• Home
• People
• Mortimer L. Downey

Mortimer L. Downey

Mortimer Leo Downey, III (born August 9, 1936 in Springfield, Massachusetts) was the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Transportation from 1993 to 2001, making him the longest-serving person to ever hold the post. Downey was originally appointed to the position at the beginning of the Clinton administration, and additionally served as Acting Secretary of Transportation for the first four days of the Bush administration, from January 21, 2001 to January 24, 2001. Prior to his service as Deputy Secretary of Transportation, he was Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer of the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). During the Carter Administration, from 1977 to 1981, Downey served in the Department of Transportation as Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs. Prior to that appointment, Downey was the first transportation program analyst for the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on the Budget. He also held various positions at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.He was on the Obama transition team, and the subject of speculation as a possible Secretary of Transportation in the Obama Administration.He joined WMATA's board of directors in January, 2010.An alumnus of Phillips Academy in Andover, MA, Downey graduated magna cum laude from Yale University in 1958, and received a master's of public administration from New York University in 1966. He served in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve, attaining the rank of Lieutenant Commander. Following completion of his service as Deputy Secretary of Transportation in 2001, Downey became a transportation consultant.