The University of Pennsylvania recently announced that its Commuter Benefit Program discount has been increased to 50% (maximum discount of $105 per month) on Philadelphia regional transit for full-time benefits-eligible faculty, staff, and postdoctoral researchers and fellows who use public transportation for their commute to campus. This discount is available for transportation options including:

• SEPTA Monthly City TransPass+ and Monthly Regional TrailPass (does not include SEPTA Key’s Travel Wallet)  
• PATCO FreedomCard-T
• New Jersey Transit
• Amtrak Prepaid 10-pack tickets and Monthly Pass 

Commuters who ride transit at least three days per week may find the discount to be of value. Should you find this discount to be an economical option for you, we encourage you to enroll. The program is now managed by our new transit benefit provider, Jawnt, and the sign-up process is very simple. To register for a monthly transit fare product, visit the new Commuter Benefits portal and login using your PennKey credentials. Passes purchased by the 19th of the month are effective on the first of the following month. For example, passes purchased by September 19 are effective October 1 and auto renew until canceled. 

Note for SEPTA Riders: A SEPTA Key Card is necessary for enrollment. Cards can be purchased at the SEPTA Kiosk located in the Penn Bookstore or at SEPTA locations throughout the city. If you already have a SEPTA Key Card, and use the SEPTA Travel Wallet, you will not be able to access funds in your SEPTA Travel Wallet as long as you also have a SEPTA Monthly pass. Therefore, you might want to consider spending down your Travel Wallet funds currently on the Key Card before enrolling and canceling any auto-reload settings that you may have enabled.

Please be aware that participating in the Commuter Benefits program precludes eligibility from concurrent enrollment in certain other commuter offerings (i.e., an employee would not be eligible to participate in the Commuter Benefits program while also enrolled in the Bike Commuter Expense Reimbursement Program or holding Penn’s monthly Parking Permit.) Those who wish to take advantage of the commuter benefit but still have a need to periodically drive to campus may wish to consider enrolling in the Occasional Parking program.

For more information on how to enroll and other information on the program, visit the University’s service provider, Jawnt. 

—Penn Parking & Commuter Services