(The Associated Press circulated the following article on December 18.)
WASHINGTON — Amtrak’s new president on Monday announced broad changes to the company’s senior management and said his new team would be better able to reform the much-criticized passenger railroad.
Alexander Kummant, who took over at Amtrak in September, announced the departure of four top officials, including the chief financial officer, and the transfer of a fifth to a temporary position. As part of the broad reorganization, three more departments will report directly to him, Kummant said.
“Ridership and revenue continue to grow, and we’ve made a lot progress in the past few years — from rebuilding the railroad to paying down the debt — but we still face tremendous challenges ahead,” Kummant said in a message to employees outlining the changes.
“One of my chief responsibilities as president of the company is to build the team that can tackle the challenges, and I believe these changes will accomplish that,” he said.
Amtrak is deep in debt and heavily dependent on government subsidies. Its operating loss for 2005 topped $550 million.
Among the changes announced Monday:
_Eleanor Acheson, a former assistant attorney general in the Clinton administration, will take over the company’s law department. She replaces Alicia Serfaty, who will serve as counsel to Kummant during the transition period. The change comes less than two months after the Transportation Department’s inspector general found that Amtrak cost taxpayers tens of millions of dollars in unnecessary legal expenses by failing to properly manage work done by outside law firms.
_Chief Financial Officer David Smith is temporarily replaced by Dale Stein, previously Amtrak’s treasurer, until a permanent CFO is named.
_Management consultant Roy Johansen has been named vice president of planning and analysis. Paul Nissenbaum, who previously occupied the post, will work with him over the next several months before taking on a new executive role, Kummant said.
_James McDonnell will serve as chief risk officer, replacing Al Broadbent.
_The heads of marketing and communications departments have been fired and their offices incorporated into other departments.