Joe Lhota, Former MTA Chair, Returns to the Job as Subway Complaints Ramp Up

Gov. Andrew Cuomo is bringing back a familiar face to head the MTA: Joe Lhota, the 2013 Republican mayoral candidate who previously chaired the transit agency in 2011 and 2012. 

Cuomo announced the nomination late Wednesday, with Lhota appearing via Skype on a large TV for an impromptu confirmation hearing in the state Senate. Lhota was quickly confirmed before the Senate adjourned for the summer.

Lhota said his first order of business will be to hire an executive director for the MTA. He said he plans to look at the current 5-year capital plan and go through it to get the system working better. But the MTA job will be part-time, as he'll continue working as a senior vice president for NYU Langone Medical Center. (He'll need to — Gov. Cuomo said Lhota's salary will be $1 a year.)

During his original tenure as MTA chairman, Lhota was widely praised for overseeing the agency's response to Sandy. He also made news for shouting "Be a man!" at a fellow MTA board member, and saying he wouldn't stop the trains if kittens were on the tracks.

He now comes into the job as the MTA faces intense scrutiny over service and maintenance issues.