Michael Lapolla, executive director for the New Jersey Turnpike Authority, will leave the agency at the end of June to take a job in the private sector.
Lapolla has been with the turnpike since 2002. During that time he oversaw the merging of the New Jersey Turnpike and the Garden State Parkway and implemented the authority’s $2 billion road-widening project that will expand the toll roads to 12 lanes from six lanes in the center of the state.
“Michael has served the authority with distinction for six years under three different governors and he’s done a great job in consolidating the turnpike and the parkway,” said state Transportation Commissioner Kris Kolluri. “He’s seen the agency through some difficult times and we wish him well as he moves to the next phase of his life.”
Kolluri said officials will now work to find a replacement, with Gov. Jon Corzine working with the turnpike board to fill Lapolla’s post.
The authority has roughly $5 billion of outstanding debt and carries an A rating with a stable outlook from Standard & Poor’s and an A rating with a negative outlook from Fitch Ratings. Moody’s Investors Service rates the credit A3.
