Avedisian stepping down from RIPTA board after 5 years

By John Howell
Posted 5/26/16

By JOHN HOWELL Having served on the board of the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority for five years, most of them as chairman, Mayor Scott Avedisian submitted his resignation Monday to Gov. Gina Raimondo. My term is up and I didn't want to make a"

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Avedisian stepping down from RIPTA board after 5 years

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Having served on the board of the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority for five years, most of them as chairman, Mayor Scott Avedisian submitted his resignation Monday to Gov. Gina Raimondo.

“My term is up and I didn’t want to make a commitment for another four years,” Avedisian said in a brief interview yesterday afternoon. His term expired on April 1. “Maybe it’s time for someone new.”

Avedisian said the governor asked him to stay on and, after some consideration, he decided to leave.

In his letter to the governor, which he forwarded to the newspaper, Avedisian highlighted what has been an active and occasionally tumultuous period in RIPTA history.

He notes that soon after assuming the role of chairman, the board learned of “allegations of internal improprieties that needed swift action.” With the support of then-Gov. Lincoln Chafee, RIPTA brought in the Rhode Island State Police, and Raymond Studley, who was then second-in-command with the state police, took on RIPTA leadership. Studley stayed on and has been the agency’s chief executive officer since 2013.

“Long plagued with annual deficits,” Avedisian writes, “RIPTA is now on course to end the current fiscal year in the black. We have tackled difficult issues, including a comprehensive fare study, some modest fare increases and the realization that, working with the state, a better way must be found to provide assistance for the public transit travel to lower income senior citizens and persons with disabilities.”

Avedisian goes on to cite the initiation of the R-Line, a rapid service route from the Cranston-Providence line to downtown Pawtucket with service averaging every 10 minutes. He also talks about technology enhancements to improve performance and improved internal processes, from tighter budget controls to stricter management of fleet replacement parts and inventory.

Avedisian further notes how RIPTA helped educate the public about the $35 million statewide bond referendum in 2014 to create a multi-modal transit hub at the Providence train station and how the agency is a “key partner” in a $17 million project for an enhanced transit corridor in downtown Providence.

In recent weeks, Avedisian has dismissed rumors that he’s a candidate for president and CEO of the Rhode Island Airport Corporation or in line as chief of staff for the governor. He has not announced as a candidate for re-election, although he held a fundraiser last night at Sam’s Inn.

A spokeswoman for RIPTA said she did not know of an appointment to succeed Avedisian on the board.

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  • Justanidiot

    mayer corrente here is an opportunity to step up.

    You too can expand your job from just being mayer to doing that and running RIPTA.

    Step up and show us how it should be done.

    Thursday, May 26, 2016 Report this

  • RISchadenfreude

    Justanidiot, I prefer a "Mayer" (Oscar Mayer?) who executes the job he was ELECTED to, in the best interests of the people who ELECTED him, and the citizens of Warwick who DIDN'T elect him; that in itself a full-time job, if it's done properly, without extracurricular activities.

    I believe our mayor was a little bored with his job and thought GYPTA would be a pleasant distraction.

    Was Avedisian compensated while at RIPTA?

    Was his salary as mayor prorated for the days he was out of Warwick on State business over a period of five years?

    (Relax, folks, the last one is a rhetorical question.)

    Friday, May 27, 2016 Report this

  • RISchadenfreude

    The headline in today's Projo explains this decision- he's running for re-election. He's taken a lot of flak for his side gig at RIPTA, so it's time to focus on his re-elec...er, I mean, job.

    Friday, May 27, 2016 Report this