Commissioner of Transport for London

{{Short description|Chief executive of London's transport body}}

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{{Use British English|date=February 2018}}

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{{Politics of London}}

The commissioner of transport for London has management responsibility for Transport for London (TfL) and hence for the transport system throughout the City of London and Greater London in the United Kingdom. TfL is controlled by a board whose members are appointed by the Mayor of London, who also chairs the Board. The commissioner reports to the board and leads a management team with individual functional responsibilities. The commissioner is therefore the most senior transport official in the capital.{{Cite web|title=Briton who ran New York subway returns to lead TfL amid cash crisis|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/transport/andy-byford-new-london-transport-commissioner-tfl-mike-brown-new-york-subway-a4451916.html|date=2020-05-27|website=Evening Standard|language=en|access-date=2020-05-27}}

History

In 2000, Transport for London (TfL) was created as part of the Greater London Authority, gaining many of its functions from its predecessor, London Regional Transport. The commissioner post was initially held from 2001, by Bob Kiley. His CV included the CIA, CEO of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, deputy mayor of Boston, Chairman and CEO of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority and President and CEO of the New York City Partnership. He was credited as being the architect of the revival of Boston and New York's ailing public transport systems in the 1970s and 1980s respectively.{{Cite news|last=Travers|first=Tony|last2=Hendy|first2=Peter|date=2016-08-10|title=Bob Kiley obituary|language=en-GB|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2016/aug/10/bob-kiley-obituary|access-date=2020-05-27|issn=0261-3077}}

Kiley announced his resignation in late 2005, and was replaced in February 2006 by Peter Hendy, previously TfL's Director of Surface Transport. In July 2015, Hendy left to become chairman of Network Rail and was replaced on an interim basis by Mike Brown (the Managing Director of London Underground and London Rail).

Mike Brown was appointed as the new commissioner in September 2015.{{Cite web|title = Mike Brown appointed new commissioner of Transport for London|url = https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-34347821|website = BBC News|accessdate = 2015-09-24}} Following the November 2016 Croydon tram derailment, Brown was one of two top TfL officials to decline a performance bonus.{{cite web |author=Smith, Rebecca |title=Two Transport for London bosses have rejected their bonuses after last year's Croydon tram crash |url=http://www.cityam.com/267470/two-transport-london-bosses-have-rejected-their-bonuses |accessdate=22 September 2017 |work=City A.M.}} In October 2019, TfL announced that Brown would be leaving his role as commissioner in May 2020 to chair the Delivery Authority for the restoration of the Houses of Parliament.{{cite web|title=Mike Brown MVO set to leave TfL|url=https://tfl.gov.uk/info-for/media/press-releases/2019/october/mike-brown-mvo-set-to-leave-tfl|date=17 October 2019|publisher=Transport for London|access-date=1 December 2019}}

In May 2020, Andy Byford, former president of the New York City Transit Authority (NYCTA) and former CEO of the Toronto Transit Commission was announced as the new commissioner by the TfL Board.{{Cite web|title=Andy Byford appointed London's new Transport Commissioner|url=https://tfl.gov.uk/info-for/media/press-releases/2020/may/andy-byford-appointed-london-s-new-transport-commissioner|last=|first=|date=27 May 2020|website=Transport for London|language=en-GB|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200612104136/https://tfl.gov.uk/info-for/media/press-releases/2020/may/andy-byford-appointed-london-s-new-transport-commissioner |archive-date=12 June 2020 |access-date=2020-05-27}} Following the opening of the Elizabeth line, Byford resigned as commissioner in September 2022, citing a desire to return to the U.S. and spend more time with his family.{{Cite news |last=Victor |first=Daniel |date=2022-09-22 |title=Andy Byford, Ex-M.T.A. Leader, Steps Down as London Transport Commissioner |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/22/world/europe/andy-byford-mta-london-transport.html |access-date=2022-09-22 |issn=0362-4331}} Byford left the position in October 2022, replaced on an interim basis by Andy Lord (the Chief Operating Officer of London Underground).{{Cite web |date=2022-10-25 |title=Outgoing TfL commissioner Andy Byford 'immensely proud' |url=https://news.railbusinessdaily.com/outgoing-tfl-commissioner-andy-byford-immensely-proud/ |access-date=2022-10-26 |website=RailBusinessDaily |language=en-US |quote=He leaves the position today, on 25 October, being replaced on an interim basis by Transport for London chief operating officer Andy Lord.}}

In June 2023, Andy Lord was appointed commissioner on a permanent basis by the TfL board.{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=7 June 2023 |title=Andy Lord confirmed as London’s Transport Commissioner |url=https://tfl.gov.uk/info-for/media/press-releases/2023/june/andy-lord-confirmed-as-london-s-transport-commissioner |access-date=2023-06-07 |website=Transport for London |language=en-GB}}

List of commissioners of transport

  1. Bob Kiley (2000–2006)
  2. Sir Peter Hendy (2006–2015)
  3. Mike Brown (2015–2020)
  4. Andy Byford (2020–2022)
  5. Andy Lord (2023–present)

See also

References

{{Reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Commissioner Of Transport For London}}

Category:Local government in London

Category:Transport for London

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