MBTA chooses new general manager

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority voted unanimously March 25 to name Richard Davey as the new general manager. Davey, who will take significant pay cut from last year’s GM’s salary, has pledged to make the T system more efficient.

He is filling the post formerly occupied by Daniel Grabauskas, who resigned last August in connection with allegations of workplace discrimination.

Davey’s salary was set at $145,000 per year, a 40 percent decrease from Grabauskas’ pay check.

In an MBTA press release, Davey emphasized his commitment to improving the T.

“As we move forward in this next era for transportation reform our priorities must be on public safety, customer service and our employees, innovation and fiscal responsibility,” he said.

Gov. Deval Patrick said in a press release he is confident that Davey is qualified for the job.

“Rich’s commitment to customer service and safety, combined with his no-nonsense leadership style, is exactly what we need to keep the MBTA moving forward,” Patrick said. “I look forward to working with him.”

Davey was previously the general manager at Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad.

Officials for the MBCR said customer complaints decreased 40 percent in 2009 under Davey’s leadership.

In his new position, Davey will oversee the day-to-day management of the MBTA and Massachusetts Department of Transportation Transit Division. These include overseeing 15 Regional Transit Authorities, freight and passenger rail programs.

Davey also recently announced the Orange Line will be providing wireless Internet service through all underground stops for the first time.

“Providing customers with the option to access their cell phones or PDA devices while traveling on the system is a worthwhile convenience for personal and business use,” Davey said in an MBTA press release. “We will continue this wireless expansion throughout the system.”

The MBTA is planning several renovation projects on all of their lines, according to their website. Fifteen of the projects are to increase accessibility at each stop, several of which have been completed successfully. Eight of the projects are still in the construction phase and one is still being designed.

Also in the works under Davey is the Green Line Extension Program. Proposed in October 2009, the project would expand the Green Line from Lechmere Station through Cambridge and Somerville.

The goal for the project is to increase mobility, encourage public transit usage, improve air quality, equally distribute transit services and support the growth of sustainability, according to the MASSDOT website.

MBTA patrons voiced other concerns, however.

Tanya Palmer of Brookline said she is most concerned about making the T more reliable by more closely regulating arrival and departure times.

“Sometimes I wait out by the [Green C line] Kent Street stop for 25 minutes in the morning waiting for a train to come and it makes me late to work,” she said. “I never know how much time to give myself in the morning because they run so sporadically.”

Sean de Moranville, a Boston University alumnus who lives in Brookline, said his biggest concern was scheduling as well.

“I took both the commuter rail and the Green line to get to class because I commuted from Providence [R.I.] and it was really hard to rely on the transit system,” he said.

De Moranville also said he experienced frequent delays waiting for the Green line, which caused him to be late to class and even miss his train home.

Cambridge resident Cristof Drougas said his biggest worry is that certain equipment is falling into disrepair.

“A lot of the platforms are still falling apart, the really need to be fixed it. It’s unsafe and it doesn’t look good,” Drougas said. “There have been so many delays lately because trains are breaking down, they need to update their equipment as soon as possible.”