Elliot G. Sander

Elliot "Lee" Sander is the former Executive Director and CEO of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) and the Commissioner of the New York City Department of Transportation. Sander is the President and CEO of The HAKS Group Inc., an architectural and engineering firm based in New York^[1] and Chairman of the Regional Plan Association, and serves as a non-executive Board member of the National Express Group (NEX), a UK-based global operator of rail, bus, para-transit, and school bus services.^[2] He is on the Board of the Greater Jamaica Development Corporation and the Leo Baeck Institute. He now works at The I-Grace Company as president.

Career

In January 2007, Sander was appointed by New York Governor Eliot Spitzer as Executive Director and CEO of the MTA, which operates New York's subway, bus, and bridge and tunnel network. The MTA also operates the commuter rail system for both New York and Connecticut. His administration faced two service interruptions in July and August 2007 caused by torrential rains, including the storm associated with the 2007 Brooklyn tornado.^[3] His subsequent work in improving the MTA's emergency preparedness and on climate change has been credited with creating the framework for the MTA's highly successful recovery from Hurricane Sandy, which devastated other transit properties.^[4] He also implemented two rounds of fare and toll increases in 2008 and 2009, due to the MTA's weakened finances.^[5][6]

Sander tendered his resignation to Governor David Paterson on Thursday, May 7, 2009, saying he was resigning to give Paterson the chance to take the authority in "a different direction".^[7] Sander served as Commissioner of the New York City Department of Transportation under Mayor Rudolph Giuliani from 1994 to 1996, where he was credited with improving the agency's performance, including eliminating graffiti and debris from the City's highways and bridges, and completing the reconstruction of Columbus Avenue in record time, while reducing the agency's budget by 20%.^[8] After leaving full-time public service, Mayor Giuliani and then Mayor Michael Bloomberg appointed Sander to serve as a Commissioner on the New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission (1997 to 2006).

In 1996, Sander founded the Rudin Center for Transportation Policy and Management at the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service at New York University.^[9] He also co-founded the Empire State Transportation Alliance (ESTA).^[10]

References

1. "Former MTA Chief Elliot Sander Named President and CEO of HAKS Group Inc." (Press release). New York. PR Newswire. November 16, 2011.
2. "Board of Directors". Regional Plan Association. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
3. Caruso, David B. (August 9, 2007). "Did global warming cause NYC tornado?". USA Today. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
4. Bernstein, Andrea; Hinds, Kate (May 13, 2013). "How New Jersey Transit Failed Sandy's Test". Transportation Nation. WNYC. Retrieved February 2, 2016.
5. Neuman, William (November 18, 2008). "M.T.A. Said to Plan 23% Increase in Fare and Toll Revenue". New York Times. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
6. Neuman, William; Lee, Jennifer (March 25, 2009). "M.T.A. Increases Fares and Cuts Service". New York Times. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
7. Neuman, William (May 7, 2009). "M.T.A. Chief Resigns in Management Shake Up". New York Times. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
8. Pogrebin, Robin (November 18, 1995). "Speeding Up Chaos on Columbus Ave.; Job Ahead of Schedule, but Some West Siders Call Price Too Great". New York Times. Retrieved October 9, 2012.
9. "Statement by NYU Wagner Dean on Recommended Appointment of Elliot Sander as MTA Executive Director" (Press release). New York University. December 15, 2006. Retrieved September 8, 2014.
10. Lentz, Philip (June 28, 1999). "Tax, Fare Hikes Sought to Fund Big MTA Plans: Business, Labor Say Money Needed for Transit Lines; Opposition Likely". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved September 8, 2014.