NJ Transit names chief of its Office of System Safety

Written by Jenifer Nunez, assistant editor

New Jersey Transit (NJ Transit) appointed Gardner Tabon as the chief of the recently-established Office of System Safety, as part of an initiative to reinvigorate NJ Transit's corporate-wide safety culture.

 

In May, NJ Transit Executive Director Veronique Hakim established the Office of System Safety to monitor, review and evaluate safety measures, programs and incidents across the system, as well as overall safety statistics and the development of safety programs pertaining to NJ Transit’s operations and facilities.

“Through the Office of System Safety, NJ Transit aims to achieve the highest practicable level of safety for all transit modes,” said Transportation Commissioner and NJ Transit Board Chairman Jamie Fox. “Under Gardner’s leadership and reporting directly to the executive director, this office will be the guiding force to ensuring corporate-wide system safety for our state’s public transportation network.”

“As a career professional with nearly 25 years in the transportation industry, Gardner’s broad experience in rail, bus and light-rail system safety will serve NJ Transit and our customers well,” said Executive Director Hakim. “His depth of knowledge pertaining to safety will be an asset to the agency as we focus on improving and emphasizing common safety principles and practices across our network.”

Prior to joining NJ Transit, Tabon served for six years as the chief of safety and security for Valley Metro in Phoenix, Ariz., where he established and managed the System Safety Program Plan.

Previously, he served for five years as the system safety officer at the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority, where he established policies and procedures that enabled the operating departments to function safely and efficiently.

 

Tags: