Paul McCartney's wife resigns from New York transit board

Singer Paul McCartney and his bride Nancy Shevell leave after their marriage ceremony at Old Marylebone Town Hall in London October 9, 2011.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Nancy Shevell, the American heiress married to former Beatle Paul McCartney, on Wednesday resigned from the board of New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority where she served since 2001.

"In my 30-year professional career, this has been a highlight for me," Shevell told the board which oversees the New York area's bridges, tunnels and mass transit systems.

"Thank you so much. I am so very emotional and sad right now," she added. She did not give a reason for her decision to step aside.

Shevell, 52, told reporters that she and her husband, 70, one of the two remaining ex-Beatles, would divide their time between New York and London.

Shevell became McCartney's third wife on October 9, 2011. The independently wealthy Shevell, the daughter of a successful trucking company owner, was previously married and has a son.

McCartney's work schedule, meanwhile, remains busy as ever with his newest album "Kisses on the Bottom" due for release on February 7 and a performance planned for the London Olympics this summer.

(Editing By Barbara Goldberg and Paul Thomasch)