New MBTA General Manager Phillip Eng speaks with reporters outside Park Street station on his first day on the job, April 10, 2023. Photo by Chris Lisinski | State House News Service

MBTA chief Phillip Eng pledged on his first day on the job Monday to prove that the agency can “turn it around” after a dismal string of disruptions have eroded faith and pushed riders away.

Eng officially took the hot seat Monday as general manager of the T, becoming one of the highest-paid transit agency leaders in the country at a time when service problems abound, ridership has plateaued and financial problems are building.

One early target Eng circled is a timeline for the repairs that will be needed to lift zones where trains have been operating at slow speeds for a month due to safety concerns.

“I’ve been getting some briefings on it. I need a lot more information on it,” Eng said about the outlook on slow zones. “What I’ve asked the team to pull together is not just the information on where the speed restrictions are, but I want a list of all the work that we need to do to accomplish and remove that. We’re working on pulling that together to get schedules on when that work is going to be done, and that’s information that I would like to share when we have it ready to share.”

“That’s important too, right? It’s not just where the speed restrictions are, but what we’re doing to remove them and when we plan to remove them,” he added. “This way, we can measure ourselves against our schedule and we can measure ourselves against the ability to deliver and beat those schedules.”

As of Monday morning, 24.5 percent of all MBTA subway tracks were subject to mandatory speed restrictions, agency data show, down about 4 percentage points from the March 28 peak in the wake of last month’s revelation that officials could not confirm past inspections and repairs.

An internal engineering and maintenance team has completed more than three-quarters of its work to re-inspect tracks, and a third-party team has wrapped up a parallel effort, according to a T spokesperson.

The MBTA also executed a contract to bring in an outside investigator to probe what went wrong. Charles O’Reilly of Carlson Transport Consulting, a licensed professional engineer with more than 45 years of experience, will “conduct a comprehensive review of the MBTA’s track safety inspection procedures, record keeping practices, and documentation of planning and implementation of corrective activities,” MBTA spokesperson Joe Pesaturo said.

O’Reilly’s review will focus on routine track inspections in the past 12 months, automated data collection including geometry car and ultrasonic rail testing from the past two years, track inspection maintenance of way procedures, oversight agency procedures, and more. The $70,000 maximum contract will last 90 days and includes provisions to extend its duration if both O’Reilly and the MBTA agree.

“Following an analysis of all the information collected, Mr. O’Reilly will produce an evaluation and summary report about the root cause of the issues with conclusions and recommendations,” Pesaturo said.

Eng said Monday he understands the long stretch of problems has been “very frustrating for a lot of folks,” describing himself as a fellow rider who has grappled with service hiccups.

“But I’ll tell you, if the people that are driving cars, I’m sure they have it every day, too. There’s a fender bender, and next thing you know, you lose a lane and now you’re sitting in tremendous traffic,” he said. “It happens in every walk of life, but it’s how you overcome those issues that’s going to be important. We’re going to solve problems and we’re going to move this place forward.”

Eng’s first day came exactly one year after the death of Robinson Lalin, a rider who was fatally dragged by a Red Line train after he became trapped in a malfunctioning door. That incident and several others prompted the Federal Transit Administration to launch a safety investigation, which last summer highlighted numerous problems and ordered substantial reforms.

“To people who have lost faith in the T, I tell them: stay tuned,” Eng said. “If we lose faith, then why are we even trying? The real thing is, you have to believe, you have to have a vision, and we do. I know the people at the T, the ones I’ve been speaking to, know we can turn it around. I’m going to demonstrate that we can turn it around. I’m going to get out, we’re going to talk about the issues openly, and we’re going to talk about how we’re going to turn around as well.”

“It’ll be slow at the beginning, but as you start to see them come, I think people will regain that trust,” he added.

Eng kicked off his tenure as general manager by traveling via Blue Line from Orient Heights to Government Center, chatting with riders along the way, and then switching to the Green Line. He called it a “fantastic trip.”

Asked if he plans to join the ranks of everyday T riders who use the subway system, Eng replied, “Absolutely.”

“I’m going to not only use it to get to work, I’m going to use it to get to restaurants, I’m going to use it to get to businesses,” he said. “Part of my reason for coming is not just the T, but [because] the city of Boston, the state of Massachusetts, has so much to offer. And that’s what I want people to know: the T does not just have to be for commuting. The T can be for using it to go out and about. It’s a fantastic way to travel and see all the different destinations that are here, and I think that’s going to be important to restoring ridership as well. It’s not just in the morning commute and in the evening commute. It’s what you’re doing during the days, in the evenings and on weekends, and we’re going to promote that and we’re going to restore service for people.”

He emerged from Park Street Station, where he spoke with reporters, alongside Jeff Gonneville, a longtime deputy general manager who served as interim GM for several months until Eng started. Gonneville will remain at the T, though officials have not yet said what his role will be.

Eng has not yet made any hires of his own. At his introductory press conference on March 27, Eng signaled his attention is more on filling open jobs than replacing existing deputies.

“It’s just me,” he said at the time, flanked by several MBTA workers. “The team that’s behind me, what they’re going to need is us working together. Certainly, if there’s experienced folks that we need — and I know talking with Jeff there are some key positions that are open — if they’re willing to come over, I’m going to be looking for them. I also know it’s a challenge to relocate your family and take on new roles. But you know what, when we build some momentum, I think people are going to want to get on this train and come with us for a ride.”