Richard J. Leary is an American and Canadian civil servant who has been the chief executive officer (CEO) of the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) since 2017. Leary became interim CEO in 2017 following the departure of Andy Byford and took over the role permanently in 2018. Leary was previously general manager of York Region Transit and held senior roles with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA).

Personal life and education

Richard J. Leary was born in Boston, Massachusetts. His father was a streetcar operator for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA). He graduated from

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston. Established in 1898, the university offers undergraduate and graduate programs on its main campus as well as satellite campuses in ...

with a

BBA Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) is a bachelor's degree in business administration awarded by colleges and universities after completion of undergraduate study in the fundamentals of business administration and usually including advanced ...

and an MPA. As well, he completed a graduate program from Harvard University in Administration and Management. In August 2019, Leary became a Canadian citizen.

Transportation career

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

Following his father, Leary began working for the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority as a subway attendant in 1984. He then moved through various manager and director roles, becoming the chief operating officer of the MBTA in 2005. He retired from the role in November 2009.

York Regional Transit

In 2009, Leary moved to Canada to become the general manager of York Region Transit in Ontario. Leary was praised as ridership grew by 4 million while customer complaints reduced and vehicle reliability increased.

Toronto Transit Commission

In 2014, Leary was hired as the chief service officer of the Toronto Transit Commission (TTC) by then-CEO Andy Byford. This role involved management of the TTC's

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

and streetcar systems, as well as management of the various Toronto subway stations. Leary's achievements included a large reduction in the number of Short turns, improving the quality of service. In December 2017, Leary was made the interim CEO of the TTC, when his predecessor, Andy Byford left to head the New York City Transit Authority. In July 2018, Leary's interim position was made permanent, following an international search.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leary, Rick American urban planners People from Boston 1963 births Living people Northeastern University alumni Harvard University alumni American chief executives Toronto Transit Commission general managers American emigrants to Canada