Metro spent nearly $158,000 to replace brake parts on some 190 rail cars this winter, paying for 2,000 hours of overtime for maintenance the agency had postponed because of a lack of funding.
The agency replaced the brakes on nearly all of its 5000 series rail cars after a Dec. 20 incident in which a piece of a brake broke off a rail car. The broken equipment known as a friction ring subsequently damaged two other trains and left some 300 riders stranded underground for more than two hours.
But Metro acknowledged last week that it had known since 2006 that there was a flaw in the brake equipment on those rail cars. The equipment broke twice in 2006, raising a red flag.
| Metro’s delegation to Japan included two more |
| Metro’s delegation to Japan to see the new rail cars under construction was bigger than the agency initially reported. |
| Metro’s spokesman said on Friday that it sent six people to Japan earlier this year: General Manager Richard Sarles, deputy general manager Dave Kubicek, the head of customer service and communications, two members of the equipment engineering team and a train operator to assess the design of the car’s controls. |
| But the agency acknowledged Monday that two paid consultants also traveled to Japan for the showcasing of the new rail car, bringing the total to eight. |
| “Everything that a contractor does gets billed back but it’s not part of the travel authorization,” Metro spokesman Dan Stessel explained. “We don’t directly pay for their travel.” |
| The money comes out of the contracts the consultants’ employers have with the agency. |
| The agency has not said how much the trip cost for the Metro employees but noted the money came from the capital budget that covers repairs and new rail cars, not from riders’ fares. |
| Metro said the trip was important to let top officials check on the mock-up rail cars before the rest are built. The agency ordered 428 rail cars for $886 million. |
| “This is what you’d expect us to do,” Stessel added. “It is prudent in the process that key members of our staff participate in a hands-on way. It’s absolutely the right thing to be doing.” — Kytja Weir |
The agency planned in 2009 to replace the brakes as part of an overhaul of the rail cars, but scrapped the plan because of a lack of funding, the agency said last week. Officials knew the parts had outlived their 10- to 12-year lifespan yet kept the 184 cars of that model running.
After the recent incident, Metro crews worked for about 3,000 hours to swap out the old equipment with new parts, Metro spokesman Dan Stessel told The Washington Examiner. Workers logged about 1,000 hours in regular time and 2,000 hours in overtime.
Metro did not have to pay for the equipment, since original manufacturer Knorr Brake Corp. of Westminster, Md., gave Metro the replacement parts.
The new parts are stronger and are expected to last the remaining lifespan of the rail cars, Metro officials say.
Metro plans to replace similar equipment on all of its 6000 series cars, starting in July.
The agency also replaced other brake parts on its 2000, 3000 and 4000 series cars after a similar brake piece fell off a train on Jan. 6. But agency officials have said they don’t believe the failures are related to the 5000 series problems as they involve different materials from different manufacturers. They are still awaiting a report on the cause, though.
