A wealthy former MTA chairman not only has a police-issued parking permit - but also a no-cost parking spot at a Metro-North station in a tony Westchester village.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority recently slashed the number of dashboard placards issued through the MTA Police Department - but politically connected Virgil Conway, who left the board in 2001, managed to keep the perk, the Daily News has learned.

Conway told The News that he uses the permit to "identify" his car to police at the Bronxville train station, where he is allowed to park in a no-cost, reserved MTA spot.

"It's a courtesy," he said.

About 10 former MTA board members have the MTA police placards, as do an unspecified number of current board members. The dashboard documents state the driver is on "official business." Issued annually, they allow parking without penalty in restricted areas such as commercial loading and unloading zones, according to the authority.

The MTA yesterday couldn't immediately provide a complete list of permit holders.

Advocates said the parking-pass program runs counter to the MTA's recently announced environment-friendly plan to reduce pollution and conserve energy and water use in its transit operations.

"Since the MTA launched its own green initiative, it should really start by cutting parking placards that lead to needless driving, congestion and pollution," said Wiley Norvell, communications director with Transportation Alternatives.

The MTA late last year reduced the number of authority-issued permits from 345 to 295, a 15% drop, MTA spokesman Jeremy Soffin said. He said the move was connected to Mayor Bloomberg's initiative to reduce parking permits issued by the city.

The bulk of the current MTA pass holders are members of the MTA's police force, Soffin said, without directly commenting on why Conway still has his.

Others include agency heads or operational staffers who respond to emergencies such as an injured worker, train derailments or tunnel flooding, he said.

"We've been cracking down," Soffin said. "We took a hard look and they're only given out when absolutely needed, so we were able to reduce them by about 15%."

Conway, a former chief executive officer of the Seaman's Bank for Savings, was named MTA chairman by then-Gov. George Pataki in 1995.

Now a consultant, Conway said he commutes to his Manhattan office by train.

"I don't contribute to congestion," he said. "I don't use it for city parking."