New chief for rail agency approved by HART board

Daniel Grabauskas, the former head of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, was officially selected today to run Honolulu’s $5.27 billion rail transit project in a unanimous vote by the board of directors of the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transportation.

Grabauskas will begin his three-year contract as the executive director and chief executive director of HART mid-April.

Grabauskas’ contract includes an annual base salary of $245,000 plus a $36,000-a-year housing allowance and a transportation allowance of $6,000 a year. His compensation package also includes the potential for a $35,000 annual performance bonus.

Grabauskas is chairman and senior strategic adviser of the Bronner Center for Transportation Management.

He is also the former general manager of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA), where he oversaw 6,100 employees and an annual operating budget of $1.4 billion.