Metro General Manager John Catoe dismissed as “routine” a senior staffer’s criticism of Dulles rail project managers over unresolved technical problems, arguing U.S. transportation officials and the media have overblown the January memo’s significance.
Catoe, in a Friday letter to the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, which is managing the troubled rail extension, sought to downplay an interagency spat the federal government cites as one of the reasons it won’t fund $900 million for the initial 11.6-mile phase.
The issue – first reported in The Examiner – revolves around a series of complicated engineering questions that, if not resolved, could prevent Metro from operating the new line at its completion, John Thomas, director of Metro’s Office of Major Capital Projects, wrote Jan. 16. Thomas accused the Airports Authority of being “not interested” in quickly solving the problems.
“I want to clarify that these are routine technical issues that at this time do not rise to the level of significance that is being attached to it by the [Federal Transit Administration] or the media,” Catoe responded Friday.
The FTA disputed Catoe’s assessment.
“This correspondence reveals a strained relationship between the working partners on a complex, multi-billion dollar project even before the construction has begun,” the agency wrote Friday. “FTA remains concerned that MWAA has the necessary resources and experience to effectively oversee the project, given MWAA’s inexperience in building a heavy rail system.”
Catoe did not address why an upper-level staff member would issue such a severe message on what he felt was a set of serious technical problems. Metro also has not said if the problems have been fixed.
In a Nov. 8 letter, Thomas listed two issues as “major,” relating to the placement of boxes carrying power and communications cables, and the amount of power needed to supply trains on the new track.
The eruption is part of a growing battle between the U.S transportation officials and Dulles rail proponents, who last week watched their hope for the long-planned project crumble.
FTA Administrator Jim Simpson said the new line is too expensive to fund for the number of riders it will serve, but also cited a bevy of accompanying problems that cast grave doubt of the project moving forward, including the Metro-MWAA dispute.
