As Metro undertakes a major rebuilding effort to replace some safety and track equipment that dates from the beginning of the system, it is running into trouble when the work itself gets in the way. The transit agency is trying to fix the rail network with some equipment that is nearly as old as the 35-year-old rail system itself. And the margins on the track work schedule are tight enough that when something goes wrong, the riders feel it.
Commuters on the Green and Red lines felt the pain Thursday morning when two separate track projects that were supposed to be finished overnight ran into problems that bled into the morning service.
A trailer used to shuttle giant steel rails around the system, which Metro calls a “buggy,” derailed on the Green Line at Fort Totten just after 5 a.m. No one was hurt and it caused only minor damage to some hardware on the automatic safety system.
“There are derailments and there are derailments and this is the lowest end of the spectrum,” Metro spokesman Dan Stessel said.
But the mishap forced trains traveling in either direction to share a single track between four stops for four hours. The snarl extended all the way to U Street, three stops away, because crews had some trouble with equipment at a closer train turnaround spot near the Georgia Avenue stop. The two back-to-back problems created a mess for riders along the line.
The rail buggy is a couple decades old, Deputy General Manager Dave Kubicek said. “I was ready to get rid of it two years ago. I couldn’t believe it when I got here,” he said. “But it’s the only one we have.”
A new buggy is on order and should arrive soon, he said.
Meanwhile, tracks workers had trouble fixing a rail switch during overnight work on the Red Line between New York Avenue and Rhode Island Avenue, when the equipment wouldn’t line up properly. Crews ended up clamping the equipment into position so trains could pass through the area until full repairs could be made. Trains had to share a single track there for part of the morning commute and then again midday.
The work is all part of Metro’s $5 billion rebuilding program.
Kubicek said his crews are out fixing, replacing and inspecting track equipment every day and night. “It’s 24-7,” he said. They used to primarly work on the tracks overnight, when the system was closed — a five-hour shutdown at most per day — but have also started to do some work during the evenings and midday. In August, Metro will be closing down at least one station most weekends to do major overhauls, as well.
They are always racing to finish all work before the next rush hour period, though, Kubicek said. The transit agency remains committed to transporting Washington’s workers to and from their jobs each morning and evening, even as the repair workload intensifies, he said. Still, “Your margin of error is a lot closer.”
