MARTA GM and CEO Parker dies

Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) General Manager and Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Parker died Jan. 14 by suicide, the agency’s board announced.

Parker died after he was struck by a train at the East Lake Station in Decatur, Georgia, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. He was 55.

In a unanimous vote, MARTA’s board has named Collie Greenwood interim GM and CEO. Greenwood joined MARTA in 2019 as head of bus operations and was promoted to deputy GM of operations in January 2021.

Parker was named MARTA’s top executive in March 2018. He had more than 35 years of experience in transportation, heading operations and expansion programs for several multimodal agencies, according to his biography on MARTA’s website. During Parker's tenure, MARTA has been pursuing its most ambitious transit expansion and modernization program since its founding 40 years ago.

Parker "cared deeply about MARTA and his leadership gave us a strong foundation from which to carry forward," the agency’s board members said in a prepared statement.

"As chairwoman and on behalf of my fellow MARTA board members, we are devastated at this loss as we valued Jeff’s leadership and looked forward to him bringing his vision for transit to fruition," said MARTA Chair Rita Scott.

Her statement continued: "The entire metro Atlanta region owes him a debt of gratitude for his transformational efforts and we will not stop working to build on the foundation he created. As we struggle to understand the complexity of this tragedy, we grieve with and for his wife Erin, his daughters and all of Jeff’s family and friends as well as his MARTA family. As we continue to grieve, we want you to know that suicide is preventable and help is available to you."

[If you are or someone you know is thinking about suicide, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available at 800-273-8255.]