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BBD PTC 4.18.19
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CT Post: Recalled parts threaten Metro-North PTC safety deadline
Apr 18, 2019 | CT Post
By Bill Cummings
Hundreds of defective antenna assemblies for Metro-North’s long anticipated Positive Train Control safety system have been recalled, threatening further delays in an already delayed project. -
Newsday: MTA gives PTC contractor ultimatum: Get here for questions or you're 'fired'
Apr 17, 2019 | Newsday
By Alfonso Castillo
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority's board, frustrated with the installation of federally mandated crash prevention technology for the Long Island Rail Road and Metro-North Railroad, on Wednesday threatened to fire its contractor if its CEO doesn't show up at its next board meeting. -
Newsday: Problems persist with installation of crash prevention technology on LIRR trains
Apr 18, 2019 | Newsday
By Alfonso Castillo
The installation of positive train control on Long Island Rail Road trains ran into another problem while replacing undercar scanner antennas, officials told members of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board’s railroad committee. -
Government Technology: LIRR Train Crash Prevention Tech Hits Another Snag
Apr 16, 2019 | Government Technology
By Alfonso Castillo
(Syndicated from Newsday) The installation of positive train control on Long Island Rail Road trains ran into another problem while replacing undercar scanner antennas, officials told members of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board’s railroad committee. -
News 12 Long Island: Mistake adds another delay to LIRR PTC installation
Apr 15, 2019 | News 12 Long Island
Problems are still plaguing the Long Island Rail Road's effort to install a system that can slow or stop a train in an emergency. -
WCBS 880: LIRR Faces Another Setback As Deadline To Install Safety System Nears
| WCBS 880
The LIRR has run into another problem as it looks to install a federally mandated system to prevent crashes. -
Just Your Friendly Neighborhood Transit Reporter
Apr 15, 2019 | Twitter
How did every PTC antenna end up being recalled from LIRR? (Simplified version) They were not properly calibrated because a key component was soldered, when it needed to be bolted down. #TGDOTM -
Alfonso Castillo
Apr 15, 2019 | Twitter
In fixing one mistake in how they were installing PTC tech on #LIRR trains, the railroad's contractor discovered it had made another mistake. @newsday -
Andrew Siff
Apr 18, 2019 | Twitter
The @MTA has been grilling execs from @Siemens and @Bombardier about ongoing problems installing Positive Train Control. #PTC One board member called the issues “unacceptable” and a “failure.” #NBC4NY -
Just Your Friendly Neighborhood Transit Reporter
Apr 18, 2019 | Twitter
MTA Board "pulls procurement" of PTC contract for Siemens and Bombardier until they explain in more details why LIRR installation screwed up. Wants CEOs to come to MTA to explain what went wrong, not just "send their minions." Possible "disbarment" from future contracts. -
News12LI
Apr 18, 2019 | Twitter
Another setback for PTC installation on @LIRR -
Andrew Ehinger
Apr 16, 2019 | Twitter
Ugh! Mistake adds another delay to #LIRR #PTC installation #commuter -
Alfonso Castillo
Apr 17, 2019 | Twitter
MTA to its beleaguered PTC contractor: Get your CEO here or “you’re fired.” @Newsday -
Michael Sheridan
Apr 17, 2019 | Twitter
MTA gives PTC contractor ultimatum: Get here for questions or you're 'fired' https://nwsdy.li/2KV4GIq via @Newsday
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CT Post: Recalled parts threaten Metro-North PTC safety deadline
Apr 18, 2019 | CT Post
By Bill Cummings
Hundreds of defective antenna assemblies for Metro-North’s long anticipated Positive Train Control safety system have been recalled, threatening further delays in an already delayed project.
More than 1,200 scanner assemblies that allow trains to communicate with a central system were recalled over defective parts. The signals allow the lifesaving PTC system to control trains, slowing or stopping them if they are operating in an unsafe manner.
“I will tell you none of us accept this level of failure,” said Neal Zuckerman, a Metropolitan Transportation Authority board member during a meeting this week in New York City.
“It is completely unacceptable,” Zuckerman said.
The problem centers around antenna assemblies manufactured by Siemens Rail Automation for Metro-North and the Long Island Rail Road under a $428 million contract shared with Bombardier Transportation.Related StoriesLamont pitches tolls for rail improvementsHigh-tech safety system still not complete on Metro-North
The PTC system transmits signals to and from rail cars to a central computer that tracks movement, speed and track conditions.
So far, 285 defective units were recalled from Metro-North trains and are due to be replaced by July.
Another 976 defective units were recalled for LIRR trains and are scheduled to be replaced by October, MTA officials said.
Deborah Chin, the PTC project manager, said the recall will not cause the railroads to miss the Dec. 31, 2020 federal deadline to fully install PTC control on its trains.
“We still remain on target to implement by end of 2020,” Chin said.
Metro-North and its parent, the MTA, are under pressure to meet that deadline. The railroad already missed a December 2018 deadline to install the system.
The railroads received a two-year extension from federal regulators — until the end of 2020 — to complete the project.
It’s widely believed PTC would have prevented a 2013 Metro-North derailment in the Bronx that killed four people and injured dozens of other passengers after a train overturned on a curve because it was traveling too fast.
MTA board members this week expressed frustration and anger over Siemens inability to provide the antenna assemblies on time and in working condition, prompting Lawrence Schwartz, an MTA board member, to threaten to fire the company.
As Siemens officials looked on, Schwartz noted the New York State legislature recently adopted a “disbarment” law that allows agencies to prevent underperforming companies from receiving future work.
“We have the legal right to disbar you,” Schwartz said.
Chin noted that last week the LIRR installed a repaired antenna unit that still didn’t work. She said MTA has placed officials in an oversight capacity at the company’s Pittsburg plant.
John Paljug, a Siemens executive, told board members that the company discovered a “tuning problem” with the antenna assembly and another internal issue.
“We have been making this product since 1997 and never had a systematic recall,” Paljug said. “This is first time this system reached this level of recall. We want the product to work as designed.”
Paljug said a second shift has been added to the manufacturing center to turn out modified devices.
“We adapted a new way of mounting it and we are finishing our vibration testing,” Paljug said. “It’s a big effort by the business and we are throwing people, talent and facilities at it right now.”
Jim Gildea, chairman of the Connecticut Commuter Rail Council, said if Metro-North can replace the scanners by July the PTC project may be able to stay on schedule.
“With PTC, we are told that everything is moving ahead, or they are on schedule, and then a pretty big variable such as this occurs and it seems to come from nowhere and it’s not well communicated,” Gildea said.
Kevin Law, an MTA board member, said commuters are owed an apology.
“As the largest commuter lines in the country, I find it egregious that we are still talking about delays and it’s unacceptable,” Law said.
“I don’t understand how this has been allowed to happen,” he added. “It’s hard to fathom. I believe commuters on both rails deserve an apology.”
Metro-North also has faced delays in receiving the complicated software necessary to make the PTC system operate.
https://www.ctpost.com/news/article/Recalled-parts-threaten-Metro-North-PTC-safety-13775566.php
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Newsday: MTA gives PTC contractor ultimatum: Get here for questions or you're 'fired'
Apr 17, 2019 | Newsday
By Alfonso Castillo
The MTA is threatening to cut its business ties with the company behind some of the recent gaffes in the installation of new crash prevention technology on the Long Island Rail Road.
At a Manhattan meeting of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority board on Monday, board member Laurence Schwartz told representatives in attendance from Siemens Mobility Inc. that if its chief executive officer, Joe Kaeser, does not attend the agency's next board meeting in May to answer questions about the recent problems with the installation of positive train control technology on the LIRR and Metro-North Railroad, Siemens would be "fired."
Informally polled by new MTA Chairman Patrick Foye on whether they agreed with Schwartz's proposal, board members unanimously gestured that they did.Patrick Foye, an LIRR commuter, presides over his first Metropolitan Transportation Authority meeting as chairman on Monday in NYC.
The rare step of "debarring" a contractor would exclude Siemens, an international technology conglomerate, from future consideration for contracts with the MTA, which Foye said has paid Siemens "hundreds of millions of dollars" for various projects in recent years.
Foye on Monday called the company's recent performance "shockingly appalling" and rife with "repeated instances of incompetence."
"I think they and their counterparts may take our business for granted," said Foye, adding that it would be up to the MTA's lawyers to figure out the logistics of parting ways with Siemens. "Our preferred solution is to get the project done."
Positive train control, or PTC, works by having the antennas on trains communicate with radio transponders installed along tracks to automatically slow down or stop a train that goes too fast or violates a signal.Get the Newsday Morning Update newsletter!
“Siemens Mobility is committed to providing MTA — and all of our — customers with the highest quality intelligent infrastructure technologies that result in safe, reliable and efficient transportation for their passengers,” the company said in a statement.
The latest dust up with the contractor came after Siemens, while in the process of addressing a calibration error that resulted in the recall of about 1,000 "undercar scanner antennas" needed for PTC, realized it had made another mistake in how it was installing a related electrical component — soldering them onto circuit boards rather than bolting them, as specified by the manufacturer.
In a statement, Siemens officials said they are working with the MTA "to address the matter as quickly as possible and have completed a comprehensive review of the entire assembly process with engineering, quality, and manufacturing prior to restarting our production line.”
Siemens, which is working with Bombardier Transportation on the contract, said it is also adding personnel and other resources to complete the project on time.
The latest blunder further setback the MTA’s effort to meet a federal mandate to have PTC fully in place on the LIRR and Metro-North by the end of 2020.
Under the U.S. Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008, which stemmed from a Chatsworth, California, commuter train crash that killed 25 people, railroads were required to have PTC in place by the end of 2015. When it became apparent that most railroads could not meet the deadline, federal lawmakers agreed to push it to 2018. Having encountered various delays, the LIRR last year sought and was granted another extension until 2020 to complete the project. Missing the deadline could result in fines as high as $27,904 a day.
Despite the latest glitch, MTA officials said they still expect to meet the deadline.
Alfonso Castillo has been reporting for Newsday since 1999 and covering the transportation beat since 2008. He grew up in the Bronx and Queens and now lives in Valley Stream with his wife and two sons.
https://www.newsday.com/long-island/transportation/mta-lirr-foye-chairman-siemens-1.29918346
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Newsday: Problems persist with installation of crash prevention technology on LIRR trains
Apr 18, 2019 | Newsday
By Alfonso Castillo
An MTA contractor, while working to fix an error in how it was installing positive train control technology on Long Island Rail Road trains, has discovered it made another mistake — further setting back completion of the federally required, $1 billion crash-prevention project, officials said Monday.
The news came at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board’s railroad committee meeting in Manhattan, where board members received an update on the project. Deborah Chin, the MTA’s director of positive train control, or PTC, said that during re-installation of one of hundreds of “undercar scanner antennas” recently recalled because of calibration errors, workers discovered another mistake in how a related component was being installed.
Chin said that contrary to the manufacturer’s directions, workers from the MTA’s PTC contractor, a joint venture of Bombardier Transportation and Siemens Rail Automation, had been soldering “variable capacitors” onto the antennas' circuit boards, rather than bolting them.An eastbound Long Island Rail Road train enters Jamaica station on Aug. 5, 2015.
“We corrected that [original problem] and started to move forward, only to find it was masking another problem,” said Siemens Mobility Management president John Palichug, who acknowledged the heat applied to the electrical component from the soldering “changed its characteristics” and made it defective.
PTC works by having the antennas on trains communicate with radio transponders installed along tracks to automatically slow down or stop a train that goes too fast or violates a signal.
The latest blunder — coming less than two months after the contractor vowed it had stepped up its quality-control efforts — incensed MTA officials, including the authority’s new chairman, Patrick Foye, who called the error “appalling.”
“None of us would accept this level of failure from a brother-in-law or a sister-in-law. I would not accept this from a startup,” MTA Board member Neal Zuckerman told the contractors’ representatives at the meeting. “I certainly would not accept it from an $80 billion revenue, publicly traded company that serves across the globe … It is a completely unacceptable standard.”Get the Newsday Morning Update newsletter!
Chin said the latest foul-up sets the project back another “couple of weeks,” as the contractor has to make further repairs to nearly 1,000 LIRR train antennas before they can be reinstalled. The contractors said they are testing a solution to the new problem, and aim to have it resolved by October.
Under the U.S. Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008, which stemmed from a Chatsworth, California, commuter train crash that killed 25 people, railroads were required to have PTC in place by the end of 2015. When it became apparent that most railroads could not meet the deadline, federal lawmakers agreed to push it to 2018. Having encountered various delays, the LIRR last year sought and was granted another extension until 2020 to complete the project. Missing the deadline could result in fines as high as $27,904 a day.
Despite the latest glitch, MTA officials said they still expect to meet the deadline, but acknowledged several issues are threatening the project’s timely completion.
Following the discovery of the original scanner antenna recall, the MTA conducted an audit of the contractor’s PTC manufacturing facility in Pittsburgh, and found the contractor’s “recall repair process was not well established,” nor properly staffed, Chin said. The contractor also has been slow to resolve a software problem unique to the LIRR’s track switching system.
Palichug said Siemens and Bombardier remain committed to meeting the MTA’s schedule, and have added “a tremendous number of people” to the effort.
“We’re certainly throwing people and talent and facilities at it right now,” Palichug said.
Unconvinced of the contractors’ ability to effectively manage the project, MTA officials said they will continue to have representatives monitor their work. MTA Board member Susan Metzger told the contractors’ representatives they “should feel totally embarrassed” that such a measure is necessary.
State Sen. James Gaughran (D-Huntington), in a statement, said the MTA shared the blame “for allowing careless mistakes to perpetuate and attempting to minimize these tremendous errors.” He noted that, at a Senate hearing in Mineola last month, MTA officials assured lawmakers they were taking the necessary steps to prevent further mistakes in the project.
“If we cannot count on the MTA's hand-picked contractor to complete this project competently or the MTA to properly oversee it, then what are we doing here?” Gaughran said.
Alfonso Castillo has been reporting for Newsday since 1999 and covering the transportation beat since 2008. He grew up in the Bronx and Queens and now lives in Valley Stream with his wife and two sons.
https://www.newsday.com/long-island/transportation/lirr-positive-train-control-1.29833693
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Government Technology: LIRR Train Crash Prevention Tech Hits Another Snag
Apr 16, 2019 | Government Technology
By Alfonso Castillo
An MTA contractor, while working to fix an error in how it was installing positive train control technology on Long Island Rail Road trains, has discovered it made another mistake — further setting back completion of the federally required, $1 billion crash-prevention project, officials said Monday.
The news came at the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board’s railroad committee meeting in Manhattan, where board members received an update on the project. Deborah Chin, the MTA’s director of positive train control, or PTC, said that during re-installation of one of hundreds of “undercar scanner antennas” recently recalled because of calibration errors, workers discovered another mistake in how a related component was being installed.
Chin said that contrary to the manufacturer’s directions, workers from the MTA’s PTC contractor, a joint venture of Bombardier Transportation and Siemens Rail Automation, had been soldering “variable capacitors” onto the antennas' circuit boards, rather than bolting them.
“We corrected that [original problem] and started to move forward, only to find it was masking another problem,” said Siemens Mobility Management president John Palichug, who acknowledged the heat applied to the electrical component from the soldering “changed its characteristics” and made it defective.
PTC works by having the antennas on trains communicate with radio transponders installed along tracks to automatically slow down or stop a train that goes too fast or violates a signal.
The latest blunder — coming less than two months after the contractor vowed it had stepped up its quality-control efforts — incensed MTA officials, including the authority’s new chairman, Patrick Foye, who called the error “appalling.”
“None of us would accept this level of failure from a brother-in-law or a sister-in-law. I would not accept this from a startup,” MTA Board member Neal Zuckerman told the contractors’ representatives at the meeting. “I certainly would not accept it from an $80 billion revenue, publicly traded company that serves across the globe … It is a completely unacceptable standard.”
Chin said the latest foul-up sets the project back another “couple of weeks,” as the contractor has to make further repairs to nearly 1,000 LIRR train antennas before they can be reinstalled. The contractors said they are testing a solution to the new problem, and aim to have it resolved by October.
Under the U.S. Rail Safety Improvement Act of 2008, which stemmed from a Chatsworth, California, commuter train crash that killed 25 people, railroads were required to have PTC in place by the end of 2015. When it became apparent that most railroads could not meet the deadline, federal lawmakers agreed to push it to 2018. Having encountered various delays, the LIRR last year sought and was granted another extension until 2020 to complete the project. Missing the deadline could result in fines as high as $27,904 a day.
Despite the latest glitch, MTA officials said they still expect to meet the deadline, but acknowledged several issues are threatening the project’s timely completion.
Following the discovery of the original scanner antenna recall, the MTA conducted an audit of the contractor’s PTC manufacturing facility in Pittsburgh, and found the contractor’s “recall repair process was not well established,” nor properly staffed, Chin said. The contractor also has been slow to resolve a software problem unique to the LIRR’s track switching system.
Palichug said Siemens and Bombardier remain committed to meeting the MTA’s schedule, and have added “a tremendous number of people” to the effort.
“We’re certainly throwing people and talent and facilities at it right now,” Palichug said.
Unconvinced of the contractors’ ability to effectively manage the project, MTA officials said they will continue to have representatives monitor their work. MTA Board member Susan Metzger told the contractors’ representatives they “should feel totally embarrassed” that such a measure is necessary.
State Sen. James Gaughran, D-Huntington, in a statement, said the MTA shared the blame “for allowing careless mistakes to perpetuate and attempting to minimize these tremendous errors.” He noted that, at a Senate hearing in Mineola last month, MTA officials assured lawmakers they were taking the necessary steps to prevent further mistakes in the project.
“If we cannot count on the MTA's hand-picked contractor to complete this project competently or the MTA to properly oversee it, then what are we doing here?” Gaughran said.
https://www.govtech.com/fs/infrastructure/LIRR-Train-Crash-Prevention-Tech-Hits-Another-Snag.html
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News 12 Long Island: Mistake adds another delay to LIRR PTC installation
Apr 15, 2019 | News 12 Long Island
Problems are still plaguing the Long Island Rail Road's effort to install a system that can slow or stop a train in an emergency.
Positive train control, or PTC, is a federally mandated electronic crash prevention system that is set to be installed on all LIRR trains. It automatically slows down or stops a train that goes too fast or violates a signal.
During a committee meeting Monday, a Metropolitan Transportation Authority contractor said a mistake was discovered in how PTC was being installed on train cars, which is now delaying the project even more.
After several delays, the LIRR was given another extension, this time to 2020, to finish implementing PTC. The agency could be fined up to $27,000 a day if it doesn't.
MORE: Defective equipment delays PTC installation on LIRR
State Sen. Jim Gaughran says PTC needs to be finished by the deadline or sooner and that hundreds of thousands of LIRR riders count on the MTA to ensure their safety.
News 12 spoke with some commuters who say they weren't surprised by the delay, with one person saying "there's always issues."
MTA officials say they still expect to meet the 2020 deadline.
http://longisland.news12.com/story/40311735/mistake-adds-another-delay-to-lirr-ptc-installation
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WCBS 880: LIRR Faces Another Setback As Deadline To Install Safety System Nears
| WCBS 880
The LIRR has run into another problem as it looks to install a federally mandated system to prevent crashes.
The positive train control system will allow trains to slow down or stop automatically.
The MTA is required to have PTC on all its trains by the end of 2020 or face a $27,000 a day fine.
But the $1 billion project to install it has run into one problem after another.
Earlier this year, the under-car antennas were recalled.
Then during a committee meeting this week, an MTA contractor revealed that PTC wasn’t being installed properly on train cars.
MTA board members, including new member Kevin Law, are not happy.
“Given the fact that we are the largest commuter rail line, I really just find it egregious and unacceptable,” Law said.
Board member Neal Zuckerman agrees.
“None of us would accept this level of failure from a brother-in-law or sister-in-law, and I certainly would not accept it from a publicly traded $80 billion-revenue company,” he said.
A third party will now monitor the contractors in charge of the project to make sure they don’t make any more mistakes.
https://wcbs880.radio.com/articles/lirr-faces-another-setback-deadline-install-safety-system-nears
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Just Your Friendly Neighborhood Transit Reporter
Apr 15, 2019 | Twitter
https://twitter.com/s_nessen/status/1117792215550578688
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Apr 15, 2019 | Twitter
https://twitter.com/AlfonsoReports/status/1117843696576339970
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Apr 18, 2019 | Twitter
https://twitter.com/andrewsiff4NY/status/1117792050378887168
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Just Your Friendly Neighborhood Transit Reporter
Apr 18, 2019 | Twitter
https://twitter.com/s_nessen/status/1117823105131528193
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Apr 18, 2019 | Twitter
https://twitter.com/News12LI/status/1117985978260410368
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Apr 16, 2019 | Twitter
https://twitter.com/News12Andrew/status/1118143635604873217
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Apr 17, 2019 | Twitter
https://twitter.com/AlfonsoReports/status/1118680283694403589
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Apr 17, 2019 | Twitter
https://twitter.com/flyer86ny/status/1118687848708882433
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