In a surprise development, MBTA General Manager Beverly Scott resigned yesterday. The move came amid commuter frustration – and criticism from the governor – over T failures during the recent snowstorms. Scott announced her exit plan hours after the state transportation board gave her a unanimous vote of confidence.
Even by Massachusetts’s standards, this is a curious situation. Scott’s supervising board of directors had just showered her with praise. And Governor Charlie Baker’s transportation secretary Stephanie Pollack bestowed a glowing endorsement.
“The Baker-Polito administration has no plans, desire, or ability to change leadership at the MBTA. We recognize the incredibly hard work of Dr. Beverly Scott and her team under these unprecedented circumstances,” Pollack said.
But then, a couple of hours later, Scott handed in her letter of resignation, effective in April. Scott gave no reason for quitting. She wrote only that she would dedicate her remaining time to restoring normalcy on the T after the recent disruptions, which included a complete shutdown of rail service Monday night and all day Tuesday.
The Governor had sharply criticized the T’s performance during the storm and, by extension Scott, suggesting management failures.
“We’ve been frustrated, disappointed with the performance at the T,” Baker said.
But in turn, Scott gave back as good as she got. Maybe even better. At a press conference, Scott said that aging infrastructure and years of underfunding were to blame for problems at the T.
“We are running an extremely aged system that is getting pounded every day,” Scott said. “This is not a spring chicken system by any stretch of the imagination.”
When asked during that appearance whether she would resign, Scott seemed steadfast. “I’m not even getting into this conversation,” she said.
After Scott’s spirited self defense, the governor held further fire. Last night, Baker said he had no prior notice of Scott’s resignation.
“I’m not going to put a value judgment on any of this one way or another. We all make our own decisions with respect to this sort of thing,” Baker said.
UMass Boston political science professor Mo Cunningham says Scott’s resignation was an overreaction.
“I think she’s gotten an outpouring of support. Maybe she didn’t feel it from the governor’s office,” Cunningham says. “He certainly has questioned the T’s performance, but he has not been unduly harsh I don’t think.”
The governor says he plans to meet with Scott and other T officials later today. Strangely, it will be the first time Baker and Scott have ever met face to face.