Pittsburgh Regional Transit CEO Katharine Kelleman is getting a $55,000 bonus.
The transit agency’s board on Friday unanimously approved the performance bonus with no discussion.
Under the terms of Kelleman’s contract, the board could’ve given her a bonus of up to $62,400. She can receive a bonus of up to 20% of her annual base pay — which was $312,000 last year; instead she received 17.6%.
The transit authority was forced to use $100 million in state funds this year to plug a massive budget deficit and avoid drastic service cuts and fare hikes.
An initial proposal — which sparked serious concern among riders — would’ve seen the transit agency slash services by 35% and raise fares by 9% this year.
Though officials avoided such draconian measures by using the stand money to cover operating expenses this year and next, Kelleman last year acknowledged the authority was still in dire need of a more sustainable solution to its financial woes.
She called the measure a “Band-Aid fix” and said the authority would still be forced to delay some capital projects.
Kelleman stepped into her role as the head of Allegheny County’s transit authority in January 2018.