Metro’s Richard Sarles announces retirement

TransitBy Dan Malouff (Editorial Board) September 24, 2014

Photo by thisisbossi on Flickr.

WMATA General Manager Richard Sarles announced at today’s board meeting that he will retire, effective January, 2015.

The move comes as a surprise, since in 2013 Sarles agreed to a contract extension that would have kept him on the job until 2016. But not too much of a surprise: He’s 70 years old and has always said he didn’t intend to stay at WMATA long.

Sarles took charge of WMATA in 2010 and oversaw a significant rebuilding and safety-related overhaul of the transit system.

WMATA board chairman Tom Downs says the agency will conduct a nationwide search for Sarles’ replacement.