Introducing Secretary of Transportation: Richard Davey

Courtesy: MassDOT

Today Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick appointed the current MBTA General Manager, Richard Davey, to be Massachusetts next Secretary of Transportation. Davey will become Patricks fourth Secretary of Transportation and will be replacing Jeffery Mullin who announced  last month he would be stepping down from his position in order to return to his old law firm.

The new job is defiantly a huge step up for Davey, who for the past year and a half has been slowly but surely fixing the disaster that is the T. He will now oversee not just the T and other public transportation but also, the states highways and airports. While at the T Davey was committed to improving safety and customer service and those were the two key reasons why Gov. Patrick chose him for the job. The Gov. hopes that the energetic leadership style Davey used while heading the MBTA will be brought over the MassDOT and help him reform the organization.

Jeffery Mullins' choice to vacate his current position come at a very interesting time for MassDOT. The past few months have brought a lot of scrutiny to both Mullin and MassDOT because of multiple 110-pound lighting fixtures falling from the ceiling of the central artery tunnel. No injuries were reported in the incidents but they uncovered that many workers were aware of the ongoing problem but it did not get brought up to Mullin until about a month after it was discovered.

Just like when he took over the reigns of the MBTA Richard Davey will have to figure out how to deal with revenue shortfalls. He will also have to deal with the overbearing debt that is still being racked up because of the Big Dig.

Now lets take a little time to focus on what Richard Davey has done for the MBTA over his year and a half on the job.

*He has avoided fair increases
*He help to set a standard for excellent customer service
*Seen the T's ridership skyrocket to record numbers
*Introduced the first new locomotives in twenty years
*Has 75 new bi-level coaches on order for commuter rail
*Implemented the use of "Smart" technologies for Parking and Bus, Subway, and Commuter Rail info
*Introduced MBTAgifts.com
*Increased advertising revenue with new way for companies to advertise across the MBTA system
*Station renovations
*First steps to making the MBTA "Go Green"

All of these things, plus many many more, have truly made Richard Davey one of the most successful and responsible GM's in MBTA history. For sure he will be missed when he leaves for his new post, but hopefully he can do the state a lot more good. Davey has stated that he will be highly involved in the processes of finding his replacement. He is set to take over his new position on September 1st.

I really hope the new GM picks up right where Davey left off because if they don't the MBTA is going to just keep crumbling and crumbling. Davey aided the T in so many ways but there is still so much that is going to need to be fixed.