Dani Lever, a spokeswoman for Mr. Cuomo, offered support for Mr. Byford — and a list of other top executives at the authority. But Mr. Cuomo, who has taken a close role in setting the agency’s priorities, interviewed Mr. Byford in person and essentially signed off on him. In the past, Mr. Cuomo has praised Mr. Byford in public, though Mr. Cuomo has also pressed him to focus on a new signal technology that has not been used on any major transit system. Mr. Lhota views his role as helping to protect Mr. Byford from the difficult politics surrounding the agency so that Mr. Byford can focus on running the system. A day earlier, Mr. Cuomo had told reporters the plan could not succeed without Mr. de Blasio pitching in some cash.

Source: New York Times May 24, 2018 21:56 UTC