Crime on SEPTA Continues to Drop, New Quarterly Report Shows

As the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) continues to build on its efforts to enhance safety and security on the system, SEPTA Transit Police reported a 10 percent reduction in serious crimes compared to the same period last year. This comes after Transit Police marked the largest one-year drop in serious crimes in its 43-year history.

“We are hearing directly from our riders that they feel safer at our stations and on board our vehicles,” said SEPTA General Manager Scott A. Sauer. “Our Customer Satisfaction Survey scores for safety and security have increased to their highest levels since 2023.”

Transit Police are prioritizing fare evasion by issuing more than 6,300 citations so far this year – a 47 percent increase compared to last year. This effort has helped identify other illegal activity, resulting in more than 700 arrests of wanted individuals.

“We are working to change the culture around paying a fare,” said SEPTA Transit Police Chief Charles Lawson. “It is a challenge faced by transit systems across the country, and SEPTA is no exception, but we are taking real steps to address it.”

Transit Police are focusing enforcement at known fare evasion “hot spots.” For example, a four-week blitz at Huntingdon Station on the Market-Frankford Line [L] nearly eliminated fare evasion while officers were on site.

To stop fare evasion before it starts, SEPTA is upgrading its infrastructure. New full-height fare gates, tested successfully at 69^th Street Transit Center, are being installed at nine additional stations.

SEPTA also launched a Surface Transportation Unit dedicated to enforcing fare compliance on buses and trolleys, where entry is not controlled by fare gates.