SEPTA has installed new gates as part of a pilot program at its 69th Street Transportation Center. According to the transit company, it loses $30 to $40 million a year due to people who don’t pay. NBC10’s Rosemary Connors has more.
SEPTA will be adding its new 3D-technology “fare evasion” gates to nine Market-Frankford (L) and Broad Street line stations after successfully piloting them at its 69th Street Transportation Center.
These new gates have full-length glass doors, and the top of the gate contains 3-D technology that can detect when a fare evader is following behind a paying customer, SEPTA CEO and General Manager Leslie Richards said.
The full-length gates are designed to deter fare evaders from jumping over or crawling under the turnstiles.
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The gates technology can distinguish between adults, children, and objects, such as wheelchairs, luggage and strollers. The system is said to also be able to accurately count fare evaders who try to piggyback or force their way through the gates.
SEPTA’s board has approved the purchase of 100 full-length fare gates that will be installed at the Somerset, Huntingdon, Cecil B. Moore, 11th Street, 13th Street, Frankford Transportation Center, Allegheny, 52nd Street and City Hall stations.
The new gates are being purchased from Conduent Transport Solutions Inc. under a $6.96 million contract, SEPTA said in a news release.
Earlier this year in April, SEPTA tested 20 of these gates at 69th Street and said these coupled with the efforts by SEPTA Transit Police officers to deter fare evasion is projected to increase annual sales by $300,000 at that station.
SEPTA said it loses at least $30 million in revenue per year due to fare evasion.
“When people ride our system without paying, it is unfair to our customers who do the right thing,” Richards said. “We also know that fare evasion can be a precursor to other violations and more serious crimes.”
“We can trace back every instance of crime and large amounts of disorder to a fare evasion point of entry. We do this repeatedly," SEPTA Transit Police Department Chief Chuck Lawson said.
Installation of the additional 100 full-length gates is expected to be completed by the end of 2025.
