Phillip Eng takes over as new MBTA general manager Monday

BOSTON – Phillip Eng officially takes over as the new MBTA general manager Monday and he will need plenty of help turning around the troubled transit agency. Eng, an engineer with decades of experience running public transit systems, was hired last month by Governor Maura Healey. He’s the former president of the Long Island Rail Road and one-time interim President of New York City Transit.

“It is clear that that the MBTA’s service is not at the level that it needs to be and it hasn’t been that way for far too long,” Eng said at a news conference back on March 27[1]. “It’s time for a new way of doing business at the T.” He’ll ride the Green Line from Park Street to Boylston Street on his first day on the job Monday. He’ll then visit a bus maintenance facility at Cabot Yard in South Boston.

The MBTA, which oversees the nation’s oldest subway system as well as commuter rail, bus and ferry service, has come under intense scrutiny[2] in recent years for a series of safety issues that led to a federal review and orders to fix the problem. It has recently been plagued by slow zones[3], the delayed delivery of new vehicles and understaffing[4]. “I cherish the opportunity to again work in public transportation, as it is vital to the public, their quality of life and our economy, but when it’s not functioning the way it should, when it’s not safe and it’s not reliable, everyone suffers,” Eng said.

HISTORY OF PROBLEMS Recent problems have included the death[5] of a subway rider last April who was dragged along a platform when his arm got stuck in a malfunctioning subway car door. Nine people were injured in September 2021[6] when an escalator at a station malfunctioned, and more than two dozen people went to the hospital in July 2021[7] when a Green Line train rear-ended another trolley.

Last July, a subway train caught fire[8] as it was crossing a bridge north of Boston, prompting one passenger to jump into the Mystic River and others to scramble out of windows. Even before that fire, the Federal Transit Administration last June issued four “special directives” that required the MBTA to better staff its operations control center; improve track maintenance; address unintended and uncontrolled train movements in maintenance facilities and rail yards; and ensure that all employee training certifications are up to date. “Our jobs start with making sure the T is safe and reliable,” Eng said.

As interim president of NYC Transit, he was integral in initiating and implementing the £836 million plan to fix aging infrastructure and improve performance. As President of the MTA Long Island Rail Road from 2018 to 2022, he turned around on-time performance and oversaw the implementation of technology that improved the accuracy of train arrival time estimates. Steve Poftak, the MBTA’s previous general manager, stepped down in January just before Healey took office.

Jeff Gonneville has served as interim general manager and assisted with the transition to new management.

Associated Press writer Mark Pratt contributed to this report.

References

1. ^ March 27 (www.cbsnews.com)
2. ^ scrutiny (www.cbsnews.com)
3. ^ slow zones (www.cbsnews.com)
4. ^ understaffing (www.cbsnews.com)
5. ^ death (www.cbsnews.com)
6. ^ September 2021 (www.cbsnews.com)
7. ^ July 2021 (www.cbsnews.com)
8. ^ caught fire (www.cbsnews.com)