MBTA's Top Leadership Position To Change Hands

[CRail]

Another one bites the dust!

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority general manager Luis Ramirez is out after just 15 months in the job.

Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack, who oversees the agency for the Baker administration, said it was time for a change.

As she and Ramirez “talked through what needed to happen in 2019 and beyond, we both agreed there was a different direction he needed to go in and the T needed to go in,” Pollack said in an interview. “My job has been to make sure the T has the right leadership at the right time.”
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Steve Poftak, the vice chairman of the T’s governing board and the head of a public policy institute at Harvard University, will take over as the general manager. He previously served as the interim general manager for about two months prior to Ramirez’s hiring.

[Rbts Stn]

We can just reuse this thread, right?

https://www.wcvb.com/article/mbta-steve ... 3/41834311

[BandA]

Mr TBD, a consummate expert in all things transportation and donor to all political campaigns, will take over effective immediately. Mr Poftak will get credit for many 2023 benefits, so the MBTA will happily pay twice.

Who will apply? This is the chance for Governor Baker to apply for the job, and to finally get hands-on experience he missed out on 8 years ago during the crisis with Beverly Scott. Dan Grabauskas is presumably still available as is Ms. Scott.

Elizabeth Warren is happy that Poftak is leaving. Although I agree with he needed to go, she just loves beating people up rhetorically. (any audio transcript of her recent hearing?) Perhaps she can run the T herself. Actually, I assume the real impetus was the presumed incoming governor Maura Healy's intention to replace him. Unlike Dan Grabauskas who had a clean record & a year on his employment contract when new Governor Deval Patrick came for him, Healy could just point to the T's recent record and say "you were supposed to be in charge" and make a firing stick.

Won't be able to even start interviewing permanent replacement candidates for two months now!! Maybe we should just hand the keys to the FTA.

[charlesriverbranch]

Huh? Isn't that a decision for the incoming Governior to make, and not Charlie Lame-Duck Baker?

[jwhite07]

I read that Poftak's last day is a couple of days before Inauguration Day. Unless the MBTA can function as a headless horseman for a couple of days or more until someone from the new administration fills the role, "Charlie on the MTA" gets one more appointment before he's done.

[BandA]

In reality, at most Baker will designate someone as acting head. Which he probably should do now as you need someone to keep an eye on any lame ducks.

[typesix]

New GM:
https://www.universalhub.com/2023/retir ... -over-mbta

[octr202]

Welp, at least I doubt there's a better training ground for the nexus of nasty state politics and sprawling, complex, and aging transit systems in the US than working for the NY MTA during Cuomo's governorship. Let's hope he's got the right experience and temperament to take on the T's problems while we still have a T to save.

[johnpbarlow]

I asked the question on trainorders.com " if Eng will be the solution to what ails the MBTA?" I only got one reply:

- Poor safety record on LIRR (2 major incidents with 3rd track construction with injuries and 4 M-7's destroyed).
- Stupid experiment of battery powered M-7's, lying about 3rd rail electrification costs, that failed.
- Stupid weekday service cut on LIRR for 3 weeks in March, 2021, to weekend service plus a few trains, claiming he had "granular" loading data. Result was crush load conditions, and people left behind an hour for the next train such as at Bethpage and Hicksville. LI politicians and Andrew Cuomo told him to reverse the cuts. That was before any of us had vaccinations.
- Caved to NIMBY demands living on the Port Jefferson Branch to reject electrification
- Moved forward on the Elmont-UBS station and interlocking boondoggle, costing $300 million, private and MTA funds, which has now reduced Huntington service to slow Milk trains and seriously slowed Ronkonkoma trains with 3 trains per hour with no demand for any of them.

Misery loves company. MBTA can have him.

[4behind2]

Its all about the grift.

Phil Eng "did what he was told" at the LIRR. Being the President there is now more ceremonial. Problem solving and policy comes from the MTA itself.

The nice part of being a LIRR President is you're fully vested in the pension scheme after three years with full medical. Perhaps Eng saw a similar opportunity at the MBTA. Certainly looks like it.

After several years, Amtrak CEO?

[wicked]

I asked the question on trainorders.com " if Eng will be the solution to what ails the MBTA?" I only got one reply:

I’m guessing whoever wrote this also posts in r/nycrail, because it appeared word for word on the Phil Eng thread.

[Diverging Route]

New safety chief just announced: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/04/24/ ... ety-chief/

Noted as being "the best in the US." Wishing him clear signals ahead...

[R36 Combine Coach]

The nice part of being a LIRR President is you're fully vested in the pension scheme after three years with full medical. Perhaps Eng saw a similar opportunity at the MBTA. Certainly looks like it.

Shades of the LIRR pension scandal from a decade ago.

[Rbts Stn]

New safety chief just announced: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/04/24/ ... ety-chief/

Noted as being "the best in the US." Wishing him clear signals ahead...

Will they make him live in the territory and work on site?

[BandA]

I would expect the Safety Chief to work on-site. If they want them to live in-district then they need to provide relocation money and/or housing allowance.