CT DOT Commissioner: It's Not Practical to Replace Metro North

It would be impractical, if not impossible, to replace Metro North as the service provider for rail commuters — that was the opinion of Connecticut’s Transportation Commissioner James Redeker who testified before the General Assembly’s Transportation Committee Wednesday afternoon.

Replacing the beleaguered rail service is the goal of two Fairfield County legislators who have introduced bills seeking to compel the Connecticut DOT to search for a different rail service for the thousands of commuters who use the New Haven, Danbury, New Canaan and Waterbury lines.

Redeker testified that it isn’t practical to replace Metro North because it operates the busiest rail system in the country, according to The Hartford Courant. He said there isn’t another rail company in the country with the staff or skills to run the railroad, according to the newspaper’s report.

Redeker said the state is now paying millions to Metro North after losing an arbitration case decades ago when Connecticut tried to alter the 60-year contract.

State Sen. Toni Boucher of Wilton said the state needs the power to hold Metro North more accountable for service shortfalls and that putting the contract out to bid could force the railroad to improve its service. Both she and Fairfield state Sen. Tony Hwang have introduced bills calling for the contract to be rebid, according to The Courant.

The railroad has been criticized by commuters and state officials in recent years, following service interruptions and accidents. The incidents included:

• May 17, 2013: Two trains collide on the New Haven Line near the Fairfield/Bridgeport town line in Connecticut.
• May 28, 2013: Track foreman killed on the New Haven line.
• July 18, 2013: A train derails on the Hudson Line.
• Dec. 2, 2013: A sleepy engineer on the Hudson Line took a 30-mph curve at 80 mph, derailing in the Bronx and killing four.
• March 10, 2014: An MTA electrician was killed by a northbound train in Manhattan.
• Dec. 17, 2014: A Milford CT woman died after being caught between two Metro North cars at Grand Central
• Feb. 3, 2015: Six die, 15 injured when an evening express train on the Harlem Line collides with an SUV on the tracks in Mount Pleasant, NY.

Related stories:

• Metro North To Test All Engineers for Sleep Apnea
• Deep Dive Report Confirms Our Worst Fears About Metro North
• Panel Offers More Tips for Improving Metro North Safety
• Two Months After Scathing Safety Report, Metro North Announces Reforms

The full Hartford Courant story can be found here.