Leslie Richards was born on April 13,1967 and is the former general manager of SEPTA, the public transportation agency serving the Philadelphia area.
13 Facts About Leslie Richards
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Leslie Richards previously served as a member of the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners and as Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, from 2015 to 2019 under Governor Tom Wolf.
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Leslie Richards has three children with her husband, Ira: Rebecca, Benjamin, and Sophie.
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Leslie Richards was elected to the Whitemarsh Township Board of Supervisors in 2007, and became chairwoman of the board in 2008.
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Leslie Richards was elected to the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners in 2011.
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Leslie Richards served as Montgomery County's representative on the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission.
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Leslie Richards declined to run for the seat after incumbent Congressman Jim Gerlach retired in 2014.
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In 2015, following the election of Democratic Governor Tom Wolf, Leslie Richards was nominated to serve as Secretary of Transportation of Pennsylvania.
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Leslie Richards was confirmed by the Pennsylvania State Senate in May 2015.
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In 2017, Leslie Richards was appointed the first female chair of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission as well as the Public Private Partnership Board.
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On November 21,2019, Leslie Richards was named as SEPTA's new general manager, replacing Jeff Knueppel in January 2020.
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Leslie Richards then joined the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania's Weitzman School of Design as Professor of Practice.
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Leslie Richards was to start a role at the Transportation Research Board of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in January 2025.