WMATA Silver Line Phase I to open 26 July (was: Delayed Indefinitely)

[Ryan]

If you'll pardon the pun, this sounds like a first rate train wreck.

http://www.wusa9.com/story/news/local/reston/2014/03/19/metro-silver-line-suspended-indefinitely/6615713/

RESTON, Va. (WUSA9) -- The opening of the new Silver Line has been indefinitely delayed because of serious problems with the train communication system and other issues.

"This has turned into a soap opera," said Former Congressman Tom Davis who chairs MWAA's Dulles Corridor Committee. He says the fault belongs with the contractor, Dulles Transit Partners.

Pat Nowakawski, the Silver Line Project Director is dealing with a major set back on the phase one of the rail line. The communications system that allows trains on the new line to communicate with the Metro Control Center does not work correctly and will have to be replaced.

Edit 6/9/14: Title edited, it looks like we may actually see this in action sometime this summer. Maybe? Hopefully?

Edit: 6/23/14: Opening date announced!

 

[Acela150]

All the options of the poll are farfetched right??

 

[afigg]

Washington Post article with more details on the problems but not quite as pessimistic as the WUSA story: Problems with speakers, cable add to Silver Line delays. Phase 1 has turned into a serious series of screw-ups. The signal interface issue between the IP based Silver Line extension circuitry and the older rest of the system hardware is the most serious from what I can tell and could be the most expensive to fix. Lot of finger pointing at the other guy between MWAA and the contractor Dulles Transit Partners.

But the speaker system in the stations? Not compliant with the fire codes? How the heck did that happen?

Excerpts from the Post article:

Among the problems that must be fixed before the first phase of Metro’s new $5.6 billion Silver Line is completed: Hundreds of speakers at the five stations will have to be torn out and replaced because they don’t meet fire code. And cable that allows radio communication inside a tunnel in Tysons Corner will have to be replaced because it also does not meet code requirements.

...

Nowakowski said that the station speakers, for example, were approved for installation as part of the project’s design review process and that similar equipment is used in the current Metro system. But state inspectors said they could not approve them for use because they do not meet code requirements.

He also said he will ask the board next month to approve a contract for the system that feeds train information — including location — to Metro’s control center, because efforts to make the current equipment work have failed. According to Metro officials, the replacement of the equipment would not further delay the start of passenger service, because the line could be operated for a short time without it in place.

They started running test trains on the tracks around a year ago as I recall. I thought it would open for revenue service by early this year. Oops. A July or August start of revenue service timeframe is now looking optimistic. <sigh>

 

[MattW]

I don't see the option for Desert Wind, Pioneer, and Sunset East being restored!

 

[jis]

I don't see the option for Desert Wind, Pioneer, and Sunset East being restored!

And the Tunnel. What about the Tunnel? Just throwing it in before Andrew pipes up :giggle: :hi:

 

[AmtrakBlue]

I don't see the option for Desert Wind, Pioneer, and Sunset East being restored!

And the Tunnel. What about the Tunnel? Just throwing it in before Andrew pipes up :giggle: :hi:

:giggle:

 

[Tracktwentynine]

When will the Silver Line (Phase I) open?

In the year 2525,

if man is still alive;

If woman can survive;

They may find...

In the year 3535, still gonna need to take the bus to Tysons.

Everywhere you live, work, and play, is on the bus you took today.

In year 5555, your arms are hanging limp at your side;

Your legs got nothin' to do; Silver Line ain't coming too soon.

In the year 7510, if trains are comin', they oughta make it by then.

Maybe we'll look around Fairfax and say, 'guess it's time for the WMATA day.'

In the year 8510, Sarles is gonna shake his mighty hand;

He'll either say 'I'm pleased where Metro's been',

Or tear it down and start again. whoa-oh-oah.

In the year 9595, I'm kinda wondering if Silver's gonna have arrived.

It's taken everything this old Earth can give, and it ain't even open.

Now it's been 10,000 years;

Riders cried a billion tears;

For what, we never knew.

Metro's reign is through...

But through eternal hell,

The dawdling of Bechtel,

So very far away,

Maybe it's on its way.

In the year 2525, if man is still alive;

If woman can survive; they may find...

The Silver Line will arrive.

(Apologies to Zager and Evans).

 

[afigg]

When will the Silver Line (Phase I) open?

In the year 2525,

if man is still alive;

If woman can survive;

They may find...

I don't think SL Phase 1 will be delayed quite that long. It may still beat the No. 7 line extension in NYC to start of revenue service since the No. 7 extension slipped to a November 2014 projected start from June. Those are both heavy rail rapid transit expansion projects and since there are so few of those in the US these days, might as well compete them against each other (in a way).

 

[afigg]

More details on the problems with the station speakers, signal boxes, and legal finger pointing that is sure to follow for Phase 1 from Transportation Nation site: What's Delaying the Silver Line? Pull Up a Chair. I expect that the managers and lawyers for MWAA and Dulles Transport Partners are at work preparing for the legal disputes on who pays for the delay and problems.

Excerpts:

One problem cited by Nowakowski illustrates how a multi-billion dollar project of heavy infrastructure can get snagged on a small ticket, but nonetheless important, item.

Every speaker installed in each of the five stations in Tysons Corner and Reston have to be ripped out, replaced, and tested again. The problem is not that the speakers fail to work; they are in use in the current Metro system. But the speakers are not up to the current code, an oversight by the contractors that was recently caught by state inspectors.

“They were installed and all worked, but we are now changing each and every last one of them. It was a code issue,” Nowakowski said. “You have to go out and buy all those things, there is a lead time involved, you have to change the design to do that because they are not exactly the same speakers. So we are working as quickly as we can on issues like that.”

In an interview with WAMU 88.5, Rich Sliwoski, the director of the Virginia Department of General Services, said when the speakers were installed they met the standards established in the original train station design plans for code year 2002. But six months ago either MWAA or the contractor — which one remained unclear on Wednesday — decided to make a change in the design.

The speakers, first installed to work in the public address system only, were added to an advanced fire alarm system that required a more recent code standard than 2002. A contractor is generally responsible for making sure design changes comply with building codes, Sliwoski said. The state will not issue a certificate of occupancy for the train stations until all building codes are satisfied.

After months of fruitless repairs, wayside computer units will be replaced entirely. The remote terminal units (RTUs) installed by subcontractor Alstom Signaling have failed too often under testing, although Nowakowski had believed the issue could be resolved. But on Wednesday he announced MWAA would issue a new contract for the system’s replacement.

The RTUs communicate between the Automated Train Control system that keeps trains properly spaced and Metro’s headquarters. When the safety system hits a fail-safe and stops trains in their tracks the RTUs are supposed to automatically reboot, but the RTUs have had to be manually rebooted, a glitch that disrupts the smooth operation of trains.

At least, there is some good news for transit in the DC region in that the Maryland Purple Line LRT project has received a positive Record of Decision from the FTA and the state will start buying up the property required soon.

 

[Green Maned Lion]

Looks like things are pretty well Sarled up.

 

[jis]

It is more of superb project management provided by PB, than anything that Sarles controlled.

Sent from my iPhone using Amtrak Forum

 

[Green Maned Lion]

Naturally, but like any good Rocky & Bullwinkle fan, I can't pass up an awful pun.

 

[The Davy Crockett]

I'm all ready for that February opening.

Will it be 2015, 2016, or... ????

My money is that SPUD will happen first.

I'd of voted for the streetcars in DC... EXCEPT this is DC that we are talking about - with its matter with its Gray matter - as in Vincent.

 

[CHamilton]

I'd of voted for the streetcars in DC... EXCEPT this is DC that we are talking about - with its matter with its Gray matter - as in Vincent.

With Marionberry Pie for dessert

 

[The Davy Crockett]

From TransportationNation's website:​

​

How Did Silver Line Problems Slip By?​

With Phase I of the Silver Line Metrorail project through Tysons Corner running six months (and counting) behind schedule, Northern Virginia commuters and Tysons real estate developers are wondering how the delays came about — especially when considering that the lead contractor is one of the giants in the field of construction and engineering, and several layers of oversight were put in place to prevent the very problems holding up completion.

Lots of oversight, no assignment of blame

The public agency overseeing the Silver Line’s construction, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA), has a team of at least a dozen staff assigned at the project office in Herndon. MWAA hired a construction and maintenance management firm, Washington-based Jacobs Engineering, to lead its oversight efforts. Jacobs has approximately 100 employees working on all aspects of the project. Additionally, officials from Virginia's Department of Transportation and the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation are assigned to the Silver Line’s Herndon headquarters, and the Federal Transit Administration also has an oversight role.
Yet when the contractor team led by Bechtel submitted the project for approval in late February, it was rejected with pages and pages of items that needed to be fixed, including missing certificates of occupancy for the five new rail stations in Tysons and Reston. That error by the contractors seemed mystifying, considering the stations cannot open to a single commuter unless inspectors at the Virginia Department of General Services sign off on the certificates.
“Right now we’re not focused on blame. We are focused on getting the job done,” said Tom Davis, the former Virginia congressman and current MWAA board member who was appointed to the board by then-Governor McDonnell to lead the Silver Line to completion.
“The reason you still have problems after all of this oversight is you still have to go through the inspectors. Inspectors can be a pretty ornery lot sometimes and they are sticklers, and from our point of view, we are not going to accept anything the inspectors haven’t approved,” Davis said in an interview with WAMU 88.5 FM.
Days after making their most revealing remarks to date about the specific issues holding up the Silver Line’s “substantial completion,” a milestone that was supposed to be attained in September, officials at MWAA on Monday said there is still no timetable for the end of the remedial work.
Bechtel again declined to make a company representative assigned to the Silver Line available for an interview, although a spokeswoman offered a brief statement.
“We are working together to successfully complete the project,” said Bechtel’s Michelle Michael.

 

[afigg]

Another article on the problems with Phase 1 of the Silver Line, this one from WAMU: How Did Silver Line Problems Evade Layers Of Oversight? Phase 1 will open, but perhaps the problem was too many cooks between MWAA, WMATA, FTA, all the state & local agencies, and the contractors. Excerpt:

Phase I of the Silver Line Metrorail project through Tysons Corner is running six months (and counting) behind schedule. Northern Virginia commuters and Tysons real estate developers have reason to ask how these delays came about, especially when considering the following: the lead contractor is one of the giants in the field of construction and engineering, and several layers of oversight were put in place to prevent the very problems holding up completion.

Lots of oversight, no assignment of blame
The public agency overseeing the Silver Line’s construction, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA), has a team of at least a dozen staff assigned at the project office in Herndon. MWAA hired a construction and maintenance management firm, Washington-based Jacobs Engineering, to lead its oversight efforts. Jacobs has approximately 100 employees working on all aspects of the project. Additionally, officials from VDOT and the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation are assigned to the Silver Line’s Herndon headquarters, and the Federal Transit Administration also has an oversight role.

More follows about the April 9 deadline when the contractor DTP could be accessed a penalty fine of $25K a day. Good news for the lawyers.

 

[afigg]

Update on Phase 1 of the Silver Line. In classic DC fashion, it is unnamed sources, but according to WTOP, Phase 1 may indeed start service by the 4th of July. WTOP exclusive: Silver Line on track to open by July 4.

WASHINGTON -- The Silver Line could be up and running by July 4 after significant progress throughout the last few weeks, sources familiar with the project tell WTOP.

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority continues to run tests on the tracks and the contractor building the Silver Line could get approval to turn the project over to Metro within the next two weeks.

Multiple sources tell WTOP that it's more likely that the Silver Line will be completed and certified before the end of the month than it being delayed into May. Once MWAA certifies the project as complete, it would turn over the project to Metro. Project Director Pat Nowakowski has told WTOP the time between certification and turnover to Metro would be quick.

So, did the prospect of $25K a day in penalties starting on April 9 get the attention of the contractor and focus their efforts?

 

[afigg]

More news on the saga of Phase 1 of the Silver Line. The contractor, DTP, is going to submit the project again to MWAA for review: Third Time's The Charm? Contractor To Submit Silver Line For Approval.

Bechtel announced today that Dulles Transit Partners, the Bechtel-led team building Phase 1 of the Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, has made significant progress on all major work and plans to submit the project to MWAA for substantial completion designation soon,” the contractor said in a statement released late Tuesday afternoon.

Earlier Tuesday, MWAA board member Tom Davis, who was appointed to the board by former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell to see the Silver Line to completion, says that he expected a submission of “substantial completion” in the next few days prior to MWAA's next scheduled board of directors meeting on April 16.

If soon means this week, then the MWAA Board meeting on April 16 is likely where there would be an official announcement of whether MWAA will accept Phase 1 or tell DTP they have more work to do. Then it will be up to WMATA to check the system over and start on their operational testing. Hopefully MWAA and WMATA will learn from the Phase 1 problems and have a smoother process for Phase 2.

Still a race between the H St streetcar project and Silver Line Phase 1 to see which one will be delayed the least and start service first.

 

[The Davy Crockett]

My money is that SPUD will happen first.

Hmmm... It looks like SPUD is ahead in the home stretch! Good luck must have just stung me when I made that bet at the track. I wonder what "little Bessie" will do with her half of the winnings?

Now... moving away from Up On Cripple Creek...

From RestonNow:

Metro’s Silver Line has not yet opened, but the Washington Metropolitan Airports Authority (MWAA) is already seeking a $1.8 million technology upgrade of the Automatic Train Control system. [emphasis added]

MWAA is building the Silver Line rail extension. The 11-mile, $2.8 billion Phase 1 of the Silver Line will run from East Falls Church to Reston’s Wiehle Avenue. When it is satisfactorily completed — a decision that could come in the next two weeks — the project will be turned over to Metro, which will then conduct its own testing before setting an opening date.

The Dulles Corridor Committee of the MWAA Board of Directors on Wednesday approved awarding a sole source contract to Alstom Signaling, Inc., of Henrietta, N.Y. for an Automatic Train Control (ATC) technology upgrade.

Alstom previously installed the Horton Remote Terminal Units (RTUs) as part of the design of the Automatic Train Control System. That system is used throughout the existing Metro system, MWAA says.

But in testing the system for the Silver Line,t he RTUs have proven faulty.

“The Horton RTUs have proven unreliable in the Phase 1 application,” MWAA documents read. “Increased reliability can be achieved by incorporating the use of integral circuit boards in the Alstom Vital Processor Interlock (VPI) instead of using RTU equipment.”

“This is a reliability issue, not a safety issue,” the documents read. “The technology upgrade will take one year to complete.”

MWAA says that it will advise Dulles Transit Partners, the Bechtel unit that constructed the rail line, to make adjustments to improve reliability. It also says that once service begins, WMATA (Metro) will provide “extra staffing at the Project’s expense to ensure reliability” and that Alstom is the only contractor able to provide the necessary equipment for the upgrades.

MWA officials said early Wednesday that roughly $23 million is available in the Silver Line contingency fund.

The ATC system has been a bug in constructing the Silver Line — and it is crucial to get it right. In 2009, the system failed to detect the presence of a train on the tracks leading to a Red Line crash that killed nine people and injured dozens of others.

In June, Federal Transit Administrator Peter Rogoff said he was troubled by unauthorized design changes Alstom made without consulting Metro. In addition, because of a shortage of equipment, Alstom workers allegedly moved some control boards from one monitoring station to another, which meant they were checking the same set of boards rather than new ones, according to The Washington Post.

In November, more issues with the ATC system were found, leading to a delay of several months.

While an official opening date was never announced, Phase 1 was originally estimated to be ready to hand off to Metro last summer for a December 2013 opening. Last spring, that was moved to a November turnover. In November, the project was delayed further while problems with the Automatic Train Control System were addressed.

On Feb. 7, DTP announced it had reached “substantial completion,” meaning it felt the construction was finished. MWAA completed a two-week review and found a host of problems, including some with the ATC system.

DTP says it fixed the problems, and on April 9 — the same day $25,000 a day penalties would kick in as part of the construction contract — submitted the project again. MWAA is in the midst of another 15-day review.

And while we are on the topic of Phase 1...

Also From RestonNow:

Pat Nowakowski, executive director of the Dulles Corridor Rail Project, will step down to take a position with another transit agency, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority announced on Wednesday. [emphasis added]

Nowakowski has been the face of the Silver Line project as it proceeded from idea to the brink of opening.

Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority CEO Jack Potter says MWAA will conduct a nationwide search for Nowakowski’s replacement.

HMMMM... Could there be a connection between the Silver Line Phase 1's problems and delays and this last news item? :huh:

Or am I just jumping on The Bandwagon? :blink: :blink:

 

[afigg]

HMMMM... Could there be a connection between the Silver Line Phase 1's problems and delays and this last news item? :huh:

Or am I just jumping on The Bandwagon? :blink: :blink:

I think he got pushed...

It is not entirely his fault as the lead contractor clearly messed up on some items. But Phase 1 is going to be at least 6 months late and has burned through almost all of the Phase 1 contingency funds. Mr. Nowakowski is the executive director, so he is ultimately responsible for managing the project.

The MWAA board meeting was today, but I don't see any news reports on whether DTP's submission last week is going to be accepted or not. There is a 15 day review period that started when DTP submitted the Phase 1 project as complete on April 9, so MWAA has until next week to say yes or no. Have to wait to find out if Mr. Nowakowski was asked to leave because Phase 1 is going to encounter another delay & that was the last straw or if the board thinks it will be accepted next week, so Mr. Nowakowski can save face by officially completing Phase 1 and then leave.

 

[afigg]

DC Metro Silver Line Phase 1 is now no longer delayed indefinitely, but the start of service date is still vague, maybe July or August (or September or Oct...). MWAA and WMATA reached an agreement to turn the Phase 1 segment over to MWAA soon while MWAA and the contractor still have a punch list of items to complete before operational service can begin.

Washington Post: Metro, MWAA agreement puts Silver Line on course to open in summer. First several paragraphs:

After seven months of delays and tens of millions of dollars in cost overruns, there is finally some good news: Passengers could be boarding Metro Silver Line trains this summer.

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority and Metro announced Thursday that they have reached an agreement that will allow MWAA additional time to complete its work on the $5.6 billion rail line even after the project is turned over to the transit authority.

The agreement means there won’t be the speedy turnover many had hoped for, but it provides a clear outline for what needs to be done to get the new rail line running.

For those interested in the details, a copy of the 11 page agreement is available here. There is a rather long list of items to be fixed or corrected. Not a list that lends confidence to opening Phase 1 before July or August.

 

[afigg]

More news on the status of the testing and fixes for Phase 1: Metro: Silver Line On Track For Service Sometime This Summer. (Putting this into the Phase 1 here rather than Phase 2 thread). If it not one thing, then its another. <sigh>

Excerpt

Troup said there are 13 pre-operation readiness (ORD) categories, and those categories have 33 subsets of fixes. Among those deemed fixed are station leaks (including some at Wiehle-Reston East) and a loss of speed readout issue. Faulty wiring in the station speakers is on its way to being fixed, as is an issue with the Horton Remote Terminal Units (RTUs), which help run the crucial Automatic Train Control software, said Troup.

The RTU issueis not a vital safety issue, said Troup. It is a reliability issue.

Troup said Metro wants 98 percent RTU reliability. After Metro accepts operational readiness, there will be a complete changeout of the system.

Over the weekend, an issue arose with the bobbing track circuit, said Troup. Bobbing Track Circuits have to do with the junction of the Silver and Orange lines east of the East Falls Church Station. A circuit will go into a false sense of occupancy and the approaching train will go into a braking mode, said Troup.

The April 23 agreement called for adding four blocking capacitors to address the issue. The fixes fared well in testing, but over the weekend one failed, said Troup. He said this is also a reliability issue and not a safety issue, and after operational readiness this will also have a system upgrade.

Additional testing is being performed to see if the failure was a system issue or a component failure. Those test results should be available on Tuesday, Troup said.

The good news is at least it is not the East Side Access project. Now that has delays...

 

[afigg]

Another news update on the saga of Phase 1 of the DC Metro Silver Line. Good news for once with WMATA aiming to take control of Phase 1 by May 27. Once WMATA takes official control, they are to start revenue service within 90 days. So service could start on a Saturday sometime in late July to late August. Sarles, the head of WMATA, may announce the actual start date sometime in June.

Washington Post: Metro plans to take control of Silver Line next week. Excerpts:

The start of testing May 27 would raise hopes that trains carrying commuters could begin running in late July or early August. Although Metro has 90 days to complete its testing, Sarles has hinted that the transit authority might not need the full three months.

...

Speculation on when the rail line will begin carrying passengers has become a parlor game for those who have monitored the Silver Lines progress. With the stations mostly complete and some test trains being run, passersby have been fooled into thinking that the Silver Line is open for business.

Hey, don't look at us when mentioning parlor games. We are running a serious poll guessing game here!

 

[The Davy Crockett]

This quote from this item at washingtoncitypaper.com is appropriate for this thread:

Perhaps chastened by the backlash against earlier missed deadlines, Metro stopped short of announcing an opening date any more specific than the summer season.

Still, the Silver Line has thrown down the gauntlet with a forecast opening time, however vague. Will the streetcar, already more than two months behind Mayor Vince Gray's pledge, pick it up and aim for an earlier date in the increasingly ridiculous race between the two?

 

[afigg]

At last, actual progress towards starting service on Phase 1 of the Silver Line. WMATA officially took control of the Phase 1 tracks and station today on May 27 which starts the clock on starting revenue service in 90 days.

Washington Post: Silver Line now in hand, Metro begins testing, training with eyes on a summer opening.

Metro officials took control of the Silver Line on Tuesday, saying they have “a high level of confidence” they’ll be able to complete the necessary testing and training in time for a summer opening.

“Obviously, we’re very pleased,” said Metro Deputy General Manger Rob Troup. “We would not have reached this [point] if we were not confident of being able to do the testing within the time frame.’’

Troup said officials have set an aggressive schedule for ensuring Metro personnel and others are familiar with the ins and outs of the first phase of the $5.6 billion rail line before it begins carrying passengers. Under the transit agency’s agreement with the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA), which is overseeing construction of the line, Metro has 90 days to complete all its work. But because some testing and training has already occurred, some officials believe Metro will not need the full three months.

However, there are caveats expressed later in the article on start of service in that the contractor still has some items to complete and the FTA has to approve the line for operation. So it looks as if it will be a while before WMATA is prepared to announce an official start of service date.