After two years with the Detroit Department of Transportation, Interim Executive Director of Transit Michael Staley will leave his post at the end of the year.

Staley, first came to DDOT in June 2022 with a single mission: to lead and fix the city’s terribly broken paratransit system, which was plagued by unreliable service and customer complaints. 

Since Staley implemented his reforms, on time performance in paratransit has improved to 97% and the number of performed trips resulting in a very high rate of customer satisfaction, even as usage of the paratransit service has increased by 25%. 

On-demand paratransit service is expected to launch in January.

Staley’s Impact on DDOT

Following his success with paratransit, Staley was named Interim Director of DDOT in August of 2023 with a goal of rebuilding DDOT service level and reliability.

During Staley’s tenure as interim director, DDOT has:

• Experienced a growth in ridership to more than 250,000 passengers per week.

• Increased the number of buses in service each day by 20%.

• Added an additional 150 bus drivers.

• Secured a $3 million federal grant to purchase 21 new hybrid coaches and the city’s first four hydrogen fuel cell coaches.

Opened the new Jason Hargrove Transit Center at State Fairgrounds. The new center is an adaptive reuse of the former State Fair Dairy Cattle Barn and is the first indoor transit center to serve DDOT and SMART transit users on the north side of the city.

DDOT’s Next Steps

Mayor Mike Duggan thanked Staley for his service and for the progress he was able to make.

“DDOT is providing better service to its customers today thanks to Michael’s efforts, particularly our most vulnerable residents who rely on our improved paratransit service,” he said. “Work still needs to be done to get our bus service to where it needs to be, and Michael has gotten us moving in the right direction. I wish him the very best in his next chapter.”

Duggan added that he expects to be able to name Staley’s replacement before Christmas.

Commenting on his time in service to DDOT, Michael Staley stated, “I am grateful for the opportunity provided to me by Mayor Mike Duggan to help transform DDOT. It has been a privilege to serve the citizens of Detroit. I am excited to see the changes that will take place at DDOT over the next 12 months. DDOT will become the public transportation system that our customers expect and deserve.”