MARTA CEO Keith Parker could see two-year contract extension
Transit agency votes on proposal tomorrow, would keep exec at MARTA until 2020
- Joeff Davis/CL File
- MARTA CEO Keith Parker
Since joining MARTA in late 2012 CEO Keith Parker has overseen a dramatic turnaround at the transit agency. He’s led initiatives that have clamped down on rider misconduct, ordered reforms recommended by an outside audit, and revived plans to develop barren seas of asphalt surrounding some rail stations. State lawmakers are finally starting to warm up to the economic engine they’ve ignored for decades. Thanks in part to cost-saving measures and the recovering economy, MARTA’s no longer on the verge of insolvency. Ridership is up. And there are new bathrooms!
And that’s just been in the first two years he’s been leading the bus and rail system. And if MARTA’s board of directors moves ahead as planned tomorrow, Parker will have some additional time in Atlanta.
Tomorrow, the directors who oversee the agency will vote to extend Parker’s contract for another two years, keeping him in Atlanta until late 2019.
“Extending Keith’s contract is an important way to demonstrate his and our commitment to having long-term success,” says MARTA Board Chairman Robbie Ashe, who made the announcement at today’s State of MARTA address at the transit agency’s Lindbergh headquarters. “MARTA’s at the cusp of a truly transformational moment. We believe his leadership is part of that. He wants to be part of moving Atlanta forward. Extending his contract sends a strong signal of his commitment and ours to be here for the long term.”
That two-year extension also comes with a pay raise, which Ashe says Parker was already eligible for under his original contract. We’ve asked for that figure and will update when we hear back.