Heather Curtis
WMAL.com
WASHINGTON — (WMAL) As the Metrorail system continues to experience weekly track fires from arcing insulators and a slew of other problems, members of a House committee will get another opportunity to grill Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority management at a hearing Tuesday.
Rep. Don Beyer described the last hearing in April as uncomfortable but necessary as committee members put WMATA’s General Manager Paul Wiedefeld and Board Chair Jack Evans on the spot about issues including safety, reliability, accountability and funding.
Beyer said he hopes the funding talk will continue but this time without arguing and raising voices.
“Clearly we need a stable funding stream, not just from Congress but from the local government’s also,” Beyer told WMAL.
Right now the federal government contributes nothing to metro, something Evans has stressed time and time again to that committee, his board and anyone who will listen.
Evans asked the federal government for $300 million to go toward Metro’s operating budget. Rep. John Mica told him at the last committee hearing that’s not going to happen saying the District should step up to the plate and dip into its $2 billion reserve fund. He also said if Metro needs more money, they should turn to Maryland and Virginia.
Beyer said the people on this committee aren’t the ones who decide on funding anyway.
Rep. John Delaney agrees Metro needs more money. He said Metro also needs better governance.
Delaney said board members need to have expertise in transit, safety, management or finance, something that isn’t the case now.
“Creating standards for the Metro board will lead to a better strategy, setting of priorities that are more consistent with what its riders deserve and holding management accountable,” Delaney said.
He said a more qualified board would have the ability to really think out decisions and have discussions about the pros and cons of each decision before it’s made.
Last month, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx abruptly replaced the three federal representatives on the board.
Delaney said the other representatives can be ousted now if the jurisdictions decide to take that route.
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