One of the MTA’s top executives is leaving her post.
Veronique “Ronnie” Hakim will depart her position as MTA managing director by the end of November, according to the MTA.
Hakim has spent three decades at the MTA over two separate stints, with her resignation coming during a tumultuous period at a transit authority attempting to completely restructure itself while grappling with a financial crisis and plotting new congestion pricing tolling policy for Manhattan.
But Hakim in a statement said it was a “privilege and an honor” to serve at the MTA and felt it was an appropriate time to leave as service has begun to gradually improve. The Wall Street Journal first reported the news Wednesday.
“With the MTA on the rebound and service improving across all agencies, I feel I can move on,” Hakim said in a statement. “I want to express my thanks to the dedicated women and men who spend their lives helping New Yorkers move and I am deeply grateful to Governor Cuomo for his personal friendship and I have the greatest admiration for his leadership and guidance, especially moving the Subway Action Plan forward.”
Hakim spent more than two decades at the agency before leaving to work as a transit executive in New Jersey, where she was eventually tapped to run NJ Transit.
Hakim returned to the MTA in 2015 as the first woman to serve as transit president and run the authority’s bus and subway system.
When former MTA Chairman and CEO Tom Prendergast stepped down in 2017, Hakim was said to be in the running for the post — but Gov. Andrew Cuomo ended up hiring Joseph Lhota in a surprise move.
The Journal reported that both the MTA and governor’s office has attempted to convince Hakim to stay longer at the authority.
“Ronnie has been an indefatigable champion for the 6 million New Yorkers who ride public transit every day, and she helped successfully navigate the MTA through one of its toughest periods by implementing the Subway Action Plan,” said Pat Foye, MTA Chairman & CEO. “We are incredibly sad to see her leave but she will always be a part of the team that led the MTA through its transformation.”
