Statement from GM DePaola on the Orange Line incident
Start Date: 2/17/2016
"Following last night's incident involving two Orange Line trains, the MBTA is immediately incorporating a more thorough exterior check of body panel hardware as part of regular maintenance work on Orange Line cars.Bolts and rivets of body panels will now be examined every 12 thousand miles, which is approximately every 8 or 9 weeks, when Orange Line cars are taken into a garage for scheduled comprehensive maintenance. This maintenance already includes checks of the safety system, evacuation equipment, propulsion system, brake system, suspension system, communication system, doors, wheels, lights, seating, and other interior compartment items.
It is believed that last night a body panel fell off the side of an Orange Line car and onto tracks near State Street Station because the panel's fastening fixtures had deteriorated.
Just after 8:30 pm, Orange Line Train 1317 was traveling southbound on approach to State Street Station when a 12 inch by 12 foot body panel near the bottom edge of one of its cars fell onto the tracks. The train ran over this panel, causing the train to become disabled as it entered State Street Station. It is believed the body panel struck a wall and then the third rail, causing an arcing event, which led to a residual smoke situation. All passengers disembarked in an orderly manner, and the train was taken out of service. At the time, MBTA officials were not aware that a piece of metal falling onto the tracks was the cause of this situation.
Meanwhile, a second train, Train 1217, was approximately six minutes behind Train 1317. As Train 1217 traveled toward State Street Station, it also struck the piece of body panel that was still on the tracks. The impact caused an arcing event leading to another smoke situation. Train 1217 became disabled and was not yet properly berthed at the platform area at State Street Station when smoke was seen by passengers. Several emergency alarms were pulled by passengers onboard who became rightfully concerned. Because Train 1217 was not fully to the platform, the doors were automatically in the lock position, causing some concerned passengers to disembark by using doors at the end of some of the train cars and by kicking out windows and crawling out of the train.
Each of the trains involved in the incident last night had a six car set. It is not known how many passengers were onboard each train. There were no reports of injuries.
Out of an abundance of caution, the body panels on the entire Orange Line fleet were checked immediately after the incident. As a result of the inspection, crews further secured 13 panels on 120 cars. The Orange Line fleet resumed regular service for today's morning commute.
Last September, the administration broke ground in Springfield for a $95 million railcar manufacturing facility to construct new subway cars. The facility is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2017 and a contract has already been signed by the MBTA to replace all cars in the Orange Line fleet. The first new Orange Line cars are expected to be delivered in December 2018.
Four new cars are scheduled for delivery each month until December 2022 at which time the fleet will have been replaced and the number of cars in the fleet will have been expanded to a total of 152. The average lifetime miles for an Orange Line car in service now is 1.6 million miles.
The MBTA has also signed a contract to replace cars on the Red Line and the Green Line. Red Line production delivery starts November 2019 and ends June 2022 and Green Line Type 9 car production delivery will start March 2018 and end August 2018.
A full investigation has begun into all aspects of the incident last night involving Train 1317 and Train 1217. The MBTA's operations group, the vehicle engineering group, and the engineering and mechanical group will look at issues including the actions of MBTA personnel, communication with passengers, repair and maintenance protocols, and condition of track and other capital assets.
