Senior MBTA govt answerable for capital tasks laid off

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James “Jay” Neider was reportedly fired final week, because the Healey administration ushers in a brand new set of MBTA leaders.

a high MBTA An govt who oversaw among the company’s largest development tasks has been fired.

James “Jay” Neider was laid off from his $275,000 a yr job final Friday, the boston globe knowledgeable. His termination is a component of a bigger effort by the Healey administration to alter the MBTA’s management construction, which was inherited from the Baker administration.

On Monday, Governor Maura Healey introduced that Felipe Eng. he can be the following Normal Supervisor of the MBTA. Eng previously ran the Lengthy Island Rail Highway.

There have been inside considerations about how a lot time Neider spent exterior of Massachusetts, the Balloon knowledgeable. A supply instructed the newspaper that he was not fired for working remotely and that he had an settlement that allowed him to spend time figuring out of state.

Neider reportedly did simply that, spending vital time in Hawaii, Wisconsin, and even within the Center East. Property data reviewed by the Balloon it confirmed that he owns properties in Arizona and Delaware, however not in Massachusetts.

A supply instructed the Balloon that Neider’s penchant for figuring out of state made it tough for him to construct relationships along with his colleagues and prevented him from often showing on development websites.

An MBTA spokesperson confirmed that Neider is now not with the company, however didn’t specify that he was fired.

“Jay got here to the T in 2019 bringing with him a wealth of development engineering expertise and I need to categorical my appreciation to Jay for his work with the Authority,” interim normal supervisor Jeff Gonneville stated in a press release.

Reached by cellphone Tuesday, Neider instructed a reporter he couldn’t remark.

“Why do not you give him a number of days?” she instructed the Balloon. “I am nonetheless engaged on some issues with my advisors. I am unable to touch upon something presently.”

Neider earned a popularity for not collaborating carefully with these in MBTA operations and development, nameless sources instructed the Balloon.

A supply instructed the newspaper that Neider carried out effectively as Head of Capital Packages, accelerating the tempo of capital spending.

“You must give him credit score,” the supply instructed the Balloon.“He did what he was imagined to do, however he ruffled many feathers.”

However an inordinate emphasis on capital tasks hampered the MBTA, in line with a scathing report issued by the Federal Transit Administration final yr. The report was the results of an in depth safety inspection sparked by a sequence of significant, generally deadly incidents.

The prioritization of capital tasks got here on the expense of the company’s common operations and upkeep, the FTA discovered. The company was in a position to function with out correct staffing, coaching, or supervision, leading to an absence of safety oversight.

The MBTA’s capital funds greater than doubled prior to now 4 years, in line with the report, from $875 million in fiscal yr 2018 to greater than $2 billion in fiscal yr 2022. On the identical time, the company was recovering of funding cuts made between 2015 and 2019 that brought on extreme employees shortages.

This give attention to capital tasks results in a lackluster security tradition, the FTA discovered.

“FTA discovered that unwritten requirements have emerged that emphasize a ‘get it completed’ mentality about following security guidelines or guaranteeing compliance with minimal security requirements, significantly when employees work 12-16 hour days, six days every week,” the report stated. report stated.