CTA President Retires, Bringing 40 Year Public Transportation Career to a Close

Chicago Transit Authority President Dorval R. Carter Jr. has retired as head of the nation’s third-largest public transit agency.

Carter’s retirement, effective Friday, Jan. 31, ends a 40-year career in public transportation that has included nearly 10 years as CTA president.

“The City of Chicago is grateful to President Dorval Carter for his decades of service with the Chicago Transit Authority,” Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson said in a statement. “His leadership reimagined the movement of our city. His stewardship of the Red Line Extension project is just one of the notable achievements in his historic career.”

Carter began his CTA career as a staff attorney in September 1984 and worked at the agency for 26 years. During that time, he served as acting president, executive vice-president, chief administrative officer and in several legal roles.

His public transit career includes nearly 15 years in senior leadership roles at the United States Department of Transportation and the Federal Transit Administration.

“Serving as president of this great agency has been an extraordinary privilege and I am forever grateful for what has been the opportunity of a lifetime,” Carter said in a statement. “It has been an honor to work on behalf of CTA customers s and to advance our mission in a city that I love so dearly.”