Hakim Officially Appointed to Lead NJT

New Jersey's public transportation agency has a new leader.

NJ Transit's board of directors appointed Veronique "Ronnie" Hakim as the agency's executive director during a special meeting Monday in Newark. The 54-year-old Hakim will receive a $261,324 salary.

Neither Hakim nor Jim Weinstein, who resigned a week ago as executive director, attended the meeting.

Hakim is now executive director of the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, which operates that roadway and the Garden State Parkway, the state's largest toll roads.

Weinstein announced his resignation last week, leaving behind a record that includes a costly decision to leave rail equipment in the path of Superstorm Sandy and the image of thousands of fans stranded for hours after this month's Super Bowl when trains couldn't accommodate them.

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