New MBTA GM Beverly Scott: 'It's Not Going To Be A Cakewalk'
BOSTON (CBS) - The new general manager of the MBTA got a big hug from the Secretary of Transportation, Richard Davey, as she greeted riders this morning at North Station. And then she got an earful from a passenger.
"The number 39 bus line is a disgrace…."
And she answered questions raised by our I-Team on the job she did running the transit system in Atlanta.
Beverly Scott was out riding the trains and greeting customers four weeks before officially taking over.
WBZ NewsRadio 1030's Carl Stevens reports
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For the past five years, she has served as the general manager of the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority.
Scott came under fire after an I-Team Investigation found the Atlanta transportation system she managed for five years was financially troubled.
Davey admitted after the investigation that he didn't know about the mess.
Scott defended those scathing conclusions.
"So the bottom line is, this was not a gotcha. It was very transparent. We had the state auditor involved. The whole nine yards. We are the ones who initiated it. I would do it again," Scott said.
When the I-Team questioned Scott about why local officials did not know about the audit, she said:
"For us it was just part of normal day to day business. I tell you the God's honest truth."
Scott officially takes over on December 17.
Davey says her first priority is to improve customer service.
However officials indicate real improvements in customer service require more money. And that is not arriving anytime soon.
