E. Virgil Conway, who was a chairman of New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority and a member of the MTA Board, died in Southampton, N.Y. He was 85.
After finding success as both an attorney and a banker, Virgil began his tenure with the MTA board as its Westchester representative. In 1995, then-Gov. George Pataki named him the authority’s seventh chairman. He continued in that role until March 2001.
“Virgil was a hugely influential and effective chairman, and many of the successes and accomplishments the MTA celebrates today are the result of his hard work and his heartfelt service to the region,” said MTA chairman and chief executive Thomas Prendergast. “He remains a beloved member of the MTA family, and he will be sorely missed.”
Conway, who died Oct. 21, coordinated the preparation and funding for the 2000-2004 capital program, at the time was the MTA’s most ambitious ever. That effort launched several projects to expand the system.
These megaprojects include the Second Avenue Subway, East Side Access — bringing the Long Island Rail Road directly into Grand Central Terminal — and the MTA’s recently-completed extension of the No. 7 subway line to Manhattan’s Far West Side.
