New Metrolinx CEO Michael Lindsay will get paid $686,566 per year, with a potential to earn an additional $137,000 in bonuses, over the next three years during his term as head of the provincial transit agency.
Lindsay’s compensation, revealed as part of a government , includes a bonus structure that ranges from zero to 20 per cent of his base $686,566 salary, “based on his performance evaluation and subject to any statutory requirements or limitations.” His compensation also includes up to six weeks of paid vacation per year.
That’s less than his predecessor, Phil Verster, who made $883,991 in his final year as CEO in 2024, after seven years at the helm. Verster, in 2024, was the fourth highest paid public servant on the Sunshine List.
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Lindsay was made the new permanent head of Metrolinx on June 25, after serving for months as interim CEO. Over the past decade, the transit agency has overseen almost all transit construction in the GTA, including several high-profile projects that have faced delays, growing budgets and scrutiny over a lack of transparency.
In a statement announcing his appointment, Minister of Transportation Prabmeet Sarkaria said, “Michael has done an outstanding job in his role as acting CEO, and I have complete confidence that he will continue to lead with the same dedication and vision.”
When Lindsay was first appointed, Premier Doug Ford said his top priority would be opening the long-delayed Eglinton Crosstown LRT “as soon as it is safe to do so.”
Ford, asked for his comments on the 14-year-long wait for the Crosstown’s opening at a press conference in June, praised Lindsay, calling him “brilliant and a champion.”
“He is fully in charge and he’s going to get it done,” Ford said.
In 2018, Lindsay was appointed a special adviser when the province mulled taking over the city’s subway system.
He then moved to Infrastructure Ontario in 2019 as president of project delivery. Lindsay was appointed president and CEO of Infrastructure Ontario in November 2020 before he was made interim CEO of Metrolinx in December 2024.
Andy Takagi is the transportation reporter for the
Star. Reach him via email: atakagi@thestar.ca
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