NEW YORK — Rob Free has taken over as acting president of the Long Island Railroad, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, ending Catherine Rinaldi’s tenure as both interim president of the LIRR and president of Metro-North Railroad.
Free’s first full day in the position was Thursday, MTA CEO Janno Lieber said. He had been named to the position in September. Free, who previously served as the LIRR’s senior vice president, operations, joined the railroad 31 years ago as a station cleaner.
“Rob Free has seen and done it all during his long career at the LIRR. A Long Island native, he’s widely respected by his colleagues and a natural choice for Acting President,” Lieber said in a press release. “Over the years, he’s led efforts on system safety and customer experience while helping to open critical projects like Grand Central Madison, Main Line Third Track and the first new LIRR station in 50 years at Elmont-UBS Arena.”
Free said he will prioritize safety for customers and employees, reliability, and improving the customer experience as acting president.
“From the moment you arrive to the moment you depart our facilities,” he said, “I want it to be the best experience possible.”
Rinaldi, who had been the first person to oversee both the MTA’s commuter railroads, had been interim president since February 2022. She announced she was stepping down from the LIRR position at a September 18 MTA board meeting. She will remain Metro-North president and will also serve as senior advisor, MTA Railroads.
While Rinaldi is both liked and respected by MTA employees, her dual role had come under fire from critics who felt the LIRR needed its own chief executive.
It’s been a long time since they’ve last had an exemplary internal employee who rose through the ranks and thoroughly understands the needs and intricacies of the LIRR system.
Congratulations!
Didn’t Penn Central try to put two dissimilar managements over two very large, very dissimilar properties?