Greg Percy named interim TTC CEO

Veteran rail executive Greg Percy has been named interim CEO of the Toronto Transit Commission.

Percy, who has worked in the North American transportation industry for nearly four decades, takes over from Bruce Macgregor, who was appointed Acting Director General just nine days ago watching Rick Leary resigns August 30.

Macgregor will return to his previous role as deputy chief executive.

Percy spent the past six years as executive vice president of passenger services and strategic planning for rail equipment supplier CAD Railway Industries. He was president of GO Transit in 2013 before moving on to become Metrolinx’s first CEO in 2016.

Percy begins an eight-month contract Sept. 9, and when asked if he would like to run as the transit agency begins its search for a full-time CEO, he replied simply: “I’m not sure.”

“I think, honestly to the board, they need some time to figure out who I am, and I need to do the same thing,” he told reporters. “I think it’s too stressful, too much of a drag to just say yes and then it doesn’t fit. So we’ll talk about it, we’ll work together, and if we both feel strongly about it, then I’ll put my name in the hat.”

However, Percy made it clear that he had no intention of acting as guardian for the next eight months.

“If after my time here someone calls me a caretaker, I’ll take offense. That’s not in my DNA. I’m very aware that to get something done you have to work with a team. I look really bad in tights and a cape, I’m going to do it through my team.”

TTC Board Chair Jamaal Myers says that while the search for a permanent CEO will be more complex due to the wider range of candidates, he is delighted that Percy will be taking on the interim role.

“We weren’t looking for a minder, we really wanted a leader, and I think that was really expressed in Greg’s interview, that this is a leader,” he said. “This is a guy who gets it, this is a guy who has a passion for public transport, his passion for people – it was a very easy decision.”

ATU Local 113, which represents 12,000 transit workers, said it looks forward to working with Percy, noting the organization is at a crossroads in putting safety above savings and sustainable operational funding.

“TTC employees know all too well how deeply the TTC has been cut,” Local 113 President Marvin Alfred said in a statement. “We have fought for years to protect service and hope the new CEO is prepared to work with us. The TTC needs an advocate who understands and fights for public transit service.”

Percy admits that system reliability and security, as well as asset investment, are among the biggest challenges.

“Safety has to be the top priority, and that goes from the little things to the big things,” he said. “Safety has to be a culture, customer experience has to be a culture – everything else is important, but without those two, what do you have?”

“I’m not an alarmist, but it’s good due diligence to make sure your assets are in good shape. Unfortunately, nothing to do with rail – freight, commuter, TTC – nothing is cheap. So you have to plan for it, you have to deliver it, and then you move on. It’s an expensive business, but it’s an important business.”