SEPTA GM Announces Retirement After Papal Visit
By Mike DeNardo
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Days after Pope Francis leaves Philadelphia, SEPTA's General Manager is retiring.
Joe Casey has been SEPTA's GM for seven years. He says he's retiring on September 30, just days after one of SEPTA's largest challenges ever -- moving thousands for the pope's visit.
"We're prepared. We have a great transportation plan to maximize the number of people we can carry."
The 59-year-old Casey says a key accomplishment was his work to secure dedicated state transit funding -- and an effort to improve SEPTA's customer service...
"I think we turned around the company. I think the employees actually know that they have to focus on our customers to retain our customers and to improve the image of the agency."
Casey, who has an accounting an financial background, says he'll recommend deputy GM Jeff Knueppel -- an engineer -- for the top job.
"Our situation was, we have a crumbling infrastructure. We have dated stations," he says. "And now we have the resources to actually improve that for our customers. And what better person than an engineer to take over that responsibility."
The SEPTA board is expected to name a replacement next month.
