CONNER NAMED TO MTA POST.Byline: Douglas Haberman Daily News Staff Writer MTA (1) (Message Transfer Agent or Mail Transfer Agent) The store and forward part of a messaging system. See messaging system. (2) See M Technology Association. 1. (messaging) MTA - Message Transfer Agent. Chief Executive Officer Julian Burke said Friday he has named Thomas K. Conner, a 30-year veteran of the Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. Department of Transportation, as the MTA's new executive officer for operations. Conner, a Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. resident, will oversee all aspects of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's bus and rail operations, including the Metro Bus fleet, the Metro Red Line subway and the light rail Metro Blue and Green lines, which together carry 1.2 million passengers each weekday. Conner has served since July 1998 as interim city engineer for Los Angeles' Bureau of Engineering. Immediately before that, he was general manager of the city's Department of Transportation, overseeing the operations, budget and programs of the 1,450-employee department. At the MTA, he will be in charge of more than 5,500 employees, including bus and rail operators and mechanics. His salary will be $140,000 a year. ``We are thrilled to have a person of the caliber of Tom Conner . . . head up our operations unit,'' Burke said in a statement. ``He brings with him more than 30 years of transportation experience that will greatly enhance the MTA's transit operations.'' Goldy Norton, spokesman for the United Transportation Union, which represents about 4,000 MTA bus and rail operators, said the union is not familiar with Conner. His experience is all the more important to the MTA because the two men over him, Burke and Deputy CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. Allan Lipsky, came to the agency as financial turnaround experts, not transportation experts, Norton said. ``They really do not have the background in operations, and that's why this is such a critical position,'' he said. The union will watch Conner but has taken heart at MTA board members' enthusiasm for his appointment, Norton said. One of those board members is Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky Zev Yaroslavsky (born December 21, 1948) is a Los Angeles County politician. He served on the Los Angeles City Council from 1975 until 1994, when he was elected to the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. He was preceded in both offices by Edmund D. Edelman. , who as a former longtime Los Angeles city councilman knows Conner well. He said he recommended Conner for the job. ``I think Tom Conner is one of the most talented transportation people in the country,'' he said. ``He has a very quiet demeanor but a very intense and focused talent. . . . He's really an outstanding mind.'' Conner replaces James Reichert, who has served as the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's interim executive officer for operations for 10 months. ``The transportation services and programs that MTA provides are essential to the daily lives of the people in Southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, ,'' Conner said in a statement. ``I'm looking forward to being a part of this important organization.'' A registered civil engineer and traffic engineer in California, Conner was responsible for development of the city's transportation plan for the 1984 Summer Olympic Games The Summer Olympic Games or the Games of the Olympiad are an international multi-sport event held every four years, organised by the International Olympic Committee. . He helped start the Department of Transportation's DASH and Commuter Express programs and served as the department's incident commander after the 1994 Northridge Earthquake The Northridge earthquake occurred on January 17, 1994 at 4:31 AM Pacific Standard Time in the city of Los Angeles, California. The earthquake had a "strong" moment magnitude of 6. . Mayor Richard Riordan Richard J. Riordan (born May 1, 1930) is a Republican politician from California, U.S. who served as the California Secretary of Education from 2003–2005 and as Mayor of Los Angeles from 1993–2001. Riordan ran for Governor of California unsuccessfully in 2002. , chairman of the MTA board, also expressed support for Conner. ``The mayor thinks he's an excellent manager and is very pleased he's coming to the MTA,'' Riordan spokeswoman Jessica Copen said. |
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