Boston Area News

BOSTON (CBS4) ― After much contention and criticism from Governor Mitt Romney, Turnpike Chairman Matt Amorello resigned Thursday, effective as of August 15th with a pro-rated severance of his annual $223,000 salary.

Amorello announced his decision around 8 a.m. Thursday, an hour before a scheduled hearing in the governor's office during which Romney planned to seek his removal. Amorello lost a bid in the state's highest court Wednesday to postpone the hearing and his ultimate dismissal.

At a morning news conference, Amorello said he had repeatedly refused to resign before Thursday because "I didn't think it would fix anything or magically make all the issues associated with the Big Dig go away."

"I still don't believe it will. But to go into a hearing with a foregone conclusion doesn't make sense for me, my family, any of those who have taken part in this process or the public," said Amorello, who defended his work as chairman.

Romney said Amorello's resignation would save taxpayers the cost of an extensive legal battle and ultimately restore public confidence.

"A new era of reform and accountability at the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority has begun," Romney said. "Patronage will be replaced by professionalism, and secrecy will be replaced by openness."

Amorello's resignation will be effective August 15, but he will continue to receive his $223,000 annual salary through February 15. (Soundoff: What Do You Think Of Amorello's Deal?)

Lawyers for Amorello and Romney hammered out details of his resignation late Wednesday, after Supreme Judicial Court Justice Francis X. Spina ruled Romney could go forward with the administrative process to remove Amorello.

The governor said the deal was signed Thursday morning.

Romney reiterated his plans to launch a nationwide search for a new leader of the Turnpike Authority who won't come out of the political arena but instead has relevant transportation experience. He said he did not have anyone specific in mind and had no timetable.

"It will be a person who comes to the job to do a professional, workman-like leadership role in a very important position, but not somebody who's a long-term politician and knows how the wheels of politics turn," Romney said. "I want somebody who knows how the wheels of automobiles and trucks turn and how engineers can do a fine job finishing the work of the Big Dig."

Amorello, 48, a former state senator and failed congressional candidate who served as Massachusetts Highway Commissioner, was appointed to head the Turnpike in February 2002 by Romney's predecessor, acting Gov. Jane Swift.

Calls for his resignation intensified after ceiling panels from a Big Dig tunnel crushed a car July 10, killing a 39-year-old Boston woman.

Attorney General Tom Reilly issued this statement on Amorello's resignation:

"Matt Amorello did the right thing today in resigning as Trnpike Authority chairman and i'm particularly glad he stepped aside before entering into protracted, costly legal proceedings. I believe his decision will at last bring an end to the distraction he brought to the critical work before us- getting to the bottom of the tragic collapse that killed milena del valle, ensuring the tunnels are safe for drivers and restoring the public's faith in the project."

The collapse led to the closing of nearby tunnel sections and restricted traffic in the nearby Ted Williams harbor tunnel while engineers investigate the cause and devise fixes. The focus has been on epoxy-bolt fasteners that anchored the ceiling panels in those areas.

The collapse is also under investigation by state and federal prosecutors and regulatory agencies.

(© 2006 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)