First appointed in an interim capacity after a surprise resignation last winter, Frank DePaola is the general manager of the MBTA for the foreseeable future, he told reporters Wednesday.

“I’m going to stay in charge until we have the T back on a firm, solid footing, that we have a good handle on our capital program and that we’ve made significant strides towards our maintenance backlog,” DePaola said, laying out ambitious goals after the unveiling of new recycling facilities at Alewife Station.

DePaola said “interim” was dropped from his title a little more than a month ago when Brian Shortsleeve was appointed chief administrator of the transit authority and Jeff Gonneville was made the permanent chief operating officer. At the same time Randy Clarke became the “permanent” assistant general manager for engineering and maintenance, T officials announced internally.

“These changes are designed to create stability in the executive-level management here at the MBTA,” the T’s managers wrote employees in a July 30 email, which said DePaola would remain general manager at least through June 30.

The MBTA continues to face financial problems, a maintenance backlog and a system that was substantially knocked out by last winter’s historic snow and cold.

A former highway administrator who also worked on the Boston Harbor cleanup, DePaola said running the T is the most challenging task he has faced.

Following Tuesday’s release of an MBTA report outlining the system’s many deficiencies, DePaola put the $7.3 billion state-of-good-repair backlog in context, explaining that out of the roughly $24 billion in assets the $7.3 billion needs to be rehabbed or replaced.