Photo by matt.

More than 10 months after Richard Sarles announced he would be retiring as Metro’s general manager and five months after an entire group of finalists pulled their names from consideration for the position, WMATA’s board of directors announced it has finally resumed its search for a new leader.

Metro suspended the search in March after disagreements surfaced between Mayor Muriel Bowser and board members over what type of executive they should hire. The mayor reportedly sought a manager with experience turning around financially troubled institutions, while others favored a more traditional transit official. At a press conference last month, senators from Virginia and Maryland were dismayed that the search was still ongoing.

“This is not the kind of operating systems that we should have for a system that is this important,” Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) said at the time.

In today’s announcement, the Metro board indicated that they would indeed consider leaders without specific transportation experience. “The Board has expanded the scope of its executive search to include GM/CEO candidates with financial management experience and those outside government and the transit industry,” according to a release.

The board expects to make a final hire in the fall. Jack Requa, formerly the assistant general manager for bus services, will continue on as the interim general manager in the meantime.