Diaz to head security for New York MTA

Raymond Diaz, former chief of the New York City Police Department Transit Bureau, will become director of security at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) on Jan. 6, MTA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Thomas Prendergast announced this week.

Diaz will oversee security for the MTA, including coordinating its security efforts with the Department of Homeland Security, FBI, the National Guard, NYPD, State Police and MTA Police Department, which has jurisdiction in 14 counties in New York and Connecticut, and patrols about 5,000 square miles of the MTA's rail network.

Diaz retired from the NYPD in 2011 as chief of the Transit Bureau, which is responsible for safety and security at MTA New York City Transit (NYCT). He succeeds Douglas Zeigler, who was appointed security director almost three years ago after a 37-year career in the NYPD.

“Ray Diaz is a strong and effective commander with a deep understanding of the security challenges facing mass transit,” Prendergast said in a press release. “Having worked closely with him in the past, I’m glad to have the opportunity to bring him to the MTA as part of my leadership team.”

Diaz was a member of the NYPD for 41 years, during which he also served as commanding officer of the Manhattan North and Manhattan South patrol boroughs as well as three precincts and the School Safety Division. He earned two Purple Hearts while serving in Vietnam with the U.S. Marine Corps.

Meanwhile, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, MTA officials and other local leaders last week took the first ride on NYCT's extension of the 7 Subway line, terminating at the new subway station at 34th Street and Eleventh Avenue in Manhattan. The 7 Subway Extension is the first extension funded by the city in more than 60 years, and will provide New Yorkers and visitors with a link to Manhattan’s far west side.