Seasoned transit executive Thomas F. Prendergast has been named president of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's New York City Transit, North America's largest subway and bus system.
On Nov. 5, MTA Chairman and CEO Jay H. Walder announced the appointment of Prendergast to replace Howard H. Roberts, who resigned a day earlier.
Prendergast will join NYCT on Dec. 1 from Vancouver, where he is the CEO of the South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority, known as TransLink. It will be a homecoming for Prendergast, who previously served as president of MTA's Long Island Rail Road and senior vice president of subways at NYCT.
"Tom is a leader who brings an extraordinary variety of experiences from around the world to a system that he already knows extremely well," said Walder. "Tom's work running one of the most technologically sophisticated systems in Vancouver will be invaluable as we take the MTA to the next level in performance and customer service."
Prendergast, 57, has more than 30 years of transportation experience. He began his career at the Chicago Transit Authority and worked at the Federal Transit Administration before joining NYCT in 1982. He rose through the ranks, eventually running the subway system from 1990 to 1994. He served as president of the LIRR from 1994 to 2000. He joined TransLink in July 2008 following work in the private sector for eight years.