Special to the Times-Free Press
Governor Maura Healey today announced that she is appointing Thomas M. McGee as the next Chair of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Association (MBTA) Board of Directors. McGee has served as a board member since April 2023. He is the former Mayor of Lynn and previously served in the Senate, where he chaired the Transportation Committee. Current Chair Thomas P. Glynn has announced his intention to step down from the Board effective November 1.
“I’m deeply grateful to Tom Glynn for his lifetime of service to the people of Massachusetts, and particularly for his leadership as Chair of the MBTA Board of Directors. Working together with Secretary Tibbits-Nutt, General Manager Eng and the entire Board, Tom has overseen a transformative period at the T and worked to improve safety and reliability across the system. I thank him for his constant guidance and wisdom and wish him the best of luck in this next chapter,” said Governor Healey. “I’m proud to be appointing Tom McGee as the next Chair of the MBTA Board of Directors. As the former Mayor of a Gateway City and Senate Chairman of the Transportation Committee, he knows how critical our transportation infrastructure is for the communities in and around Boston, and across our entire state. He has been a trusted and reliable voice on the MBTA Board, and I’m excited for the future of the T with his leadership.”
“Massachusetts couldn’t ask for stronger leaders in transportation than Tom Glynn and Tom McGee. Working together these past two years with the entire team, they have delivered improvements at the T that haven’t been seen in decades,” said
Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll. “I’m thankful for Tom Glynn’s years of service to Massachusetts and congratulate Tom McGee as he steps into this new role.”
As Chair of the MBTA Board of Directors, Tom Glynn has helped to steer the agency through a transformative period. He has worked closely with Transportation Secretary Monica Tibbits-Nutt, MBTA General Manager Phil Eng, and the entire Board to improve safety and reliability across the system. In the past year and a half, the T has made historic progress on removing slow zones on every subway line, launched a low-income fares program and contactless pay, overseen significant improvements with hiring and retention, achieved labor agreements with the entire workforce, and renegotiated the contract for new Orange and Red Line subway cars to get the project back on track.
Prior to his service on the MBTA Board, Glynn served as the General Manager of the MBTA under Governor Michael Dukakis, CEO of Massport
under Governor Deval Patrick, Deputy Secretary of Labor in the Clinton Administration, and Chief Operating Officer of Partners Healthcare (now called Mass General Brigham | Integrated Health Care System). He also served as Co-Chair of the Public Transportation Committee for the Healey-Driscoll Transition Committee.
“I’m proud of the work that the MBTA Board has done these past couple of years with the strong partnership of Governor Healey, Lieutenant Governor Driscoll, Secretary Tibbits-Nutt and General Manager Eng,” said Tom Glynn. “This Board showed up every day with the urgency necessary to meet the challenges facing the T, and we refused to settle for the status quo. As a result, we’ve been able to deliver major improvements across the system and dramatically improve safety and reliability. I’m confident that the T will continue making important progress under the leadership of Tom McGee.”
Tom McGee has served on the MBTA Board of Directors since April 2023 and on the MassDOT Board of Directors since June 2023. He was Mayor of the City of Lynn from 2018 to 2022. Previously, he served as Massachusetts State Senator from the Third Essex district. He was a member of the Joint Committee on Transportation starting in 2003 and served as Senate Chair of the committee from 2011 to 2018. Before his election to the Senate in 2002, McGee served four terms in the Massachusetts House of Representatives where he represented West Lynn and Nahant. Prior to holding office, McGee practiced law at Quinn and Morris (1990-1994) and served as an Assistant District Attorney for Essex County (1988-1990). McGee is a life-long resident of Lynn where he lives with his wife Maria and has two children. He is committed to improving the state’s transportation system and strongly supports regional equity.
He currently serves as a member of the Board of Trustees at the St Mary’s School in Lynn. He is also a member of the Pickering Middle School Building Committee in Lynn.
“I’m honored that Governor Healey has placed her faith in me to lead the incredible team at the MBTA Board of Directors,” said Tom McGee. “We have done important work together since coming together as a Board, and I’m looking forward to partnership further with Secretary Tibbits-Nutt and General Manager Eng to deliver on our promise of a world-class public transportation system that we can all be proud of. I’m grateful for the strong leadership of Tom Glynn and look forward to continuing to build on the progress he has started.”
The other members of the MBTA Board of Directors are Secretary Tibbits-Nutt, Quincy Mayor Thomas Koch, Framingham Mayor Charlie Sisitsky, Robert Butler, Eric L. Goodwine, Mary Skelton Roberts and Chanda Smart. Governor Healey will be appointing another member in the near future.
“It has been such an honor to work together alongside Chair Tom Glynn to ensure that the MBTA had the investment, support, and infrastructure it needed to meet the Commonwealth’s transit demands now and in the future. He has led with intentionality and grit, and the MBTA is better for it,” said Transportation Secretary Monica Tibbits-Nutt. “Having Director Tom McGee step in as the incoming Board Chair is a gift. I can’t think of a better ally, advocate, and champion than him. His considerable experience and lifelong commitment to service will help us create a more robust, equitable, and reliable transit system.”
“Tom Glynn has had such a storied career, and with every role he has taken on, he has led with an unmatched devotion to Massachusetts and the people he interacted with. His time as Chair of the MBTA Board was no different, and under his leadership, the T has made great strides. I’ve been blessed to have had this opportunity to work with Tom, and I am forever better,” said General Manager Phillip Eng. “Governor Healey made a slam dunk game-winner with Tom Glynn’s appointment, and Director McGee is a true professional who has also served the Commonwealth throughout his career. I’m confident the future of the MBTA is bright with him as the Chair.”