Gov.-Elect Maura Healey appointed a former metropolis official, Gina Fiandaca, as secretary of transportation and tapped a previous MBTA and MassDOT board member, Monica Tibbits-Nutt, as undersecretary.
Fiandaca has been assistant metropolis supervisor of Austin, Texas, since 2019, however began her profession in Boston.
She labored for town as a transportation clerk in school earlier than shifting her manner up by way of the ranks, first as director of the Office of the Parking Clerk after which as commissioner of the Boston Transportation Department, a place she held from 2015–19.
“We can’t have a functioning economy without a functioning public transportation system,” Healey mentioned in a Friday assertion. “Gina Fiandaca will get that, and he or she has a long time of expertise managing massive transportation departments and prioritizing security, reliability and accessibility.
“I’m excited to welcome her home to Massachusetts and look forward to the important work she will do alongside our partners in business and labor to deliver results.”
As chief of Boston’s transportation division, Fiandaca drove $100 million in revenue-generating transportation applications with an working finances of greater than $35 million and oversaw a staff of greater than 400 employees, in response to the Healey-Driscoll administration.
Fiandaca oversaw the discharge of town’s first main transportation plan in a long time, “Go Boston 2030,” a 15-year, $4.74 billion endeavor that included mobility tasks and insurance policies.
In Texas, Fiandaca manages a portfolio of infrastructure and mobility departments, together with Austin Transportation, with a complete finances of $1.09 billion and almost 3,000 full-time workers.
She is credited with kickstarting the hassle to construct a light-weight rail system in Austin, by way of her efforts to safe the passage of a $7.1 billion transit system.
Fiandaca has an MBA from Boston University and a bachelor’s diploma from Suffolk University.
“Massachusetts residents need to be able to rely on our trains, buses and roads to get them to where they need to go safely and on time,” Fiandaca mentioned in a press release. “This is key not only for people’s daily lives, but also for the strength of our businesses and economy.”
Tibbits-Nutt is the chief director of 128 Business Council, a transportation administration affiliation and regional service supplier that plans and executes first- and last-mile service all through the Route 128 West Corridor.
She lately accomplished a stint on the MassDOT Board of Directors and was vice chair of the Fiscal and Management Control Board, which oversaw the MBTA from 2015-21.
“Monica Tibbits-Nutt has a deep knowledge and passion for transportation,” Healey mentioned. “She prioritizes transparency and communication in her work as a result of she understands that incomes the general public’s belief is essential to a powerful transportation system.
“She looks at transportation through an equity lens, striving to ensure that underserved communities and those most impacted by environmental injustices are centered in our decision making.”
Her areas of specialty embody transportation planning, city design and transit fairness, and he or she was concerned in public sector transit planning on the MBTA Advisory Board and as government director at TransitWorks.
Tibbits-Nutt has additionally labored in regional planning and improvement for the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission, the City of Columbus Planning and Development workplace and the Greater Linden Development Corporation.
She has a bachelor’s diploma in political science and sociology from the University of Southern Indiana. As undersecretary, Tibbits-Nutt will report back to Fiandaca.
In a press release, Tibbits-Nutt mentioned she was excited to assist construct a “transportation system that works for every resident in our region of the Commonwealth.”
“Gina and I share a vision for transforming transportation options throughout the Commonwealth, and together we will prioritize transparency, safety, equity and climate resiliency,” she mentioned.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”
