Are you an Instagram all-star? Or can you put your creative iPhone hat on for a minute to say why you SEPTA Philly?

SEPTA is trying to get younger, hipper public transit riders by launching a SEPTA Instagram Contest starting today.

SEPTA commuters are encouraged to take photos of their daily public transit adventures using the hipster photo app Instagram. Participants must caption the photo with what riding SEPTA means to them and the hashtag #iseptaphilly. Boring everyday photos of “I’m sitting on the train, heading to work” won’t cut it – be imaginative! Justin Bieber Jingle Ball tickets are at stake! As Elizabeth Bradford, the Authority’s Director of Marketing states:

“Our customers are creative — we’re looking for them to use their artistic skills and submit inspired images of why and how they SEPTA Philly. Let’s prove the old adage true – a picture really is worth a 1,000 words.”  

Weekly prizes include concert tickets, 76ers tickets, Blue Mountain Ski Area passes, SEPTA passes & more. The SEPTA Instagram photos will be aggregated on iseptaphilly.com, and judged by SEPTA Staff to be accepted into the contest. Contest runs today through December 21, 2012 at noon. (Complete rules at iSepta website.)

The I SEPTA Philly Campaign began this past Spring to encourage SEPTA (aka Instagram) users in the age range of 18-34. Their previous video contest which included riders discussing safety, cleanliness, ease of use & affordability were also judged on the website. Deemed a success, the SEPTA Instagram contest was due next. Regardless of the typical complaints we hear about delays or cleanliness, SEPTA is definitely doing something right: they were deemed #1 Best Large Transit System over the summer.

Readers, will you be uploading a SEPTA Instagram montage? Do you think this campaign will encourage younger riders to find public transit “cool”?

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Julie Hancher is Editor-in-Chief of Green Philly, sharing her expertise of all things sustainable in the city of brotherly love. She enjoys long walks in the park with local beer and greening her travels, cooking & cat, Sir Floofus Drake. View all posts by Julie Hancher