Steve Burns
WMAL.com
WASHINGTON – (WMAL) The District is finalizing its appointments to the new Metrorail Safety Commission, charged with overseeing safety measures on the Washington region’s subway system. But as the U.S. Department of Transportation continues penalizing the region for how long it is taking to get the commission up and running, officials are warning its inception could still be a a long way away.
Among the District’s appointments are Robert Bobb, a former official in Detroit Public Schools, and Chris Geldart, the former head of D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management. Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe notably appointed Mark Rosenker, the former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, along with Greg Hull, the former director of security and operations support at the American Public Transportation Association. Maryland Governor Larry Hogan tapped the former head of New York City Transit, Howard Roberts, Jr., and Debra Farrar-Dyke, who, according to her LinkedIn page, served as a Commissioner on the Maryland Transportation Commission.
All three jurisdictions have been getting penalized by the U.S. Department of Transportation after missing a February 2017 deadline to get the commission up and running. It required passage among all three legislatures and the federal government. They have yet to select an Executive Director, which could be months away. That punishment is coming in the form of reduced transit funds, which are affecting places as far away as Hampton Roads, Virginia.
“They got a lot of work in front of them,” Metro Board Chairman Jack Evans told WMAL. He said the commission was a knee-jerk reaction by then-Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx after the 2015 L’Enfant Smoke Incident, in which one person was killed and dozens more inhaled smoke aboard a stranded Yellow Line train.
“People react in a crisis and don’t necessarily think things through, and we are where we are,” Evans said. “I truly believe that (Metro General Manager) Paul Wiedefeld and our safety team at Metro are more than able to handle all of the safety concerns at Metro, but if other people feel comfortable having somebody looking over our shoulder, so be it…I think, on paper, these ideas make sense. In reality, they don’t.”
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