A Delaware River Port Authority bridge director suspended in 2008 for borrowing toll money to pay for a DRPA cookout was later given a new job - as coordinator of the agency's cruise operations.
John Havers, a 24-year veteran of the DRPA, lost his position as director of the Commodore Barry Bridge, but kept his $105,169-a-year salary. He was reassigned to oversee the DRPA's cruise-ship terminal, which involves little work these days, as the Philadelphia cruise business has largely dried up.
According to current and former DRPA employees, Havers borrowed $500 in 2008 from a safe at the Barry bridge to pay for food for an employee cookout at a DRPA "safety open house." He wrote an IOU for the money and taped it to the door of the safe.
After a DRPA police officer took a photo of the IOU and sent it to his boss, DRPA executives were alerted and began an investigation. They recovered the cash and suspended Havers for 30 days.
Havers told investigators that he had planned to return the money to the safe after being reimbursed for the food by the DRPA.
DRPA officials declined to comment on the episode, describing it as a "personnel matter." Havers did not respond to telephone and e-mail requests for comment.
The DRPA is a $300-million-a-year bistate agency that operates four Delaware River toll bridges and the PATCO commuter rail line between Philadelphia and South Jersey. Most of its revenue comes from commuters' bridge tolls; last year, the DRPA collected $242.6 million in tolls.
Tolls are scheduled to rise to $5 from $4 on July 1, 2011.
The Havers episode brings to light a practice that happens every year at the DRPA: the "safety open house" cookouts.
The DRPA spends thousands of dollars annually for five employee cookouts to celebrate safety efforts at each of the authority's four bridges and at PATCO.
This year, the agency spent $17,327.11 on the events, spokesman Ed Kasuba said.
The "safety open houses" require DRPA employees at each facility to prepare enough food - including, at times, hamburgers, sausage, shrimp, crabs, and mussels - to feed their fellow workers, on day and night shifts.
"The workers [at the facility] have to make the food, and afterward, they have to clean up," said one former employee. "Nobody is doing anything all day but working on the open house."
Kasuba said the cookouts were designed to improve safety awareness among employees and give them a chance to meet with human resources representatives.
