Mortimer L. Downey
Mort Downey | |
---|---|
6th United States Deputy Secretary of Transportation | |
In office May 28, 1993 – January 20, 2001 | |
President | Bill Clinton |
Preceded by | James B. Busey IV |
Succeeded by | Michael P. Jackson |
Personal details | |
Born | Mortimer Leo Downey III August 9, 1936 Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S. |
Died | November 2, 2023 Oakton, Virginia, U.S. | (aged 87)
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse |
Joyce Vander Meyden
(m. 1961; died 2012) |
Children | 2 |
Education | |
Mortimer Leo Downey III (August 9, 1936 – November 2, 2023) was an
Downey additionally served as executive director and chief financial officer of the
Early life and education
Downeywas born in Springfield, Massachusetts, on August 9, 1936. He was educated at the Phillips Academy, Yale University, and New York University.[1] He served in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve, attaining the rank of lieutenant commander.[2]
Career
Downey initially aspired to a career in finance, but was unable to find work in the field upon graduating from Yale in 1958.
After Carter's presidency ended in 1981, Downey was hired by the
In 1993, Downey joined the Clinton administration as deputy transportation secretary, serving for all eight years.
In 2010, Downey was appointed to the board of directors of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority, to one of the seats chosen by the federal government. The Washington Post said that he was selected to guide the Metro out of a state of considerable disarray which had grown amid years of shrinking ridership and decaying infrastructure; the system was plunged into further crisis after a deadly train collision the year before.[1] He served as Board Chair from 2015 to 2016.[4][5] His period as chairman was marred by poor relations with fellow board members, some of whom accused him of inefficiency, and eventually, of having a conflict of interest, due to his job as an advisor with an engineering firm which worked with the Metro. While a subsequent ethics investigation cleared him of any wrongdoing, the hostile environment led Downey to leave the role after one year.[1] In April 2016, three of the federally-appointed members of the board were replaced, including Downey.[1]
Downey was a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration.[6]
Personal life and death
In 1961, Downey married Joyce Vander Meyden. They had two children and were married until her death in 2012.[2][7]
On November 2, 2023, Downey died from pulmonary fibrosis at a retirement home in Oakton, Virginia, at the age of 87.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h Barnes, Bart (November 3, 2023). "Mortimer L. Downey III, leader in urban mass transit, dies at 87". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f Roberts, Sam (November 8, 2023). "Mortimer Downey, Titan of Transit For New York and Nation, Dies at 87". The New York Times. p. A26. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
- Washington Post. November 25, 2008. Retrieved August 9, 2010.
- ^ "Metro - About Metro - Biographies". Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority. Archived from the original on March 2, 2011. Retrieved August 9, 2010.
- ^ Tyson, Ann Scott (January 24, 2010). "2 federal representatives to be named to Metro board Sunday". Washington Post. p. C1. Retrieved August 9, 2010.
- ^ Incorporated, Prime. "National Academy of Public Administration". National Academy of Public Administration. Retrieved February 7, 2023.
- ^ "Joyce Downey, physical therapist". The Washington Post. January 4, 2013. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
Joyce Downey, 75, a physical therapist who worked for Loudoun County public schools in the late 1970s and again from 1994 to 2005, died Dec. 22 [2012]