(The following story by John Reitmeyer and Karen Rouse appeared at NorthJersey.com on January 11, 2010.)
Governor-elect Chris Christie on Monday named his picks for transportation commissioner and head of NJ Transit.
James Simpson, who served as the Federal Transit Administrator from 2006 through 2008, and was a Metropolitan Transportation Authority commissioner in New York during the mid-1990s, has been selected to run the New Jersey Department of Transportation.
“Jim is somebody who has an extraordinary background in the transportation world,” Christie said Monday at an afternoon news conference inside the State House. “I am thrilled that somebody like Jim is willing to step forward and get back into public service again.”
He lauded Simpson’s national and regional experience with transportation, saying he “has the appropriate vision for what we’re going to need to do in some very difficult time in the transportation world.”
Simpson will replace outgoing transportation commissioner Stephen Dilts.
Meanwhile, Christie selected Jim Weinstein – a former department of transportation commissioner – to head the state’s largest transit agency.
Christie called Weinstein “someone with a wealth of experience in state government” that could oversee infrastructure improvements and projects like the construction of a new mass transit tunnel linking New Jersey and New York.
Weinstein called it a “a tremendous honor,” to be selected, while Simpson said he looks forward to “serving the great citizens of this great state.”
Also on Monday, Richard Sarles, the current executive director of NJ Transit, told colleagues in a letter that he will be retiring.
He commended the agency on various milestones, including the advancement of the mass transit tunnel to the construction stage, adding more modern buses to the fleet, and giving customers web-based access to train and bus information.
Sarles also told his colleagues they are “in good hands with” both Weinstein and Simpson, who – as DOT commissioner – will chair the NJ Transit board.
The North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority on Monday also named Bergen County Executive Dennis McNerney as its chairman. McNerney, who has been part of the NJTPA for seven years, said Monday his position at the agency’s help will benefit Bergen County.
The NJTPA oversees the federal funding of transportation projects for 13 counties in North Jersey, including Bergen and Passaic Counties.
Staff Writer Tom Davis contributed to this report. E-mail: rouse@northjersey.com
Governor-elect Chris Christie on Monday named his picks for transportation commissioner and head of NJ Transit.
James Simpson, who served as the Federal Transit Administrator from 2006 through 2008, and was a Metropolitan Transportation Authority commissioner in New York during the mid-1990s, has been selected to run the New Jersey Department of Transportation.
“Jim is somebody who has an extraordinary background in the transportation world,” Christie said Monday at an afternoon news conference inside the State House. “I am thrilled that somebody like Jim is willing to step forward and get back into public service again.”
He lauded Simpson’s national and regional experience with transportation, saying he “has the appropriate vision for what we’re going to need to do in some very difficult time in the transportation world.”
Simpson will replace outgoing transportation commissioner Stephen Dilts.
Meanwhile, Christie selected Jim Weinstein – a former department of transportation commissioner – to head the state’s largest transit agency.
Christie called Weinstein “someone with a wealth of experience in state government” that could oversee infrastructure improvements and projects like the construction of a new mass transit tunnel linking New Jersey and New York.
Weinstein called it a “a tremendous honor,” to be selected, while Simpson said he looks forward to “serving the great citizens of this great state.”
Also on Monday, Richard Sarles, the current executive director of NJ Transit, told colleagues in a letter that he will be retiring.
He commended the agency on various milestones, including the advancement of the mass transit tunnel to the construction stage, adding more modern buses to the fleet, and giving customers web-based access to train and bus information.
Sarles also told his colleagues they are “in good hands with” both Weinstein and Simpson, who – as DOT commissioner – will chair the NJ Transit board.
The North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority on Monday also named Bergen County Executive Dennis McNerney as its chairman. McNerney, who has been part of the NJTPA for seven years, said Monday his position at the agency’s help will benefit Bergen County.
The NJTPA oversees the federal funding of transportation projects for 13 counties in North Jersey, including Bergen and Passaic Counties.