METRO President & CEO Tom Lambert will serve at least another two years as head of the Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County (METRO). The METRO Board of Directors voted Oct. 26 to approve a new contract for Lambert and the agreement took effect Nov. 1.

"We were delighted to have the opportunity to negotiate another contract with Tom Lambert," said METRO Chair Carrin Patman. "He is universally regarded as an outstanding CEO of the agency and he has wonderful relationships with the community."

"It is my great pleasure to be able to continue serving our riders, and working with a talented staff, as well as our community partners," said Lambert.

Under Lambert’s leadership, over the past few years, the Authority has accomplished numerous milestones. On Lambert’s watch as CEO, METRO:

provided exemplary community support and special services in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.

opened two new rail lines.

completely overhauled the local bus system.

improved METROLift, the paratransit service for persons with disabilities.

received the American Public Transportation Association’s 2015 Outstanding Public Transportation System Award.

enhanced the customer experience with real-time service alerts, Next Bus Arrival Texting and Q Mobile Ticketing.

improved coordination with the City of Houston and other regional partners.

created an Office of Innovation to keep METRO services relevant in a changing transportation culture.

scored a touchdown with our Super Bowl transit services amounting to 700,000 passenger rides during the nine-day event.

received multiple awards for transparency and financing.

Lambert's annual salary from Nov. 1, 2017 to Oct. 31, 2018 will be $325,500.