The MBTA’s chief safety officer, Ron Ester, is resigning at the end of the month.
Ester, who was tapped to lead the critical department three years ago, is credited with improving safety in the T system during a tumultuous time at the agency.
MBTA General Manager Phillip Eng said Ester was instrumental in implementing recommendations, policies and practices that stemmed from a 2019 Safety Review Panel report, which was commissioned by the T, and last year’s federal investigation into the region’s beleaguered subway system.
“I am grateful for Ron’s service to the MBTA,” Eng said in a Tuesday letter to employees. “He has made a real difference in the safety of our system and he will be missed.”
Ester’s resignation is effective Aug. 30. He chose to leave the agency, MBTA spokesperson Joe Pesaturo said.
“I am proud of the work that we have done to make our system safer during my tenure, despite the many challenges that we have faced,” Ester said in a statement. “The MBTA has been underinvested for decades, and it has taken a lot of hard work to make our system as safe as it is today.”
He said it was “bittersweet” to be stepping away from his role, knowing that there “is still more work to be done,” but said the agency is in “good hands” with Eng at the helm.
“I wish him and everyone at the T all the best in the future,” Ester said.
Ester was appointed the T’s chief safety officer in August 2020, following a 28-year career at the Chicago Transit Authority.
He was paid $253,816 in 2022, according to state payroll records.
Eng has designated Rod Brooks, senior advisor for capital, operations and safety, as Ester’s interim replacement, while the T conducts a search for the high-paying position.
Brooks joined the T in late July, as one of Eng’s four New York hires. He most recently worked as senior vice president of operations at the Long Island Rail Road, where Eng was president from 2018 to March 2022.
Given his $120 per hour consulting rate, Brooks’ pay would be comparable to what Ester was making, in a full-time leadership role, at roughly $249,600.
His compensation will not change in his temporary role, Pesaturo said.
Brooks will be tasked with providing “leadership and oversight of the Safety Department,” at a time when the T is working to comply with a number of federal directives issued as part of last year’s safety management inspection.
The Federal Transit Administration launched a rare investigation into the T’s subway system in April 2022, after a fatality occurred on the Red Line. Safety failures have persisted since the probe, which concluded last August.