BOSTON- Richard Davey, who recently served as the highly regarded Massachusetts Secretary of Transportation, has been named Chief Executive Officer of Boston 2024 – the non-profit organization working to bring the Summer Olympics and Paralympics to Boston in 2024 – as it enters the next phase of its Olympic bid.
Davey succeeds Dan O’Connell who helped lead Boston 2024 during the successful initial phase of it efforts to bring the Games to Boston, culminating in the decision of the United States Olympic Committee (USOC) on December 8 to partner with Boston on a bid to the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
“Dan O’Connell was integral in making the case over the last year that Boston could host a Games that was sustainable, cost-effective, and that would leave a lasting legacy for Boston and Massachusetts,” said John Fish, Chairman of Boston 2024. “We are indebted to him for his tireless efforts and thrilled that he will be remaining on the team as a member of the Boston 2024 Executive Committee.”
“Rich Davey is the perfect fit to continue the work that Dan helped launch,” said Fish. “His reputation for smart, innovative leadership and management of large and complex transportation systems and projects will be indispensable as we enter this next stage of our efforts.”
“I am thrilled that Rich Davey has agreed to join the team at 2024,” said O’Connell, a former Secretary of Housing and Economic Development and current President of the Massachusetts Competitive Partnership. “Working with the team to craft the initial proposal and to win the support and confidence of the USOC is one of the proudest moments of my career. Rich will now grab the baton for the next two years and I look forward to working with him as a member of the Executive Committee to bring the Games to Boston.”
“This is a terrific opportunity to build upon all the great work and planning that has already been done,” said Davey. “But in many ways this is just the beginning. Over the next year we will be in every community in Boston – and in every region of the state – to get the thoughts and input of the public on what a 2024 Games would look like and the kind of legacy it could and should leave for Massachusetts.”
Over the last decade, Davey has distinguished himself as an effective private sector and government chief executive in publicly accountable and complex organizations. He served for over three years as Governor Patrick’s Transportation Secretary, overseeing MassDOT, a public agency with 10,000 employees that is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the state’s roads, bridges, transit systems, airports and ports and the Registry of Motor Vehicles. He also led the administration’s efforts to reform the transportation bureaucracies, and implement new technologies to improve the customer experience.
Immediately prior to serving as Secretary, Davey served as the General Manager of the MBTA, Boston’s public transportation system which serves 1.3M passengers per day. As the oldest subway system in America and its 5th largest, Davey led the MBTA during challenging fiscal times but delivered balanced budgets and guided the MBTA to its highest ridership in 2011 in over six decades.
Prior to joining the MBTA, Davey served in various capacities, including general manager, at the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company, which previously operated the MBTA’s commuter rail system.
Davey has been recognized both locally and nationally as a transportation and civic leader, including by the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce as one of “Ten Outstanding Young Leaders” in 2012 and by the Construction Management Association of America as their “Man of the Year” in 2013.
The Boston 2024 Partnership, Inc. is a privately-funded non-profit formed by members of the business and civic communities with the goal of bringing the Summer Olympics and Paralympics to Boston in 2024. The effort grew out of a report by a special legislative commission that examined the feasibility of Boston hosting the Games.
