[Senate Hearing 117-860]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


                                                        S. Hrg. 117-860


    ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF INADEQUATE TRANSIT MAINTENANCE AND OVERSIGHT

=======================================================================

                             FIELD HEARING

                               BEFORE THE

                            SUBCOMMITTEE ON
                            ECONOMIC POLICY

                                 OF THE

                              COMMITTEE ON
                   BANKING,HOUSING,AND URBAN AFFAIRS
                          UNITED STATES SENATE

                    ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS

                             SECOND SESSION

                                   ON

 EXAMINING MANAGEMENT FAILURES AT THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY TRANSPORTATION 
     AUTHORITY AND THE MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC UTILITIES
                               __________

                            OCTOBER 14, 2022
                               __________

  Printed for the use of the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 
                                Affairs
                                
                  [GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]                               


                Available at: https://www.govinfo.gov/

                               __________

                    U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
                    
55-797 PDF                 WASHINGTON : 2024   




            COMMITTEE ON BANKING, HOUSING, AND URBAN AFFAIRS

                     SHERROD BROWN, Ohio, Chairman

JACK REED, Rhode Island              PATRICK J. TOOMEY, Pennsylvania
ROBERT MENENDEZ, New Jersey          RICHARD C. SHELBY, Alabama
JON TESTER, Montana                  MIKE CRAPO, Idaho
MARK R. WARNER, Virginia             TIM SCOTT, South Carolina
ELIZABETH WARREN, Massachusetts      MIKE ROUNDS, South Dakota
CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland           THOM TILLIS, North Carolina
CATHERINE CORTEZ MASTO, Nevada       JOHN KENNEDY, Louisiana
TINA SMITH, Minnesota                BILL HAGERTY, Tennessee
KYRSTEN SINEMA, Arizona              CYNTHIA LUMMIS, Wyoming
JON OSSOFF, Georgia                  JERRY MORAN, Kansas
RAPHAEL G. WARNOCK, Georgia          KEVIN CRAMER, North Dakota
                                     STEVE DAINES, Montana

                     Laura Swanson, Staff Director

                 Brad Grantz, Republican Staff Director

                      Cameron Ricker, Chief Clerk

                      Shelvin Simmons, IT Director

                        Pat Lally, Hearing Clerk

                                 ______

                    Subcommittee on Economic Policy

                 ELIZABETH WARREN, Massachusetts, Chair

           JOHN KENNEDY, Louisiana, Ranking Republican Member

JACK REED, Rhode Island              TIM SCOTT, South Carolina
CHRIS VAN HOLLEN, Maryland           THOM TILLIS, North Carolina
TINA SMITH, Minnesota                KEVIN CRAMER, North Dakota
JON OSSOFF, Georgia                  STEVE DAINES, Montana

              Gabrielle Elul, Subcommittee Staff Director

         Natalia Riggin, Republican Subcommittee Staff Director

                                  (ii)


                            C O N T E N T S

                              ----------                              

                        FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2022

                                                                   Page

Opening statement of Chair Warren................................     1
    Prepared statement...........................................    40

Opening statements, comments, or prepared statements of:
Senator Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts........................     3
    Prepared statement...........................................    41

                               WITNESSES

Nuria Fernandez, Administrator, Federal Transit Administration...     5
    Prepared statement...........................................    42
Michelle Wu, Mayor, City of Boston...............................    15
    Prepared statement...........................................    44
Jarred Johnson, Executive Director, TransitMatters...............    17
    Prepared statement...........................................    45
Matthew Nelson, Chair, Massachusetts Department of Public 
  Utilities......................................................    18
    Prepared statement...........................................    46
    Responses to written questions of:
        Chair Warren.............................................    51
Steve Poftak, General Manager, Massachusetts Bay Transportation
  Authority......................................................    20
    Prepared statement...........................................    47
    Responses to written questions of:
        Chair Warren.............................................    52

              Additional Material Supplied for the Record

Prepared statement submitted by Senator Edward J. Markey of 
  Massachusetts..................................................    61

                                 (iii)

 
    ECONOMIC IMPACTS OF INADEQUATE TRANSIT MAINTENANCE AND OVERSIGHT

                              ----------                              


                        FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 2022

                               U.S. Senate,
  Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs,
                   Subcommittee on Economic Policy,
                                                        Boston, MA.
    The Subcommittee met at 11:00 a.m., in Room 900A, John F. 
Kennedy Federal Building, 15 New Sudbury Street, Boston, MA, 
02203, Hon. Elizabeth Warren, Chair of the Subcommittee, 
presiding.

          OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIR ELIZABETH WARREN

    Chair Warren. This hearing will come to order.
    I want to welcome all of you to a hearing of the Senate 
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Subcommittee on Economic 
Policy. Public transportation is an essential service that 
directly influences the economic growth and access to 
employment in Boston and other U.S. cities, which are key 
issues for the Economic Policy Subcommittee. That is why I 
thought it was crucial to convene this hearing about the State 
of the T and to invite my good friend and partner, Senator 
Markey, to join me.
    The T is the beating heart of Greater Boston. Millions of 
people rely on it to get to work, to school, to our stores, to 
our restaurants, to go to a game, to visit friends and family, 
and then to make it back home. The T helps cut pollution, and 
without it,
    Boston traffic would be even worse.
    Without the T, which in one form or another has been around 
now for 150 years, our city and our Commonwealth would not be 
the same. For generations, we have relied on the T. We have 
counted on the people and organizations in charge to make the T 
work for us, to make buses and trains run safely and on time. 
But we can go longer rely on the T.
    The T is failing. In the last 2 years, there has been a 
series of dangerous and even deadly collisions, derailments, 
and accidents on the T. Multiple derailments on the Red Line; a 
collision on the Green Line that injured dozens of people; 
workplace injuries; a horrendous death when a Red Line 
passenger was caught in a door and dragged off a platform.
    Finally, the Federal Government stepped in. The Federal 
Transit Administration, or FTA, conducted an in-depth study and 
concluded that, in this 2-year period, there were ``numbers and 
rates of derailments and collisions on the MBTA rail transit 
system that far exceed industry average and the safety 
performance of MBTA's peer transit systems.''
    The list of management failures is a long one. After the 
April 2022 fatality on the Red Line, the Federal Transit 
Administration opened a broad safety investigation of the MBTA 
and the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities, or DPU, 
which is responsible for oversight of the T.
    The result of that investigation was released in August, 
and it is a long and scary list of problems. Just a partial 
list of troubles that the FTA identified includes, the MBTA 
does not have staff to carry out current operations and that 
agency has ``not demonstrated the organizational capacity to 
recruit and hire personnel.'' The FTA found that ``operating 
and maintenance rules and procedures are not implemented as 
required and that technical training is underresourced, without 
sufficient resources, and lacks oversight.''
    The FTA found that the MBTA was not conducting adequate 
oversight of its contractors. The FTA found that safety risk 
assessment guidance was ambiguous and confusing, that 
management tools were not up to the task of addressing safety 
risks, and that MBTA's investigations of safety problems were 
not even looking at the right information.
    And FTA really laid in to the T's management, finding 
that--and again I quote--``MBTA's executive management does not 
consistently ensure its decisions related to safety risks are 
based on safety data analysis or documented facts.'' Simple 
translation: When it comes to safety, the T's management is 
just making it up.
    And there is more.
    There is another State agency responsible for oversight of 
the T, the Department of Public Utilities. For over 50 years, 
DPU has been responsible for oversight of equipment, safety, 
and operations at the MBTA. In other words, DPU is responsible 
for managing the management of the MBTA.
    But here is what the FTA has to say about how badly DPU 
does its job. FTA found that the DPU does not use its resources 
effectively to identify and resolve safety risks. The FTA found 
that DPU lacks independence from the MBTA. The FTA found that 
``DPU has not used its authority to ensure the identification 
and resolution of safety issues at MBTA.''
    And the FTA reached a simple and devastating conclusion. 
Again I quote, according to the FTA, ``DPU has not demonstrated 
an ability to address MBTA safety issues and concerns.''
    Overall, the FTA analysis contained 20 findings regarding 
safety problems at MBTA and provided the agency with a list of 
53 actions required to address these concerns. It also 
contained four findings regarding DPU's failures and provided 
DPU with a list of nine actions required to address these 
concerns.
    And by the way, the FTA also found that seven leftover 
action items from a 2019 audit of DPU remained unresolved. This 
is a dangerous situation that has been allowed to fester for 
far too long. We are here today, at our field hearing, to 
examine management of the MBTA and DPU and to press for change. 
Every single FTA action item needs to be checked off 
immediately. But that, alone, is not enough. The people of 
Massachusetts need a safe system. They also need a transit 
system that works, a system that is reliable, accessible, 
frequent, dependable, clean, and that gets you where you need 
to go without crazy delays.
    Now here is the good news. Thanks to the Bipartisan 
Infrastructure Law, we have got the resources to do it. That 
law will provide $580 million for modernization and safety 
improvements at the MBTA. In addition, Massachusetts currently 
has massive tax revenue surpluses.
    But here is the bad news. We can't just buy our way out of 
these problems and wish our way to a T that works. We need the 
right leadership in place at the MBTA and DPU, so that we can 
have a functioning T that riders throughout the region can 
depend on. I know we have the right leadership in the mayor of 
Boston. I appreciate Mayor Wu coming to talk to us about the 
importance of the T for the city and the whole metropolitan 
area. We also have excellent leadership from the community. I 
appreciate that Jarrod Johnson, of TransitMatters, will be here 
to discuss the scope of the T's problem and their impact on 
residents of our community.
    I also want to thank Administrator Fernandez, of the FTA, 
for accepting my invitation to join us in Boston today. The FTA 
report on MBTA safety is a bombshell. She will help explain 
what the agency found and what role they will play in getting 
it fixed.
    And finally, I am glad Mr. Poftak, the MBTA general 
manager, and Mr. Nelson, the DPU chair, also accepted my 
invitation to appear as witnesses. We need to hear firsthand 
from them about how the MBTA got into this mess and how DPU 
allowed it to happen and find out what they are doing to clean 
it up and get it back on track. And that is why I invited them 
to testify before this subcommittee, so that the public can 
hold the MBTA and DPU to account.
    So thank you to all of our witnesses.
    I am now going to turn it over to Senator Markey for his 
opening statement. Senator Markey, I am so glad that you could 
be here to do this. Thank you for coming.

 OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR EDWARD J. MARKEY OF MASSACHUSETTS

    Senator Markey. Thank you, Senator Warren. And my deep 
thanks to you for convening this hearing, for bringing all of 
the parties together so that we can have this understood by the 
people of Greater Boston who use the T on a daily basis. So I 
thank you so much for your leadership on this issue.
    I am also grateful to Administrator Fernandez, to Mayor Wu, 
to Jarrod Johnson, for being generous with their time here 
today and for all that they do to push for transit justice here 
in Boston and across the country. And finally, my thanks to 
General Manager Poftak and Chairman Nelson for their 
willingness to come before us here today.
    There are two stories that we must tell today. The first is 
the story of how the MBTA came to a screeching halt, arriving 
at this entirely preventable point where deep service cuts and 
wholesale shutdowns of subway lines are deemed necessary to get 
the T back on track.
    I believe we need to understand the missteps and negligence 
that brought us to this moment of crisis, so that we never 
again find ourselves back here. The second story pertains to 
how we move forward, how we build a brighter future for the 
MBTA. Greater Boston needs a public transit system that is 
truly a public good and effectively serves the needs of the 
people of the Commonwealth.
    While this current crisis never should have occurred, it 
has presented the chance for a conversation about how we build 
a transit system that is safe, sustainable, accessible, 
reliable, and free. With the proper care and decision-making, 
we can turn the T from a punchline into a model for our shared 
transit future.
    I am hopeful that we can get there.
    But I want to make it clear, I am angry. It is shameful 
that the first public transportation system in our country has 
been put last and has lost the faith of the people of 
Massachusetts.
    In the last year alone, we have witnessed several crashes, 
derailments, and escalator malfunctions, seen passengers 
jumping from windows of flaming Orange Line trains, and 
experienced the unconscionable death of a passenger on the Red 
Line. As Senator Warren just explained, the Federal Transit 
Administration's report on the MBTA is damning, painting a 
picture of an organization that is woefully understaffed, 
lacking in basic communication and training protocols, and more 
focused on delivering capital projects on time than on 
fundamental operations and maintenance for the passengers who 
need the T today.
    All of this has stretched the T to a breaking point, where 
safety and reliability are far from guaranteed.
    The problems at the T did not happen overnight, but have 
festered for decades. Like mold creeping between the baseboards 
of a home, poor management and disinvestment have eaten away at 
the foundation of our vaunted public transit system. Where the 
T once stood as the national model for reliable public 
transportation, it, today, serves as a warning sign of what 
happens when officials take their eye off the ball.
    And too often, when problems arose, officials hid the ball 
altogether, leaving the public in the dark about the true state 
of the T.
    Unfortunately, amidst this crisis, the T's playbook hasn't 
changed. During the recent Orange Line shutdown, the MBTA 
promised that the track would allow for trains to run faster, 
once that work was completed. Now, we are seeing that this 
hasn't been true. More transparent communication also means 
acknowledging that, far too often, the burdening of the T's 
failures have fallen on riders, especially Black, Brown, 
disabled, and lower income individuals who disproportionately 
use the T.
    I was a commuter student from Malden, who was able to 
attend Boston College by living at home in Malden and taking 
the Orange Line and the bus out to Boston College. I know how 
public transit opens doors of opportunity to people who may not 
have the privilege to own and drive a car or live close to 
their school or their workplace.
    It is people without resources and time to spare, who are 
experiencing the worst impacts of the T's crisis, and that is 
inexcusable. As we collectively rebuild and modernize the 
essential public utility, riders cannot be asked to shoulder 
the burden.
    Digging out of this hole will need the concerted efforts 
from everyone, from MBTA officials, to community leaders, to 
Federal, State, and local policymakers. It will require the 
MBTA to improve its safety and communications practices, and 
the Department of Public Utilities to conduct robust, 
independent, and transparent safety oversight of the MBTA.
    In Congress, Senator Warren and I will keep fighting for 
bold Federal investments in public transit, on top of the $580 
million in Federal funding that has gone to the MBTA this year. 
As Massachusetts senators, we have a vested interest in 
ensuring those Federal dollars are well spent. A better T is 
possible, especially in a State as abundant in resources and 
brainpower as Massachusetts.
    In order for us to fight for a better future, we have to 
know what it will look like. So today, we will spend some time 
identifying and illustrating a picture of the future with a 
public transit that is a public good.
    We know that, when you lower the barriers to entry and make 
public transit accessible and reliable, when you make it free, 
people will use it. Increased ridership gets cars off roads, 
which reduces traffic and carbon emissions that pollute our air 
and warm up our planet. Expanding services also creates good 
paying jobs, jobs for union workers, who will revitalize our 
aging transit infrastructure and operate the buses, the trains, 
and the ferries that will connect communities, stimulate the 
regional economy, and get our residents where they need to go. 
So as we interrogate and investigate the T today, we can also 
imagine that brighter future, a world where the T puts 
``public'' back into public transit. But you can't chart a new 
path without knowing where you are now. And, as any rider of 
the T could tell you, the MBTA has a long way to go.
    Greater Boston's identity is inseparable from the T. It is 
the lifeblood of the metro region and, for far too long, it is 
not been treated with the care it deserves. Let this hearing 
today be an honest and unsparing account of the T's neglect, as 
well as a first step towards making the T a vibrant, prosperous 
transit system worthy of our Commonwealth and its people.
    Thank you, Senator Warren. And we thank, again, all of the 
witnesses.
    Chair Warren. Thank you,
    Senator Markey. And thank you, Administrator Fernandez, I 
appreciate you being here today. Administrator Fernandez, you 
lead the Federal Transit Administration, FTA, which is an 
agency inside the Federal Department of Transportation that 
oversees the public transit systems across the country, to 
ensure that they provide safe, reliable, and equitable service. 
I would like to call on you, now, for a statement, and then we 
will get to the questions that Senator Markey and I have.

 STATEMENT OF NURIA FERNANDEZ, ADMINISTRATOR, FEDERAL TRANSIT 
                         ADMINISTRATION

    Ms. Fernandez. Yes, thank you so much. Good morning, 
Senators Warren and Markey and thank you again for your 
attention to the Federal Transit Authority's oversight efforts, 
so that we can improve the quality and safety of the 
Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's rail system.
    As is often stated by Secretary Buttigieg, safety is our 
north star at the U.S. Department of Transportation. And at 
FTA, our primary responsibility is really to ensure that people 
can safely travel through the billions of trips that they may 
take each year on public transportation. And it is also our 
responsibility to ensure a safe working environment for transit 
workers.
    So we accomplish this in several ways. We invest in the 
capital infrastructure and rolling stock as transit agencies; 
we review the oversight provided by transit agencies, by the 
State safety oversight agencies, which have primary 
responsibility for the safety of rail transit operators; and 
conduct detailed examinations into specific safety issues, so 
that we can determine the appropriate action to mitigate those 
issue. That last point is why we are here today and it is why 
FTA began the Safety Management Inspection of the Massachusetts 
Bay Transportation Authority's rail system.
    So following that inspection, FTA issued eight safety 
directives to MBTA, identifying some areas of concern and that 
needed safety focus. Importantly, two directives were also 
issued to the MBTA's State safety oversight agency, the 
Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities.
    By Federal law, the DPU is responsible for the day-to-day 
oversight of the T, ensuring rail operations in the 
Commonwealth are safe every day, every ride. And transit 
agencies like the MBTA make the day-to-day decisions on who, 
what, where, and how they maintain and operate their systems. 
The safety of the passengers and workers cannot be compromised 
with any of those decisions.
    So earlier this year, MBTA experienced a concerning rate of 
reportable safety events, including derailments, train 
collisions, injuries and fatalities. And the pattern of the 
number of serious incidents indicated that safety risk was 
headed in an unacceptable direction. So importantly, FTA also 
became concerned about the efficacy of DPU's oversight of the 
MBTA.
    So with those concerns in mind, particularly due to the 
concerns about the quality of DPU's oversight, we initiated the 
Safety Management Inspection in both the MBTA's rail operations 
and DPU's oversight. The SMI, for short, focused on MBTA's 
processes, its procedures, and the resources regarding safety 
decisionmaking and how the DPU oversees the MBTA's safety 
performance.
    On August 31st, FTA issued the SMI report identifying 24 
findings, 20 to MBTA and four to the DPU, in five categories; 
four to MBTA and one to DPU, that required continued attention 
and resources from both the MBTA and DPU to prioritize safety 
and to ensure system maintenance that supports safe operations. 
At that time, the FTA issued the four additional special 
directives to the T, for a total of eight, along with an 
additional special directive to the DPU. And we instructed the 
DPU to enforce the safety requirements specified in the special 
directives issued to the MBTA and to also enhance their 
oversight, including a reassessment of DPU's staffing and 
capacity.
    We expect that the DPU and the T will coordinate work to 
quickly begin developing and prioritizing corrective actions 
that will address the findings and the required actions 
identified in our SMI report, and that the FTA will continue to 
monitor and track the MBTA and DPU's performance and in 
implementing the special directives.
    As the MBTA addresses FTA's special directives, it, like 
all transit agencies, must also consider and adequately support 
both safety and service.
    So our report indicated, in part, that MBTA was not 
adequately staffed across the agency to meet the demands of 
both an aggressive capital expansion program and the basic day-
to-day safe operation of the system. So properly aligning the 
staffing of the agency with funding available is absolutely 
critical.
    FTA found that the MBTA's operations training department is 
significantly understaffed. And while recent improvements have 
been made, additional resources are needed.
    The path forward for the MBTA is going to require community 
buy-in. There is going to be disruption to service as they are 
making the enhancements and changes that they need to make. And 
I feel that the system is safe and that people should continue 
to ride it. Yet, tough decisions will have to be made now, to 
create a better, safer future. There will be service impacts to 
the public.
    Our SMI inspection of the MBTA is concluded. However, we 
will continue to monitor safety and will continue working with 
the DPU to ensure the safety.
    Again, Senator, as you have noted, thanks to President 
Biden and to all of you in Congress for the passage for the 
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, FTA received a 72 percent 
increase in funding, more than $21 billion, over the next five 
years, to invest in state of good repair of transit assets and 
systems throughout the United States.
    MBTA receives $450 million in FTA formula funding every 
year, including $224 million in state of good repair formula 
dollars. And there was a total of $2.1 billion in emergency 
relief from CARES, CRRSAA, and ARP.
    The DPU receives more than $2 million in State safety 
oversight formula funds each year. And the DPU is also 
certified and funded by the FTA to conduct proper oversight, 
and the agency must be accountable in that role.
    So we will continue investing in transit throughout 
Massachusetts, work closely with the MBTA and DPU, so that we 
can ensure the highest level of safety for its users and 
employees of the system.
    So thanks again for your attention to improving transit 
through these very shared goals.
    Chair Warren. Thank you very much.
    Thank you, Administrator Fernandez.
    So back in April, the FTA was so concerned about safety 
issues on the T that it initiated what I think you called a 
Safety Management Inspection, or SMI, because we have got to 
get a lot of acronyms in here today. And the idea was to get 
the bottom of what was going on.
    And 2 months ago, you wrapped up your inspection, issued a 
report. Senator Markey and I have that report. The report is 
publicly available. And today, what we want to do, in part, is 
walk through some of these findings.
    But I think that most people in Massachusetts who may be 
watching this are not that familiar with the FTA's work or its 
authority over State transit systems. So before we get to your 
report, I just want to start with the basics about what the FTA 
does and how you came to write this report.
    The FTA engages in routine examinations and assessments of 
how public transit systems all across the country are doing, as 
I understand this, Administrator Fernandez. But in the most 
troubling of cases, the agency will take a more active 
oversight role to ensure that issues are addressed, an unusual 
step forward.
    Does that sound about right?
    Ms. Fernandez. Yes, that's correct, Senator. That is our 
role. And we do take action when we need to take that action.
    Chair Warren. You don't actually oversee the MBTA itself; 
instead, you conduct oversight of the DPU, the Massachusetts 
Department of Public Utilities, which is the body that 
regulates the MBTA. Is that right?
    Ms. Fernandez. Yes, it is, Senator.
    Chair Warren. Okay. In other words, your job at FTA is to 
make sure that DPU is doing its job; and DPU's job is to make 
sure that the MBTA runs a safe, reliable transit system.
    Is that about right?
    Ms. Fernandez. That is correct, Senator.
    Chair Warren. Good. Now, this is helpful, because I want to 
talk about what happened at the T that got us to the point that 
the FTA had to step in and exercise more active oversight here 
in Massachusetts. Your office's report identifies two major 
reasons that the FTA undertook inspection.
    Number one, there was a clear safety problem on the T; and 
number two, there were big concerns about DPU's implementation 
of reforms that the FTA had been asking them to make for years.
    So let's do safety first, Administrator Fernandez. What did 
the FTA see in the T's safety record that rang alarm bells for 
you?
    Ms. Fernandez. Senator, we conducted this inspection as a 
result of a series of the patterns that we have been observing 
and the frequency of the safety incidents that were occurring 
at the T, the patterns of train collisions, derailments, and 
then, of course, the fatality, and also injuries, both to 
employees and to the public.
    And those concerns were exacerbated by the fact that the 
Department of Public Utilities had not been carrying out their 
State safety oversight responsibilities.
    Chair Warren. Okay. We are going to come to that in just a 
minute. What I hear you saying, we have talked about trains 
catching on the fire, property damage, service disruptions, 
injuries; we had a death. Your report says that the FTA 
launched its inspection because of ``an escalating pattern of 
safety incidents and concerns,'' including injuries and 
fatalities, ``significantly exceeding industry average.''
    In other words, accidents happen all across the country in 
these T systems. But the question is, how far out of line is 
the T, here in the Boston area?
    Between 2017 and 2021, the entire U.S. light rail industry 
reported 13 rail-to-rail collisions, resulting in 48 injuries. 
MBTA, alone, was responsible for more than a third of all of 
the collisions and more than 90 percent of the associated 
injuries.
    But it wasn't just that the T was unsafe. It was unsafe and 
not getting better. So you stepped in because there were 
serious concerns--you were about to talk about this a minute 
ago, when I cut you off--serious concerns about the ability of 
the DPU, the agency responsible for overseeing the T, to 
improve the situation.
    Administrator Fernandez, why did the FTA have concerns 
about DPU's ability to perform oversight needed to keep 
passengers and MBTA employees safe?
    Ms. Fernandez. Senator, going back to 2019, the Federal 
Transit Administration conducted an audit of the DPU's State 
safety oversight program and we issued 16 findings. Nine were 
closed; seven are still pending. And the reason that we have 
not closed the seven that are part of the Corrective Action 
Plan is that the DPU has really not demonstrated a positive 
strategy for ensuring the outcomes of the MBTA's safety 
responsibilities, that those outcomes are moving in a positive 
direction. The major issues that the DPU still needs to address 
is having an adequate workforce with safety experience and 
having that capacity. They need to ensure that their 
organizational resources are there to support the work that 
needs to happen in the field; and then, also, to ensure that 
the corrective actions, not only the ones that they are 
responsible for, but the ones that the T is responsible for 
completing, are, in fact, achieving those outcomes of 
completion, reaching those milestones.
    Chair Warren. Okay. So the T's safety record was worse than 
most of the transit systems across the entire country. And the 
agency that was supposed to be in charge of fixing things had 
failed to fix the problems or comply with Federal regulations 
for years.
    Now, is launching this kind of inspection a common action 
that the FTA takes?
    Ms. Fernandez. Senator, fortunately, it is not a common 
action. However, this is not the first time that we have done a 
Safety Management Inspection.
    Chair Warren. So how many have you done? Do you know?
    Ms. Fernandez. One more.
    Chair Warren. One more. So this is the second time that the 
FTA has ever done one of these?
    Ms. Fernandez. Second time in the history.
    Chair Warren. Only the second time in the history of the 
FTA.
    So let's talk for, just a minute, about what you found. 
There is a lot in this report. I commend the FTA for its 
comprehensive analysis. I know you came and did on-site 
inspection, looked at all of the records.
    Just at a very high level, did the FTA's inspection 
conclude that MBTA's current operations and policies are 
sufficient to keep riders and employees safe?
    Ms. Fernandez. Our inspection revealed significant concerns 
about the T's operations and policies. However, the T has made 
progress in meeting the timelines and responding to the items 
that we have flagged for them through our special directives 
that we have issued. And so they continue to improve the safety 
culture that was of grave significance and concern to us 
initially.
    There is a lot more work that needs to be done and we will 
continue working with them to ensure that they can get it done.
    Chair Warren. Grave concern, but you are seeing some 
improvement.
    Ms. Fernandez. Yes.
    Chair Warren. I want to ask a similar question about the 
DPU, which is in charge of the MBTA.
    Administrator Fernandez, did the FTA inspection conclude 
that DPU was adequately fulfilling its oversight 
responsibilities at the MBTA, at the time you undertook this?
    Ms. Fernandez. No, Senator. We found that the Department of 
Public Utilities had not been adequately engaged in overseeing 
the MBTA's Safety Management System, which is very important 
for the delivery of a safe system, both for employees and for 
the riding public. The FTA's report, as noted in our SMI, shows 
very specific actions that the DPU needs to do to support the 
field observations, the audits, and the inspections that MBTA's 
rail transit system is undergoing, so that they can identify 
safety deficiencies in the same way that we have identified 
those deficiencies.
    Chair Warren. I really appreciate this. The people of 
Massachusetts have lived through these failures, but your 
report documents that the management failures are even broader 
and deeper than most of us knew, and I am grateful to the FTA 
for stepping in and documenting these failures.
    Administrator Fernandez, in my next round of questions, I 
am going to talk to you in more detail about some of the 
directives the FTA has issued. But I want to yield to Senator 
Markey, to ask some questions.
    Senator Markey. Thank you, Senator Warren. I just want to 
follow up on this line of questioning that Senator Warren has 
been pursuing, because I think your report does represent a 
staggering breakdown in communications within the MBTA, as a 
result of either confusing guidelines or fear of retaliation. 
Frontline workers at the T were unable to raise safety concerns 
with their supervisors and with MBTA leadership, creating a 
dangerous internal culture that downplayed critical safety 
risk. So I would like to have you reflect, if you could, on a 
couple of stark examples of that, Administrator Fernandez.
    Did the Federal Transit Administration's SMI report, Safety 
Management Inspection, of the T report, find the MBTA executive 
leadership received prioritized and actionable information on 
safety risk?
    Ms. Fernandez. No, Senator. As reflected in our special 
directives, the FTA did not find any evidence, from a safety 
management perspective, that the MBTA safety committees and the 
meetings that the committees presented to, generated any 
actionable information from a safety perspective, in terms of 
explicit indication of safety priorities and how those 
priorities were going to be identified and resolved.
    Senator Markey. Did the FTA's report find that MBTA 
leadership ensured its decisions related to safety risks were 
based on analysis or documented facts?
    Ms. Fernandez. No, Senator. As stated in one of our 
findings, the SMI final report, in the absence of having 
pertinent safety data available at the operational level and 
then having that data and information at the executive level, 
you cannot develop a framework for measuring performance. So it 
is very important that the information be made available, so 
they can develop the performance that they need to mitigate the 
issues.
    Senator Markey. Thank you. Did the FDA report find that the 
MBTA had clear provisions to ensure safety concerns reported by 
employee safety committees were documented and acted upon?
    Ms. Fernandez. No, Senator. The FTA learned that the safety 
information from the safety committees were not formally 
captured within the MBTA and that the safety department did not 
disseminate that information to all who needed it.
    Senator Markey. One of the few reporting mechanisms for 
frontline employees to raise potential safety issues is a 
safety hotline operated by the MBTA. However, the FTA report 
suggested that even this hotline is not being utilized 
adequately.
    Administrator Fernandez, did the FTA report find that the 
MBTA provided clear direction to its employees on what to 
report through the safety hotline?
    Ms. Fernandez. No, Senator. The FTA found no evidence that 
the frontline employees have been provided not only clarity, 
but a distinction between things that should be reported 
through the hotline and things that were not necessarily needed 
to be reported through the hotline, from a safety perspective.
    Senator Markey. So at the time of the report, how many 
calls per month was this hotline receiving?
    Ms. Fernandez. During the time of our investigation, we 
found about maybe 20 to 25 calls that had been received by that 
safety hotline.
    Senator Markey. So that would come out to less than one a 
day, which is a vanishingly small number to deal with in an 
organization the size of the MBTA. What did the FTA report 
conclude from the lack of use of the safety hotline?
    Ms. Fernandez. Well, Senator, of course we can't know 
exactly the reason that there was such a small number of calls. 
However, it did signal that there may be some reluctance or 
skepticism towards the safety reporting environment and what is 
being done with the information that is provided.
    Senator Markey. What I found shocking in your report is the 
conclusion that the MBTA is 1,500 to 2,000 employees short of 
what they need to do their job on a daily basis.
    What does that mean, in terms of what we now can see, in 
terms of the safety and operational problems at the T?
    Ms. Fernandez. Well, unfortunately, when there is very high 
mandate for delivering service and you also have capital 
investment projects that are underway, you need to have 
adequate staffing. And when the staffing is short, and 
particularly with those large numbers, that means that 
individuals who are there are then responsible for doing more 
overtime, and it results in fatigue, which translates into a 
safety concern.
    Senator Markey. So what you are saying is that this 
commitment to new capital projects, new construction, then, was 
taking personnel away from the work that had to be done on 
safety and maintenance, and then that led to kind of a black 
hole into which all of these safety concerns were falling, 
without any attention being paid to them.
    Ms. Fernandez. Senator, what would typically happen is that 
the agency will be the one making the determination as to how 
they allocate personnel and how they fill vacancies. But in our 
inspection, we did find that there was inadequate personnel 
available to do and deliver the level of service that the 
agency is responsible for delivering every day.
    Senator Markey. You are saying it is up to the agency to 
determine the allocation of the personnel, but that the net 
result was that your safety and management inspection 
determined that they had left entire areas of maintenance and 
safety for the T unattended to?
    Ms. Fernandez. That positions that are responsible for 
delivering service, that is, operators and maintenance 
personnel, that those positions had a high level of vacancies 
that needed to be filled.
    Senator Markey. Thank you.
    Chair Warren. Thank you. Actually, I am going to follow up 
from the same direction Senator Markey has gone.
    You have made clear, there has been failure of leadership 
at MBTA and DPU that has put riders and workers in peril. This 
needs to change. I am thankful that you are there to work on 
this.
    But we need to be honest about what these failures look 
like. So I want to just dig a little deeper into some of the 
management and operational failures and why they rang alarm 
bells for the FTA.
    So Administrator Fernandez, the FTA's inspection found that 
the MBTA did not have policies in place to ensure that train 
dispatchers had the appropriate training and certifications to 
do the job and that they were properly rested before starting 
their shifts, so they, literally, did not fall asleep at the 
switch.
    Is that a major risk that the FTA thinks the MBTA needs to 
fix?
    Ms. Fernandez. Yes, Senator, among other urgent risk areas.
    Chair Warren. Okay. But that one is urgent. Let me ask you 
another one. Because this one is, according to your report, the 
MBTA has inappropriately stored dangerous chemicals in rail 
yards, which could put the safety of both workers and the 
public at risk. Is that a major risk that the FTA thinks the 
MBTA needs to address?
    Ms. Fernandez. Yes, Senator, that is a major risk. And we 
issued a special directive detailing the steps that they needed 
to take to mitigate that risk.
    Chair Warren. Okay. Since January 2021, the MBTA has 
reported five runaway train events that happened in rail yards 
or while the trains were receiving maintenance. Two of these 
runaway train events actually happened during the FTA's 
inspection.
    So Administrator Fernandez, do these multiple runaway train 
events pose safety risks for employees and the public, that the 
MBTA urgently needs to address?
    Ms. Fernandez. Yes, Senator, that is major risk that the 
MBTA must address.
    Chair Warren. All right. And there is much more than we 
could do in this. Your list of risks, here, is staggering.
    Not collecting basic information to the monitor safety 
concerns; a backlog of 16,000 open and pending defects in need 
of repair; a leadership with ``get it done and go'' 
mentalities, so that is about patching things up rather than 
following the safety rules that are recommended.
    So I am just going to do one more here.
    The FTA's inspection found that, following changes Governor 
Baker make to reform the structure of the MBTA board, the DPU 
may no longer be legally and financially independent from the 
MBTA, as the FTA requires.
    So Administrator Fernandez, this one is a little different 
from dangerous chemicals that are stored too close to the 
tracks, or runaway trains. Can you explain why the issue of DPU 
independence raises concerns for the FTA?
    Ms. Fernandez. Yes. It is a serious concern to the Federal 
Transit Administration because it is a requirement, under the 
law, that the State safety oversight agency be both legally and 
financially independent from the entity that is providing the 
oversight--that it has jurisdiction to provide that oversight.
    So in order to provide a proper oversight, the entity needs 
to be a step away from it, so they can look in and make, not 
only the findings, the recommendations, and issue directives 
for mitigating risk.
    In our final SMI report, we noted that the organizational 
structure of the MBTA changed since 2019 and we have required 
actions from DPU to complete a legal assessment of how that 
organizational independence from the MBTA is going to be 
assured.
    Chair Warren. Well, I just want to thank you very much. I 
appreciate the in-depth inspection of the T that your agency 
has conducted. It is powerfully important to us. And I 
appreciate your listing, so clearly, both your concerns about 
safety and about a punch list for what needs to be done and 
what needs to be done urgently. I appreciate your partnership 
in all of these.
    Senator Markey, do you have some more questions you would 
like to finish up with?
    Senator Markey. I do. Thank you, Senator Warren. I would 
like to conclude with a discussion about the FTA's involvement 
with the MBTA going forward, and what Federal participation 
will and will not look like in the future.
    So I just hope that we can set the record straight around a 
couple of frequent issues relating to the FTA investigation, 
the idea of the FTA taking over the T or putting it in 
receivership, and the concern that the FTA will withhold 
Federal funding from the MBTA. Administrator Fernandez, my 
understanding is that the notion of Federal receivership or 
takeover of the MBTA by the FTA is not an option on the table. 
Could you explain why?
    Ms. Fernandez. Yes, Senator. Thank you so much for asking 
that question, because we have been seeing this notion in news 
reports and I think it is important that I clarify.
    The Federal Transit Administration does not have the legal 
authority to take over the day-to-day operations of any transit 
agency in this Nation.
    Senator Markey. So the FTA does not have the legal 
authority to take over the T or put it into Federal 
receivership. And even if it did have the authority, the FTA 
would not have the capacity to manage the MBTA. Is that 
correct?
    Ms. Fernandez. That is correct, Senator.
    Senator Markey. So there will be no Federal receivership or 
takeover?
    Ms. Fernandez. Of the day-to-day operations, no.
    Senator Markey. In that case, what will the FTA's 
involvement be, going forward, in getting the MBTA back on 
track?
    Ms. Fernandez. Our involvement will be to continue 
providing that oversight to ensure that both the MBTA and the 
DPU complete all of the corrective actions under the safety 
directives that we have issued.
    Senator Markey. So my understanding is that the FTA only 
withholds Federal funds from transit agencies in extremely rare 
circumstances.
    Is that correct?
    Ms. Fernandez. That is correct, Senator.
    Senator Markey. So what steps do the MBTA and the 
Commonwealth of Massachusetts need to take to ensure that no 
Federal funding is withheld from the MBTA?
    Ms. Fernandez. Beginning with ensuring that they 
satisfactorily complete all of the collective actions under the 
special directives that we issued as a result of our inspection 
from April through June of this year.
    Senator Markey. So at this point, is the FTA withholding 
any funding from the State or from the MBTA?
    Ms. Fernandez. No, the Federal Transit Administration is 
not currently withholding any funding from the State of 
Massachusetts.
    Senator Markey. So just to reaffirm, the Commonwealth needs 
a functioning, independent safety oversight agency outside of 
the MBTA. And so long as the Commonwealth has that functioning 
safety oversight agency, it is highly unlikely that any Federal 
funding will be withheld; the Federal Government will remain a 
partner in fixing the T, including the $580 million that 
Senator Warren and I and our Federal delegation worked so hard 
to provide to the MBTA this year.
    But the FTA, alone, does not have the power or the 
authority to fix the T. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts must 
fix the T. The FTA is a willing partner, but we must fix it 
here.
    Thank you, Senator Warren.
    Chair Warren. Thank you, Administrator Fernandez. I really 
appreciate your being here.
    We have now concluded the first panel. We are going to take 
a very short recess. I am going to gavel out, so we can change 
the setup here, and then we will be right back.
    (Recess taken at 11:51 a.m.)
    (Recess ended at 11:54 a.m.)
    Chair Warren. So now we are going to hear from four 
witnesses on this panel, our second panel. Let me introduce 
them.
    First, I am pleased to introduce my good friend, the 
Honorable Michelle Wu, Mayor of the City of Boston. Mayor Wu 
has been a tireless fighter for Boston's families and for 
safer, cleaner, and more accessible transit for everyone. I am 
go glad to be with her in this fight. Thank you for being here, 
Mayor Wu.
    Next, we have Mr. Jarrod Johnson, the executive director of 
TransitMatters, one of the fiercest advocates for more 
equitable and reliable public transportation for Metropolitan 
Boston. Mr. Johnson is an expert on sustainability and on 
proven best practices to promote more convenient and effective 
transit. So thank you for being here with us, Mr. Johnson.
    Next we have Mr. Matthew Nelson, who has served to chair 
the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities since 2019. As 
chair of the DPU, Mr. Nelson is responsible for overseeing the 
MBTA. I appreciate your accepting our invitation to testify 
before us today.
    And lastly, we have Mr. Steve Poftak, who has served as 
general manager of the MBTA since 2019. Mr. Poftak, I 
appreciate your coming here today, also, to address these 
safety issues.
    Thank you to all of our witnesses.
    I will start by turning it over to Mayor Wu for her 
statement. Mayor Wu, you are recognized for 5 minutes.

        STATEMENT OF MICHELLE WU, MAYOR, CITY OF BOSTON

    Ms. Wu. Thank you very much. Thank you, Senator Warren and 
Senator Markey, for convening this hearing and for your 
leadership.
    When Boston began building the first subway system in the 
country in 1895, the idea was labelled dangerous and radical. 
Business owners organized the anti-subway league, warning that 
construction would disturb snakes and rats underground and 
force every one to the surface in fear of disease. And there 
were thousands of signatures collected against the, quote, 
great disadvantage and damage to business that would result.
    Now, thankfully, decisionmakers looked to the future. We 
could not imagine our city today without our public transit 
system. The Nation's very first subway tunnel, today, runs from 
Park Street to Boylston Street, still.
    It took tremendous innovation, then, to electrify trolley 
cars to run underground, without suffocating coal smoke, and it 
re-shaped what growth looked like in our city and our country, 
as more people were able to escape the traffic above ground and 
reach their destinations en mass.
    Today, we must continue investing in our future to make 
Boston a city for everyone, green and growing, where families 
can thrive. And we are so grateful for your partnership and 
that of the Biden administration in deploying necessary 
resources for our collective recovery.
    Our ARPA funds have gone to getting our economy going 
again, with our small businesses, building affordable homes, 
pouring into our school communities, creating thousands of 
green jobs. And we will stretch every dollar from the 
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act. But 
none of that matters if residents can't rely on public 
transportation to get where they need to go. We are here today 
because all of that investment in housing creation, excellent 
school, economic development, safe and healthy communities, is 
constrained by the state of public transit in Boston and in 
Massachusetts today.
    I am someone who has been taking the T for decades, as a 
college student, then a young professional, then a mom pushing 
a big stroller through those MBTA elevators, buses, and trains, 
to get to childcare. So this isn't a theoretical discussion for 
me and for all of the commuters in the system.
    Wednesday morning, I took the Orange Line to work, grateful 
that it was back in service, excited to board a shiny new train 
at Forest Hills. And it went really smoothly. But there were 
still 12-minute headways at peak rush hour, 12 minutes until 
the next train would leave.
    After an unprecedented 30-day shutdown of our busiest 
subway line, riders still hold our breath and cross our fingers 
and step into stations and look up to see when the next train 
will arrive.
    Now, in recent weeks and months, the T has acted with more 
urgency than we have seen in years, and I am grateful for that 
leadership. But my experience as a commuter, like so many 
others, is still emblematic of a broader systemic problem. For 
too long, our approach to public transit has focused on fiscal 
management on the backs of riders and workers and at the 
expense of long-term vision and sustainability.
    The result is a system constantly on the verge of collapse, 
one that directs all of our energy toward meeting basic safety 
requirements, rather than growing and expanding public transit 
as critical infrastructure.
    If we want Boston to be the thriving, competitive global 
city that we can be, to meet the possibility and opportunity of 
this moment, we can't continue to sabotage ourselves by taking 
a piecemeal, reactive, and bare minimum approach to transit. 
The people of Boston and Massachusetts deserve safe, reliable, 
accessible transit. But that has to be the starting point, not 
the finish line. Our transit system, today, is not equipped to 
meet the needs of our growing region. Restaurants and small 
businesses are desperate for foot traffic after years of 
economic hardship. Large employers are struggling to get 
workers back in person, and they are facing staffing shortages 
across every industry, because people can't afford to live 
close enough to walk to work and don't want to deal with a 
stressful, unreliable commute.
    As a hub for health care and life sciences, innovation, and 
education, our possibilities are endless here, if we could just 
connect all of our communities to the opportunities and where 
they need to go. This requires a strategic vision for the T, 
one that secures long-term, sustainable funding, establishes a 
workforce development strategy, expands access and 
affordability, and ensures that communities most affected by 
the system are the ones empowered to shape it. That means a 
direct voice for those who know the system best: An MBTA board 
seat for Boston and another municipality; commuter rail fair 
equity; electrification, starting with the Fairmont line; fare-
free buses; an accelerated progress on the Red/Blue connector; 
and West Station.
    Thank you so much. And I look forward to a productive 
conversation, today, about turning the T into a source of pride 
and connection for all of our commuters.
    Chair Warren. Thank you, Mayor Wu. Now Mr. Johnson, I turn 
it over to you for 5 minutes.

STATEMENT OF JARROD JOHNSON, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, TRANSITMATTERS

    Mr. Johnson. Thank you. The MBTA is a key part of the 
success of Greater Boston. One only has to look at the cranes 
adding millions of square feet of housing, office, commercial, 
and lab space right next to MBTA stations.
    A report by A Better City found that, through travel time 
and cost savings, savings from avoided vehicular crashes and 
injuries, and also from reduced carbon emissions, the MBTA 
provides an estimated value of $13.2 billion a year to the 
Greater Boston region.
    This is a value to transit riders and nonriders alike. That 
value is also six times more than the T's annual operating 
budget of over $2 billion. The T is also hugely important on a 
human level and is essential for social mobility, equity, and 
cohesion. According to AAA Northeast, the average cost of car 
ownership in the Commonwealth is $10,728 per year. The ability 
to live without a car or share one is a significant savings, 
especially for low income and moderate income households.
    A Harvard University study on the equity of opportunity 
found that the relationship between transit and social mobility 
is stronger than that of many factors, like crime, elementary 
school test scores, or even the percentage of two-family 
households in a community.
    Yet, this value is being diminished by unprecedented 
reductions in service delivery and quality, the abysmal state 
of good repair, and safety concerns, and leadership that has 
substituted austerity for vision, and we are now suffering the 
consequences of that failed approach to transit operations.
    The Baker administration has bragged about spending more 
than $7 billion in capital funds. And yet, few would say that 
the reliability or service quality of the T has gotten better 
in those eight years.
    The agency's capital spending has, quite literally, come at 
the expense of the operating budget. As recently of this 
spring, $500 million was unwisely transferred from the 
operating budget to the capital budget, only months before the 
FTA cited unsafe staffing levels at the T's control center and 
inadequate staffing in the maintenance department.
    Deliberate decisions made by T leadership have led to 
outcomes that are causing daily harm to our economy, to our air 
quality, and to social equity.
    As a direct consequence of the understaffed operations 
control center, the T was directed by the FTA to take 
corrective action. That action has slowed down subway service 
in ways that cause real harm to our most vulnerable transit 
riders. Residents of neighborhoods like Mattapan, with some of 
the highest travel times in the regions, often spend an extra 
15 to 20 minutes each way, because of the service cuts.
    Residents along the Orange Line are dealing with increased 
headways, as well as slow zones, nearly a month after the T 
promised their service would improve. The Metro Boston region 
cannot tolerate more disruptive shutdowns. The MBTA needs a 
larger, more stable operating budget to perform more regular 
maintenance. It needs to learn from peers, who are able to 
perform more track work during longer overnight periods and 
without disruptive shutdowns. It needs to treat hiring more bus 
operators and subway dispatchers like an emergency, because it 
is one.
    The agency must also regain the trust of riders and 
stakeholders by being honest and transparent. The double-speak 
around the Orange Line slow zones and political interference by 
the Governor's office during the Blue Line shutdown have 
severely damaged the public trust.
    Finally, the agency has to move beyond the ``good enough'' 
mindset and understand that it has an obligation to provide 
high quality service, even during extensive maintenance. T 
riders deserve more than what the T's acting CEO called, and I 
quote, ``a more manageable and palatable level of 
interruption.''
    Riders deserve service that is frequent enough and reliable 
enough to avoid lost wages and, importantly, they deserve to 
know that their public transit system is safe. Riders deserve 
to know when they are going to have a fully functional, slow-
zone-free transit systems and what steps it will take to 
achieve this goal.
    MBTA employees deserve leadership that is working 
tirelessly to improve their quality of life and works 
collaboratively with labor to address worker shortage.
    Businesses deserve a transit system that enables customers 
and employees to reach them conveniently, reliably, 
sustainably. And the region deserves a transit agency that 
provides high quality service for today and one that has a 
vision for how to grow and modernize to meet tomorrow's needs, 
as well. The T needs leadership that can address the 
longstanding needs and expands access in order to drive mode 
shift and shorten travel times and shorten travel times for 
environmental justice communities. Our climate, our economy, 
and our fight for transit and economic justice cannot wait.
    Thank you, again, for the opportunity to testify.
    Chair Warren. Thank you for being with us, Mr. Johnson. I 
appreciate it.
    Mr. Nelson, I recognize you for 5 minutes.

STATEMENT OF MATTHEW NELSON, CHAIR, MASSACHUSETTS DEPARTMENT OF 
                        PUBLIC UTILITIES

    Mr. Nelson. Thank you. Good morning, Senator Warren and 
Senator Markey. I appreciate the opportunity to testify today. 
The Department of Public Utilities is responsible for the 
oversight of investor-owned electric power, natural gas and 
water utilities in the Commonwealth, and we are also charged 
with developing alternatives to traditional regulation, 
monitoring service quality, and regulating the safety of 
transportation, steam distribution, and gas pipeline areas, as 
well as the siting of energy facilities.
    The DPU is comprised of a number of different divisions, 
including consumer division, pipeline safety division, electric 
power division, transportation network companies division, gas 
division, and a transportation oversight division.
    Today, I am here to talk about the transportation oversight 
division, which serves both a consumer protection and a public 
safety function. It primarily regulates safety practices of 
common carriers used to transport passengers, and property, 
including trucks, railways, buses, and household moving 
companies, as well as towing companies. The division also 
licenses complaints regarding driver violations and accidents 
involving Department-licensed common carriers.
    Additionally, and most pertinent to the subject of today's 
hearing, is our transportation oversight division's rail 
transit division, which serves as the Commonwealth's State 
oversight agency, or the SSOA. It is a rail-fixed guideway for 
public transportation system. The only such system in 
Massachusetts is the MBTA.
    Federal regulations 49 CFR 674 outline the SSOA's 
responsibilities for overseeing the safety of the system and 
assessing the effectiveness of public transportation agency 
safety plan, the ASP, in ensuring safety.
    The chief activities of the rail transit division can be 
divided into three general areas. First, accident 
investigations; second, ongoing monitoring of safety practices; 
and three, monitoring of large capital delivery projects.
    Our rail transit division has staff on call 24 hours a day, 
7 days a week, to respond to accidents and incidents. While on 
scene, our staff takes notes, photos, and meets with MBTA 
personnel to get an initial sense of what has happened. We then 
conduct an investigation of the incident, from beginning to 
end, with the purpose of ensuring that MBTA's investigation 
into the cause of the circumstances of the incident are 
sufficient and thorough.
    In addition to responding to incidents, the rail transit 
and safety staff observe the MBTA's day-to-day safety practices 
and compliance with its own agency safety plan. Last year, the 
rail transit staff conducted 472 oversight activities, 
including document reviews, rule reviews, record reviews, field 
observations conducted on on-site MBTA properties, and as well 
as the implementation of processes and procedures referred to 
in the agency safety plan, as well as interviews with MBTA 
employees and inspections, meaning that the DPU observes the 
MBTA's officials conducting a safety activity or inspection and 
the DPU will evaluate the MBTA's compliance with the procedures 
and the standards.
    The Department also oversees certification of large capital 
delivery projects, like the Green Line extension and the Green 
Line train protection system. The MBTA has its own safety 
certification process for capital projects, and the DPU must 
observe and verify that the MBTA follows its own safety 
certification process of new construction.
    In carrying out these functions, the division operates 
under a set of general applicable principles. The MBTA is 
responsible for the development of the procedures and 
protocols. The DPU is responsible for the safety oversight to 
ensure the fulfillment of the safety functions.
    The DPU takes its responsibility to ensure safety of riders 
and the MBTA's transit system very seriously. And we have been 
working closely with the FTA and with MBTA to implement the 
FTA's recommendations, as outlined in their final Safety 
Management Inspection report issued on August 31, 2022.
    The Department agrees that the actions and the directives 
of the FTA are necessary for enhancing public transportation 
system safety, and the DPU is working diligently to implement 
those actions. The DPU has already expanded field work, 
including conducting more in-person observations and weekly 
visits to the operation control center, both announced and 
unannounced. And it is working to increase its resources to be 
able to conduct even more field work and additional auditing of 
the MBTA.
    The DPU is also working to hire additional staff with 
transit safety experience in our rail transit division, and we 
are actively recruiting and continually posting jobs.
    The Department is dedicated to our efforts in these areas 
and we look forward to working with the FTA and the MBTA to 
ensure riders receive a safe and reliable transportation 
system.
    And thank you for the opportunity to testify today.
    Chair Warren. Thank you, Mr. Nelson.
    Mr. Poftak, I recognize you for 5 minutes.

 STATEMENT OF STEVE POFTAK, GENERAL MANAGER, MASSACHUSETTS BAY 
                    TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY

    Mr. Poftak. Thank you,
    Senator Warren, thank you, Senator Markey, for the 
opportunity to testify today before the Subcommittee.
    As the oldest transit system in the country, the MBTA is a 
system of incredible complexity. And every day, the hardworking 
and dedicated employees of the MBTA serve, at this point, more 
than 700,000 customers per day.
    Over the past several months, and, indeed, over the past 
year, the MBTA has faced a series of incidents that have raised 
concerns about the safety of our system. I want to state 
unequivocally, today, to the committee and to our customers, 
that the system is safe, but we can and will do better. I am 
committed, just as I know all of the employees of the T are 
committed, to continuing to make the T a safer and more 
reliable transportation system, and I look forward to sharing 
with this committee the significant progress we have made and 
will continue to make towards that goal.
    We take our role in riders' lives seriously. We get people 
where they need to go, to grocery stores, medical appointments, 
school, jobs. We do it through blizzards, during parades, on 
holidays, and the MBTA did it throughout a pandemic that forced 
us to continually pivot on a sometimes day-to-day basis, 
rethinking our transit services as ridership plummeted, all the 
while with the goal of providing safe and reliable trips for 
our riders and protecting the health of our riders and 
employees.
    As riders return to the system now, I understand the 
frustration many of them feel. I am one of them, too. I took 
the Orange Line in today.
    On behalf of the more than 6,400 hardworking men and women 
of the T, we acknowledge that safety incidents have occurred 
and that our service levels are not where they want them to be 
due to staffing challenges that have forced us to make 
difficult, but appropriate, decisions that prioritize safety 
above everything else. Safety has been and continues to be our 
top priority. In 2019, the fiscal management control board 
commissioned a report, with the full support of MBTA 
management, by an independent Safety Review Panel. All MBTA 
employees were fully engaged and candid throughout the process 
and we embraced the opportunity to review our safety processes 
and to begin to make changes in our safety procedures, many of 
which we accomplished.
    Much as we embraced the process under which the Safety 
Review Panel was done in 2019, we have fully supported and 
collaborated with the FTA during the SMI process, which is 
focused on the heavy rail portion of the MBTA's system. We have 
had multiple meetings on a daily basis and continue to do so.
    On June 15th, the FTA identified four areas that needed 
attention, that they considered to need immediate attention and 
we were able to respond by producing Corrective Action Plans 
that have been approved by the FTA and, indeed, have begun the 
process of implementing those Corrective Action Plans and are 
actually awaiting their verification of some of the initial 
ones that we have done. When the full SMI came out in August, 
highlighted some additional concerns, particularly around 
workforce levels. And we absolutely agree this is an area where 
we need to do better. We are not alone in our staffing 
concerns. Peer agencies across the country are struggling, 
similarly, to staff up our ranks with fully trained, fully 
certified employees. And we will continue to work on that. And 
I am happy to get into that in greater detail, some of the 
steps we have taken.
    I just want to close by saying that we fully accept the 
FTA's Safety Management Inspection and we are continuing to 
work cooperatively with the FTA to not only develop the 
Corrective Action Plans, but then to implement and execute 
them.
    I will also want to register that we are fully committed to 
fully funding all of the actions required to remedy any and all 
safety issues that the FTA identifies. So I want to thank this 
committee, again, for the opportunity to speak and I look 
forward to a discussion about what has happened here at the 
MBTA and what we are doing about it.
    Thank you.
    Chair Warren. Thank you, Mr. Poftak. So everyone who had 
been paying attention recognizes that there have big safety 
problems with the T. The string of dangerous and deadly 
incidents over the last two years rang alarm bells. But even 
so, the findings of the FTA investigation of the MBTA and the 
Department of Public Utilities were shocking. The FTA found 
problems in both agencies, from top to bottom.
    Mr. Poftak, you have been the MBTA's general manager since 
January 2019, almost four years now. So the problems were we 
are discussing here occurred on your watch. I just want to read 
one of the FTA's findings about the MBTA safety culture.
    I heard you say, ``safety is our top priority.'' But here 
is what the investigation from the FTA found. I quote. ``MBTA's 
executive management,'' that is you, ``does not consistently 
ensure its decisions related to safety risks are based on 
safety data or documented facts.''
    I nearly fell over when I read that. That is the 
bureaucratic way to say that your safety decisions are just 
made up. So Mr. Poftak, what led the FTA to make such a strong 
statement about your safety decisions and your leadership.
    Mr. Poftak. I think what they have called for in their 
special directives--and you see it marbled through a number of 
them related to safety management information and, excuse me, 
safety communication--that we need to develop a more robust 
system of data analysis. Right now, we have, for the first 
time--we initiated it last year. For the first time, we do a 
monthly presentation of our safety data. However, much of it is 
backward-looking. And one of the things that they are calling 
for are more forward-looking measures. And I think that is an 
area where we need to become more sophisticated.
    Also, we have embarked, for a long period of time, on 
implementing a Safety Management System. One of the four 
pillars of that Safety Management System is risk management and 
assessment. And we are building--we have built up that 
capability in the safety department, that has doubled in size 
since 2019. So that is an area, I believe, where we are making 
progress. The FTA's finding, I think, clearly signals that we 
need to make more robust progress and, in fact, lays out a 
series of steps by which we can do that.
    Chair Warren. So I just have to ask, though, how can we be 
nearly 4 years into your term and you are just now deciding 
that you need to collect accurate data and need to have a way 
to use that data to lay out meaningful safety plans going 
forward?
    Mr. Poftak. I think the safety review panel report in 2019 
was a real turning point, where we began to more aggressively 
pursue that. Again, I think the findings of the Safety 
Management Inspection are a clear signal to us that we need 
more robust systems and we need better data.
    Chair Warren. Well, I am hearing you say you have known you 
have a problem since 2019. And the FTA is saying that that 
problem is severe and urgently needs to be addressed.
    Let me ask you about the action items on the FTA list. The 
list of necessary reforms that the FTA identifies is 
staggeringly long. It contains 53 specific action requirements.
    So that report came out in August. It is now mid-October. 
How many of these action items have you completed to date?
    Mr. Poftak. We are still in the process of producing 
Corrective Action Plans. The way the----
    Chair Warren. I get that. But you have got 53 items that 
need to be addressed. How many of them are now finished? How 
many are checked off the list?
    Mr. Poftak. I don't know that, off the top of my head.
    What I was hopeful to explain was that we are still in the 
process of developing Corrective Action Plans that we submit to 
the FTA and then they either approve or they ask for additional 
information. So in fact, the last set of Corrective Action 
Plans that are responsive to the special directives that you 
have laid out in front of you, is actually due tomorrow. And we 
will be submitting it today.
    Chair Warren. So does that mean, none? The whole list of 53 
is still out there?
    Mr. Poftak. Not--no, not none, but I do not know----
    Chair Warren. You don't know the number?
    Mr. Poftak. I don't know the answer, off the top of my 
head.
    And I would note that many of these Corrective Action Plans 
are not sort of a binary, flip the switch. They are a multiyear 
process of addressing some of the issues. And we intend to take 
it very seriously and do a very thorough job of addressing it.
    So I would love to be able to come in and get all 53 and 
say all 53 have been checked off. The nature of the work that 
needs to be done is much, I would say, much deeper and more 
detailed. If you were to do it in a short period of time, it 
would not be done properly.
    Chair Warren. You know, I take issue with some of this, 
because I have read what these are. I think moving chemicals to 
a safer place is not something that should take place over a 
long period of time. This is a real safety risk.
    So let me ask the question, though, the other way.
    There are 53 action items that the FTA has identified as 
urgent safety concerns. By what date will you have these 
completed? I want the public to be able to rely on this. We 
want to be able to check this and have some real 
accountability.
    Mr. Poftak. We are still working that out with the FTA, 
waiting for their approval on a number of these. So I can't--I 
can't put forward a date on something that the FTA hasn't 
signed off on.
    Chair Warren. All right. Let's assume they say this is the 
right approach. When are you going have to this done?
    Mr. Poftak. It truly varies from Corrective Action Plan to 
Corrective Action Plan.
    Chair Warren. Well, are you going to get some of them done 
right away?
    Mr. Poftak. Yes, absolutely, we will get some of them done 
right away. Again, I don't have a specific number, off the top 
of my head. Some of them will take much longer. Some of them 
will be multiple years in their execution.
    Chair Warren. You know, I just want to make clear. Making 
these safety changes is not optional. It is a matter of basic 
safety for your workers and for your riders. And that means 
that we need to see that these have occurred and we need them 
out there, where they are transparent, where people can see 
them.
    So I just want to take a look here at your record. What we 
are doing on this, we need to get this information and we need 
it get it fast, on this correction.
    Mr. Nelson, I want to take a look at your record. You are 
chair of the Department of Public Utilities, which has primary 
oversight of the MBTA. You have been at the helm since January 
2019, almost 4 years, almost exactly as long as Mr. Poftak has 
led the MBTA. It is your job to make sure that the MBTA is 
doing its job, and you are failing. Again, according to the 
FTA, the DPU does not use its resources or its authority to 
effectively identify and address safety issues. The FTA 
concluded that, ``DPU has not demonstrated an ability to 
address MBTA safety issues and concerns.'' Translation: DPU is 
not capable of doing its job.
    So Mr. Nelson, let's break this down. When did you begin to 
understand the extent of the problems at the T?
    Mr. Nelson. FTA conducted their audit in 2019, and we 
received the final report of that 2019 audit in December of 
2020. We became aware of some of the findings of that report 
through drafts and conversations with FTA, where they have 
highlighted things that they wanted us to address.
    So I would say, in 2020, we started to find indications of 
where FTA was marking areas that DPU needed to improve.
    Chair Warren. So I just want to make sure, because you are 
the front line on oversight here. So you didn't realize that 
the T had any of these problems that the FTA documented for you 
until the FTA came forward at the end of 2020 and said, here 
are the problems?
    Mr. Nelson. That makes it----
    Chair Warren. What were you doing in those first 2 years? 
This is your job, is to oversee the MBTA. Where were you?
    Mr. Nelson. Yes. Absolutely. So I think that is a fair 
question.
    Chair Warren. Good.
    Mr. Nelson. The answer to that question is, the 
Department--when we took an assessment of the situation on the 
MBTA, we started to develop a hiring plan to bring more and new 
people into the unit, the rail safety unit, in 2020. Right? We 
developed it in 2019 and we started bringing people in in 2020. 
We had a management change in 2020, as well. I brought in a new 
director and I have a new assistant director to take over that 
program. And we hired additional staff. We got up to, I think, 
eleven FTEs. Because I think one of the themes you are going to 
see throughout the entire FTA report is the Department needs 
more of a presence to oversee all of these activities and all 
of these actions going on at MBTA.
    Chair Warren. Wait a minute. I just want to get the 
timeline straight, here. So for 2 years, at the beginning, this 
is the 2019-2020, FTA has come in, they identify all of these 
problems. You didn't even know any problems exist.
    Starting in December of 2020, you now say, okay, we see the 
problems, we have got the report from the FTA, so we start 
hiring people. Now the problems, obviously, continued. The FTA 
comes in and, in a matter of weeks, writes up a report that 
identifies at least 53 actions that the MBTA needs to take.
    Where were you during that second 2-year period?
    Mr. Nelson. So again, I think it is not that we weren't 
taking any actions. I mean, the Department took a number of 
normal enforcement actions.
    Chair Warren. Well, the FTA obviously thinks you not only 
didn't take action, but you are not even capable of taking 
action.
    I want to understand what you understand as why the DPU 
drew that conclusion.
    Mr. Nelson. Drew what conclusion, Senator?
    Chair Warren. The conclusion that you are not doing your 
job and that you are not even capable of doing your job.
    Mr. Nelson. I think that the answer to that question is: 
The Department, in and of itself, needs to do more to oversee 
the actions that have happened on the MBTA. There were a number 
of--you have highlighted, in your letter to me, there were a 
number of collisions and derailments that occurred that set off 
alarm bells at FTA and at DPU. We were on site on every one of 
those accidents. We have taken action on some of the Green Line 
speeding incidents that occurred, that led to a passenger car 
colliding with an another Green Line. And so we have been 
taking actions outside of the SMI.
    Chair Warren. Obviously, you have not taken enough action.
    Mr. Nelson. I am not arguing that we have. We need to do 
more.
    Chair Warren. And the FTA cannot come in and find the kinds 
of mistakes it finds, if you had been taking action.
    And I just want to underscore this. If you can't identify 
what is wrong from the past five years, then how can anyone in 
Massachusetts have confidence that you are actually going to 
fix this going forward? You know, you are the chair, Mr. 
Nelson. So let me just ask about what is going on here.
    Mr. Nelson. Sure.
    Chair Warren. Your background experience is with natural 
gas and electric power divisions, nothing to do with 
transportation. Is that right?
    Mr. Nelson. I worked for the Department of Public Utilities 
in both the natural gas division and the electric power 
division, as well as the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
    Chair Warren. And my question was, nothing to do with 
transportation. Is that right?
    Mr. Nelson. Correct.
    Chair Warren. Correct. And Robert Hayden and Cecile Fraser 
are the other two commissioners. Is that right?
    Mr. Nelson. That is correct.
    Chair Warren. Hayden's primary experience with the 
department is in pipeline safety. And Fraser's background is in 
energy and utility industry. Is that correct?
    Mr. Nelson. Yes, and she has a siting background, as well.
    Chair Warren. And neither has a background in 
transportation. Is that right?
    Mr. Nelson. That's correct.
    Chair Warren. Okay. So none of you, none, has any 
experience in transportation or transit safety and oversight. 
Is that right?
    Mr. Nelson. In specifically transportation safety?
    Chair Warren. Yes.
    Mr. Nelson. That is not our background, no.
    Chair Warren. I am concerned because I think part of the 
problem may be, here, that you don't understand what your job 
is.
    In your recent testimony to the legislature's joint 
committee on transportation, you stated, ``We are an auditing 
department.''
    Mr. Nelson. Sure.
    Chair Warren. And you also said, ``We have done what we are 
required to do.''
    You say you have no additional responsibilities here, but 
the FTA obviously sees this differently. In its report, the FTA 
said, ``While DPU has the authority to require MBTA to take 
expedited action to implement its SMS and address other safety 
concerns, the agency rarely invokes its authority to compel 
such action,'' which doesn't sound like they think your only 
job is as an auditor.
    So how do you reconcile your claim that you did the job you 
were required to do, with the Federal oversight agency's 
assessment that you did not?
    Mr. Nelson. So again, to those questions you were quoting, 
I think that, when I was referring to, ``We have done 
everything that we are required to do,'' there is nothing that 
the FTA has asked us to provide that we have not provided. That 
was the context there.
    The DPU certainly--fundamentally, here is what I think the 
problem is.
    Our role is to oversee and regulate MBTA safety. We do 
that, primarily, through being in the field, observing their 
actions, making sure they have a comprehensive safety plan, 
making sure people are trained, making sure people are working 
the hours they are scheduled to work, making sure that we can 
go on-site, both scheduled and unscheduled, ensure that we look 
at all of the activities in the rail yard, that people are 
following the procedures. Historically, right, prior to 2018, 
the division was run in a reactive way, where we would wait for 
an accident, we would investigate the accident, analyze the 
root cause, and ensure that whatever was the cause wasn't 
happening again.
    FTA rightly has changed to a proactive approach. The 
proactive approach is----
    Chair Warren. Mr. Nelson, let me stop you there.
    If you are going to make the argument that you have been 
using this great proactive approach and changing from 2018, and 
since you came in in 2019, you are using a much better 
approach, you are not going to succeed with this argument. You 
are going to fail in this argument.
    Mr. Nelson. That is not what I said.
    Chair Warren. The FTA has made clear, you are not doing 
your job.
    Look, I appreciate that these are tough problems, and there 
are a lot of reasons why safety risks on the T have grown over 
time. But the only way out of this is with accountability.
    Mr. Nelson. Sure.
    Chair Warren. And leadership failures from top to bottom, 
that don't acknowledge where the problems are and put real 
action plans in place, not just to fix these problems over some 
indistinct timeline into the future, but actually where you are 
holding yourself accountable to the public and saying, we are 
going to get this much done by this date.
    If we don't have that, then we are not going to have a T 
that gets better, that gets safer, and one we can depend on. 
And that is just not acceptable. The people of Massachusetts 
are entitled to better. Senator Markey.
    Senator Markey. Thank you, Senator Warren. And thank you 
for your line of questioning.
    Because what we are hearing is staggering, and it is pretty 
clear that at least two things have to happen. One is that the 
MBTA needs to meet the FTA's specific action requirements 
safely and comprehensively, to ensure the safety of the T. And 
two, the DPU needs to start taking seriously its safety 
oversight of the MBTA.
    I agree with Senator Warren. The DPU has not been a 
watchdog. The DPU has become a regulatory black hole into which 
all of the safety issues fall, even though they are supposed to 
be identified and then cleared up, in terms of the operations 
of the MBTA. And that has not happened. There is a huge 
regulatory black hole that exists.
    And now I would like to open up a third item.
    The MBTA needs to clearly and transparently communicate 
with the public. Simply put, I think it has been alarming to 
the T's riders, how often the MBTA has not communicated simple 
facts about its operations or its safety incidents. And I would 
like to focus on a specific example, the Orange Line shutdown.
    Mr. Poftak, on August 19th, when the Orange Line shutdown 
began, you said that the shutdown that the T riders would have 
to endure would guarantee a faster service on the Orange Line. 
At a press conference on September 13th, 6 days before the 
Orange Line was supposed to reopen, you said the Orange Line 
will get faster. The only caveat is that it is going to take a 
couple of days.
    But, according to TransitMatters data, Mr. Johnson's 
organization, that has not been the case. Before the shutdown, 
residents traveling from my hometown of Malden to Boston's 
Haymarket Station on the Orange Line could plan for about a 13-
minute trip.
    Currently, nearly one month after the conclusion of the 
Orange Line shutdown, that trip is taking about 21 minutes. A 
shocking 60 percent increase in travel time. Mr. Johnson's head 
is nodding.
    Mr. Poftak, is service faster on the Orange Line since the 
shutdown?
    Mr. Poftak. I think you have empirically demonstrated it is 
not. And the statements that I made were based on the work that 
we did as part of the surge. And that work was successfully 
completed. And the places where that work was done, indeed, 
have had slow zones lifted.
    What I failed to communicate, and I will take personal 
responsibility for this, what I failed to, I think, fully 
comprehend and then fully communicate in a way that was 
digestible to the public, was that our track engineers, as part 
of their work, not only inspecting the work that had been done 
on the track in that stretch--and it is really that stretch 
from North Station to Assembly that is the one that has the 
most significant slow zones. In the course of doing their work, 
they identified other areas that they wanted to work on and 
they felt like it was important to work on those areas, 
previous to the winter, where a track repair is significantly 
more difficult.
    And indeed, that work is now underway. It is being done. It 
is typically being done on the overnight. But you need to have 
a slowdown in place in order to do that work.
    I failed to properly communicate that. However, I do 
continue to stand on the principle that I want my track 
engineers to feel that they have the agency, if they identify 
something that they want to work on, regardless of whether or 
not we take a hit in terms of public credibility, the priority 
has to be safety. And we will continue to prioritize safety. 
Obviously, it has come at an expense with your customer base, 
in terms of credibility.
    Senator Markey. So I live five blocks from the Malden 
station. Malden High School, last year, 25 percent white, 25 
percent Black, 25 percent Latino, 25 percent Asian. In other 
words, your constituency; a changing constituency. And one that 
is very dependent upon the T. These are young people going to 
Bunker Hill Community College or UMass Boston. They are using 
the T to go to work in a restaurant in Jamaica Plain. The 
Orange Line runes from Malden to Jamaica Plain. So that becomes 
a way in which people can get educated, can go to work, can 
visit their relatives, but it is essential that it be working.
    So the MBTA does not release comprehensive speed data so 
that those people can understand how fast it is running. They 
should not be dependent upon Mr. Johnson and his organization. 
We thank him for doing it. Will you commit to releasing data on 
average train times on the T, so that the public can see it in 
the same way they can see how long it takes for a plane to take 
off and actually land, and have some idea as to what 
adjustments their families are going to have to make? Will you 
release data on average train times on the T?
    Mr. Poftak. I think that is a fair request. Yes, we will 
release data on average train times.
    Senator Markey. Okay. I think that is absolutely essential 
for families.
    So the extra travel time is actually now affecting families 
in a dramatic way. A 60 percent increase in the time it takes 
for them to travel is very significant.
    The next question which I have is, from my perspective, is 
there a point at which the MBTA has over promised? And what 
went wrong with the Orange Line? And why wasn't the problems 
with the Orange Line, in terms of the completion of the work 
that you said you were going to complete in that 30-day period, 
communicated to the T riders, so that they could make plans 
that were adjusted to the much longer time that, obviously, it 
is taking to complete the Orange Line? Why was that not 
communicated to the traveling public?
    Mr. Poftak. I think, just to be clear, everything that we 
said we were going to do during the 30-day surge was done. 
There was additional work that was identified. I think there 
was a failure in internal communication to fully comprehend the 
impact on our riders and a failure on my part, not only on that 
comprehension, but also to communicate it in a way that was 
broad based and effective.
    I know we have had a bunch of sessions with various media 
members. But clearly, the message did not get out in a way that 
was digestible to customers. And I acknowledge that that has a 
customer-facing impact.
    Senator Markey. On September 13th, you said that, during 
the shutdown, you were tagging six critical slow zones along 
the Orange Line, adding, ``We are confident that we can get 
those six pulled off.''
    In the past week, you acknowledged that the MBTA is 
continuing to work on the Orange Line, including efforts to 
alleviate the slow zone between Tufts Medical Center and Back 
Bay Stations. The MBTA also said last week, that it is still 
needed a machine to go over the newly replaced track in order 
to ensure it is properly settled.
    To me, that sounds like critical work to alleviate the slow 
zones, which you stated would be done during the month-long 
shutdown back in August and September.
    If you knew the shutdown was not going to fully fix these 
slow lanes and get the Orange Line back to full speed, you 
should have communicated that to the public at that time, so 
that they could understand what the impact on their lives was 
going to continue to be.
    Why did you not do that? Why did you not give all of that 
information, at that time, to the public?
    Mr. Poftak. I draw a distinction between two things. There 
was the six zones that we identified where, indeed, the work 
was completed and we have been able to lift the slow zones.
    There is additional work somewhat adjacent to at least one 
of those work areas, in the North Station to Assembly Square 
area, that became follow-on work that, I think, we have talked 
about in some detail.
    And then there is the distinction between, we were able to 
lift the slow zone on one of the sections between--we define 
slow zones as a 10-minute-an-hour speed restriction. We were 
able to lift it to 18. We are now working out a process with 
the FTA about what additional work we would need to do to get 
up to a 25-mile-an-hour, which is, sort of, the as-constructed 
speed. So we have lifted the slow zone from 10 to 18, but there 
is an ongoing discussion, and then there will be a work plan to 
follow, to get to that 25-mile-an-hour posted speed.
    Senator Markey. Right. My only point is, you should have 
just said that. The people of Malden could understand that. You 
need more fasteners, you need more machines to be able to 
ensure that the tracks are settled. Just tell them that. But 
you didn't do that. They were assuming it was going to be 
faster because you said it was.
    So let me ask you this.
    People want a specific date. On what specific date, Mr. 
Poftak, will service on the Orange Line be faster than it was 
before the shutdown, as promised?
    Mr. Poftak. And I cannot give a specific date, because that 
is dependant on, not only field conditions, but also the 
judgment of our field staff and our inspection staff. And I 
feel that it is my duty and my responsibility, as a leader of 
this organization, to prioritize safety. And if I put a date in 
place, it doesn't prioritize safety. It puts pressure on field 
staff to make a decision that is not based on what is the 
safest condition in the field; it forces them to make a 
different decision.
    So I regret that I can't give you a date, but I hope that 
explanation gives some texture to why.
    Senator Markey. Mr. Poftak, following this hearing, will 
the MBTA publicly release a list of the work that still needs 
to be done to get the Orange Line up to full speed? Yes or no.
    Mr. Poftak. Yes, we can do that.
    Senator Markey. You can do that. And I think that is 
critically important, because I don't think we are talking 
about days here, or weeks; we are talking about months before 
the Orange Line is running faster than it was before the 
shutdown.
    Thank you, Senator Warren.
    Chair Warren. Thank you, Senator Markey.
    So the persistent safety issues of the MBTA and failures of 
the MBTA leadership and the DPU leadership to address them have 
a serious impact on hundreds of thousands of riders who depend 
on the T to get around the city, to get around region, and on 
the T workers who work to make that possible.
    So I just want to spend some time talking about the 
consequences of the DPU and MBTA's failures for Massachusetts 
residents and communities.
    Mayor Wu, you are an Orange Line rider. So from your 
experience riding the T over the last few years, and where you 
sit in the Mayor's office, how have the T's safety issues--what 
kind of impact have they had on commuters and on the city of 
Boston and the region generally.
    Ms. Wu. Well, the most obvious and devastating impact is 
the injury and loss of life that has been highlighted and, 
unfortunately, not in infrequent stories and situations. And 
this has been, as you have discussed, driven by a lack of clear 
safety culture and the decades of deferred maintenance and 
vacancies and staff shortages that have pulled the existing, 
hardworking staff in multiple directions.
    Riders should not have to wonder, when you are getting on 
the T in the morning to go to work or trying to get home, 
whether there is a question of if you will make it back to your 
family. And that has daily quality-of-life impacts for our 
residents, when people aren't sure if they are going to get 
docked pay or are struggling to make plans or making important 
life choices about whether or not to stay in the region, 
whether companies can locate here.
    When we can't trust, when our confidence is shaken, when 
ridership goes down, that means more traffic for everyone. That 
means the entire region is paralyzed. So any question of safety 
hurts our residents and it hurts our economy.
    Chair Warren. Thank you.
    We know that, when public transportation systems break 
down, the burden does not fall equally on everyone throughout 
the region. Vulnerable communities are disproportionately 
harmed by reduced service and extended delays.
    In fact, Mayor Wu, I think you have pointed out in the 
past, that black bus riders spend 64 more hours, on average, on 
stalled buses every year than white bus riders. And this is why 
safe and reliable transit is so important for addressing 
economic and equality and racial injustices.
    Mr. Johnson, your organization, TransitMatters, has led the 
charge for convenient and equitable mass transit for 
Metropolitan Boston. How have the MBTA and DPU's failures to 
adequately fund, manage, and oversee our transit system 
worsened transit access for underserved communities?
    Mr. Johnson. Residents in underresourced communities are 
more likely to be hourly workers or be in precarious 
employment. So the unreliability, the service cuts, and even 
the poor planning in relation to the Orange Line shutdown, 
literally took money out the pockets of these folks and left 
some of them vulnerable to termination.
    So we often think about low income residents who use the 
bus to transfer to the subway. So they have been hit doubly 
hard by increased headways on both modes.
    And critically, as Mayor Wu mentioned, the fear of 
unreliability or concern for safety has pushed a lot of people 
to drive. And so for low income people, that means either 
higher cost or, for bus riders, that means more traffic and 
longer bus commutes.
    Chair Warren. That is a very powerful point about the 
impact all the way through the system.
    So the MBTA's and the DPU's failures to competently manage 
and invest in the T have left many families without safe and 
reliable transit. And if this incompetence continues, the T is 
going to see more shutdowns, more delays, more crowding, more 
derailments, and, potentially, more accidents.
    Mayor Wu, you often talk about safe, reliable, affordable 
public transportation. As the foundation for our shared 
prosperity and growth, what do you think we need to do to make 
sure that the MBTA equitably connects Bay Staters to the 
resources they need, and to each other?
    Ms. Wu. We need a clear vision; proactive, strong 
leadership; and the determination to get it done by 
prioritizing our communities, the riders and everyone who is 
impacted by the system. That means not just funding safety and 
maintenance and talking about why we can't do things or why we 
haven't, but really ensuring that we are pushing beyond that, 
to the projects that need to be done, accelerating building the 
credibility and faith in the system by looking to give clear 
commitments on where we are going to go and when we will get 
there. So fundamentally, all of that.
    And I know the general manager has one of the most 
difficult jobs anywhere on the planet and this is coming after 
decades and decades of getting us to this point. But there are 
still ways in which, even today, changing the HR practices, 
really focusing in on hiring. We were proud to partner and help 
host a job fair on City Hall Plaza for the MBTA. But there are 
thousands of vacant positions that need to be filled, the wages 
need to be higher to attract people to those roles, so that we 
can begin to chip away at the currently unacceptable wait times 
and headways.
    Chair Warren. Thank you. I appreciate it. I think you are 
exactly right. This is about leadership, it is about vision, it 
is about having a plan. And then it is about executing on that 
plan and some real accountability for that execution. That is 
what people in Massachusetts deserve. Senator Markey, do you 
have some more questions?
    Senator Markey. Yes, please. I thank you, Senator.
    Mr. Poftak, in addition to the one-month closure of the 
Orange Line and the partial closure of the Green Line, which is 
still in effect, does the MBTA currently have any plans to shut 
down other lines, the Red Line, the Blue Line, other parts of 
the Green Line?
    Mr. Poftak. If the question is, do we have a plan to do 
full line shutdown, the answer, right now, is we have things 
that we are thinking about over the next year, but the answer 
is, right now, we don't have any definite plans.
    If I may be so bold as, perhaps the subtext of your 
question is, I know there was kind of a community conversation 
and some rumors and, I think, some premature posting on the 
website about a Red Line shutdown, a long-term Red Line 
shutdown in the later part of this year. There will not be such 
a shutdown. There may be periodic, much smaller ones, on the 
weekends. We are doing some weekend shutdowns now, on the 
Braintree branch, for instance, in the early evening, to get 
additional track work. So we will use much smaller diversions.
    But if the question is, will we do anything on the scale of 
the Orange Line, right now, we do not have any current plans to 
do that. But we will share them. And to Jarrod's comment, we 
will attempt to share them with as much advance notice as 
possible.
    Senator Markey. Okay. Well, all I am really advising you, 
sir, is to just communicate. Put it out there. Just let people 
know. Mayor Wu got two-and-a-half weeks notice that a major 
transit line, the Orange Line, was going to be shut down for a 
month. That is all she got for notice. That is just wrong.
    The city depends upon that artery for its proper economic 
and social functioning. And Mayor, I think, one of the, I 
guess, silver linings of this, and unexpected successes coming 
from the Orange Line shutdown, was the City of Boston offering 
free 30-day passes to the Bluebike share system for the 
duration of the shutdown. Can you talk a little bit about that 
and what we might have learned about ourselves, because of that 
shutdown?
    Ms. Wu. Our teams at the City worked really hard to not 
only try and support the work happening with the T and make 
that possible underground, but to imagine new possibilities and 
try to push so that people had every possible option.
    We were expecting, with free Bluebike, 30-day free Bluebike 
passes, the maybe eight or nine thousand people might take us 
up on that. It ended up that 60,000 people claimed those free 
passes. It was 300,000 rides taken during that period, which 
was a 50 percent increase compared to that same period last 
year, with hardly any notice, as you said.
    Before the shutdown, the Bluebike system's daily ridership 
record was just over 18,000 rides in one day. And during the 
shutdown, it was 27,000 rides. We set nine different daily 
ridership records, just breaking the records day by day by day, 
in just that period.
    So bikes can move people across Boston, if we have the 
infrastructure, if we take down barriers. And it is worth 
noting that that biggest surges were actually during weekends. 
So people are needing to get around, not only to get to work 
and make those critical investments, bring home salaries for 
their families, but to spend money at our local businesses, to 
enjoy, to keep dollars flowing in our local economy.
    So just the social connections, the business connections, 
the local investments, that is all important. We need to make 
sure that we are using every avenue of public transportation.
    Senator Markey. So this is actually a remarkable story. 
Because on the busiest days of the free rides, Bluebikes were 
transporting the equivalent of two-and-a-half bus lines, or a 
quarter of all of the Orange Line, on a daily basis.
    So how important is it for us now to consider the funding 
of free bikes for people, seeing what this last experience has 
just revealed to us about the interest and the adaptability of 
the people in Boston.
    Ms. Wu. It is an essential part of our infrastructure. And 
the demand is there. The appetite is there.
    We are working as fast and hard as we can, at the City 
level, to make that infrastructure safe, through design 
investments and street choices. But removing financial 
barriers, as you see, with everything else constant, 
immediately has an impact.
    And I want to thank you for your leadership, alongside 
Congresswoman Pressley, for ensuring that, at the Federal 
level, that conversation is moving. This is exactly why we need 
it. When you lower barriers, you can open up whole new avenues 
for people to get around.
    Senator Markey. Yes. Senator Warren and I and Congresswoman 
Pressley, we are committed to partner with you in order to 
accomplish this goal.
    The City of Boston has been undertaking several other 
experiments in fare-free transit, including making the 23, the 
28, and the 29 bus route free for two years. Why did you chose 
those routes?
    Ms. Wu. Those are three of our busiest routes through the 
city of Boston. The majority of riders are designated--are low 
income riders. They are also, vast majority, serving riders of 
color and run through our neighborhoods that are in key 
economic corridors.
    We have seen that access to affordable transit is one of 
the greatest predictors of social and economic mobility, as Mr. 
Johnson was outlining. So this is not only about reducing the 
financial burden, but connecting everyone to opportunity and 
ensuring that the buses move faster as well. We have seen 
benefits on all fronts.
    Senator Markey. Mr. Johnson, you and your organization are 
the conscience of our community in transportation. Do you think 
the MBTA has been doing enough to advance fair and equitable 
transportation?
    Mr. Johnson. Not as much as they could. I think there have 
been some great steps, but the T could be doing more to promote 
fare equity.
    They could look at instituting fare caps, when they 
introduce their new system. And that is where riders who can't 
afford a weekly or a monthly pass, are guaranteed that they 
will not pay more than that pass amount, even if they are going 
on a pay-as-you-go basis.
    The T could also significantly lower commuter rail fares, 
which would help low income people who are displaced from the 
city, and longtime gateway city residents. During the shutdown, 
I think an additional 8,000 riders a day, took advantage of the 
commuter rail, because it was essentially free or the same 
price as the subway within zones 1 or 2. And the T should even 
look at a fare cut, perhaps, to even have subway fares match 
bus fares, stimulating demand, and as a way to demonstrate--to 
sort of makes things better for folks.
    Senator Markey. Thank you, Mr. Johnson.
    Chair Warren. So let's talk a little bit about the future. 
The FTA report does not cover either busses or commuter rail, 
but there is a lot of work to be done there, as well.
    And with the right vision, the right leadership in place, 
we could make the overall system of the MBTA safer, more 
reliable, more equitable. Doing things like investing in bus 
and commuter rail electrification, expanding service, making 
sure everyone can afford to ride.
    So earlier this year, I met with the Environmental Justice 
Corridor Coalition, a group that was convened by Senator 
Brendan Crighton, and it includes State and local officials 
that represent Lynn, Chelsea, Revere, Everett, and several of 
the North Shore communities. Our discussion focused on how this 
investment would improve service, how it could reduce long-term 
maintenance costs, how it would help us meet our client goals, 
support housing development, and address traffic congestion. It 
also would create new jobs, promote regional economic 
prosperity, and advance environmental justice.
    So Mr. Johnson, your organization has been one of the 
foremost advocates for electrification. You, personally, have 
studied electrification extensively and become an expert on 
this.
    Let me ask. How much would it cost for the T to electrify 
its commuter rail network?
    Mr. Johnson. Well, with competent project management and 
using some of the same techniques from the last successful and 
relatively affordable electrification of the Northeast Corridor 
from New Haven to South Station, that estimated cost would be 
about, between 3 and 5 billion.
    And so yes, the up-front capital costs are higher than 
alternatives and diesel. But the long-term savings and the 
benefits to communities and the environment are huge. It is 
also important to know, too, that many of the MBTA's 
locomotives have a failure rate of every 5,000 miles, which is 
about 25 times less reliable than even mediocre electric 
multiple units. This is because electric trains have fewer 
moving parts, and also, many of the T's passenger coaches are 
outdated and a majority of the $10 billion state of good repair 
backlog is on the commuter rail system. So electrification 
isn't an add-on; it is state of good repair.
    Chair Warren. So more money up front, but bigger savings 
over a longer period of time. Right?
    Mr. Johnson. Absolutely.
    Chair Warren. You know, you have got to pick your moments 
for making the big changes. Right now, the Commonwealth has a 
substantial surplus. The Commonwealth is receiving--or 
actually, the MBTA is receiving $580 million in new Federal 
funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for new 
projects. We have got the Inflation Reduction Act, where money 
is coming in to try to help us move to green.
    Let me just ask, Mr. Johnson, how would investing in 
electrification boost the local economy and support 
historically underserved communities in Massachusetts?
    Mr. Johnson. Yes, electrification of the commuter rail 
system is key to the State's greenhouse gas emission reduction 
goals. Scientists have pointed out that, even with electric 
vehicles, we cannot reduce our greenhouse gas emissions without 
dramatically reducing driving. Electrification of the commuter 
rail would drive mode shift with faster, more reliable trains. 
And electrification also allows us to run more frequent 
service.
    Commuter rail runs through many environmental justice 
communities, either without stopping or with fares that are too 
high. In electrifying the system, we must foreground equity, 
and this means adding stops in environmental justice 
communities, lowering the fares, and ensuring that we have 
diverse labor force that is modernizing that system. So again, 
if we are going to achieve the State's climate road map and 
further equity, transportation has to be a key part of that. 
And it is also going to be critical to support the housing 
growth that we need to have in communities across the State.
    Chair Warren. Right. This is the moment. Instead of 
continuing to pour more and more money into dirty, unreliable 
technologies from the last century, we could actually replace 
broken down trains with electric ones, have more electric 
buses, cleaner for the communities that they go through, and, 
exactly as you say, add more stops, make sure it is affordable, 
and it helps enrich the entire region.
    So does the T currently have plans for electrification, Mr. 
Johnson?
    Mr. Johnson. So the T is working towards bus 
electrification. The T does need more capacity to accelerate 
this work. The bus garages themselves are a critical road block 
to electrification.
    But we can't stop there. Obviously, in order to have the 
system that we need to have in the future, we need to work on 
electrifying trains. And for that, the T does not have 
comprehensive plan. The T has blown past self-imposed deadlines 
to being working on commuter rail electrification and is, 
instead, pushing unproven and unserious solutions that will not 
deliver the full benefits of electrification. And critically, 
we know this because the Governor strangely intervened in the 
legislature's bond bill, to contradict the T's own planning 
efforts.
    Chair Warren. Right. I have to say on this, I am very glad 
we are making progress on buses and electrifying buses. It is 
exactly the right thing to do.
    But I am mystified why there is no plan in place to do the 
same with commuter rail. It would mean a faster, more reliable, 
and, over time, a more cost efficient way to provide 
transportation. It is a win-win on so many levels. And we 
should be using this moment and the resources available to us, 
to implement that vision. It would make a difference for 
generations to come.
    So Mayor Wu, I am going to do my last question with you.
    Would expanding T service to new parts of Boston and to 
surrounding communities help our city grow and better serve 
families throughout the region?
    Ms. Wu. Unequivocally, yes. That question is music to my 
ears. For Boston to be a city for everyone, we are all-in on 
being a green and growing region. And sometimes, we see all of 
the new growth, and it is not enough, we need more affordable 
homes.
    The reality is, Boston's population used to be even higher. 
Seventy years ago, we were over 800,000 people. And we want to 
get back to being able to have the infrastructure to support 
that equitably.
    But all of our decisions now, the planning that we are 
doing in Boston, the housing creation, the schools that we 
investing in, it all hinges on being able to have a reliable, 
world-class public transit system. The T, at its core, is about 
investing in jobs and education and healthcare and housing for 
people who previously didn't have a way to reach that.
    So I think we need to look to the previous maps that 
existed. You will see former versions of plans had a much 
broader reach for the system. Even on many of our lines, the 
current end points were never intended to be the end points for 
those lines. So we have to get back to that sense of ambition 
and possibility, and know that this would grow our economy, 
strengthen our communities, and really advance equity.
    Chair Warren. Yes. I very much appreciate your putting that 
vision forward. I want to thank you, both of you, you and Mr. 
Johnson, for your advocacy for the T and your leadership and 
your vision in this area. You know, we are talking about 
safety. And these are terrible problems that must be remedied 
immediately. But we can't let that be the end of our ambitions. 
This is a moment when we can talk about expanding transit 
throughout the region. And there are so many advantages to 
doing this. And frankly, the costs are just too damn high if we 
don't do it.
    So we need to seize on this moment with the leadership, 
with the vision, with the plan, with the resources to make the 
changes that will help us be the region we want to be, the 
Commonwealth we want to be in the 21st century.
    I want to thank you for being here and being part of this.
    Senator Markey, do you have any final questions you want to 
ask?
    Senator Markey. If I may. Thank you.
    Chair Warren. Please. Of course.
    Senator Markey. Thank you, Senator Warren.
    We have come a long way since 1900, the dawn of the T. Back 
in 1900, there were a grand total of 4,000 internal combustion 
engine vehicles in the United States. That is all we had. But 
there were a lot of horses. Horses for 6,000 years, up until 
that point, had been the mode of transportation along the 
planet. And in Boston, it was getting to be a pretty big public 
health issue, as we were going up to 800,000 people and horses 
were the means of transportation.
    So we moved to the internal combustion engine after 6,000 
years. The life expectancy, if we do it right, of the internal 
combustion engine, is running out now. It might have lasted 
somewhere between 130 and 150 years. But by 2050, we don't want 
to see them on our streets anymore. They pollute. They harm the 
planet. And we have solutions that are in place.
    Senator Warren and I, we fought hard and included $116 
million for the MBTA as part of the FTA's low and no emissions 
vehicle program. That grant is going to go a long way towards 
purchasing 155 new battery, electric buses to support the 
MBTA's transformation to a zero-emission fleet, which they aim 
to do.
    Maybe Mr. Johnson, Mayor Wu, you could talk about that and 
why that is just a good start. Because we have a lot more to 
do.
    Mr. Johnson. Sure. I mean, I think some of the steps the T 
can take is to commit to full bus fleet electrification in the 
2030s. So that means, again, increasing that capacity so that 
the T could deliver multiple bus garages at a time. That is 
developing a realistic plan to electrify commuter rail and 
prioritizing low income communities and communities of color in 
that planning.
    But also, I think what is really important, too, is that 
the T should work with community development corporations, 
workforce development agencies, public housing, the City, to 
develop an electrification workforce that reflects the 
ridership and helps us advance economic justice for low income 
communities and communities of color.
    Senator Markey. Mayor Wu.
    Ms. Wu. I will say the bottom line is, we need the T and 
everyone across the region to see public transportation with a 
longer-term, both-end approach. Yes, we need to prioritize 
safety and ensure that there is fiscal health for the 
organization and how it runs. But that can't be at the expense 
of having a clear pathway to getting the things done that, in 
the end, save us money and are basic for our health and wealth 
as a community.
    Senator Markey. Yes. And you are the green new deal mayor 
and your goal is to make us the greenest, cleanest city in the 
United States and the world. So we want to, obviously, be as 
helpful as we can be to you, in order to make it possible for 
you to implement your vision for the city. I think it is very 
important.
    This is kind of back-to-the-future quality to this. When I 
was a boy, I would have to walk up to the Fellsway to get onto 
the trolley car, which was electrified, to take me and my 
mother and father into Sullivan Station and then on to downtown 
Boston and, for me, then, out to Boston College. Of course, 
that was an hour-and-25 minutes, by the way, each way.
    But it was there, if you don't have a car. My father would 
get off at the Hood Milk Company, in Charlestown, at Sullivan 
Station, using the electrified trolley. But a big decision was 
made, pull up all of the electrified trolleys and let's just 
make it very safe for internal combustion engine to take up 
every single bit of space along the highway.
    And now, there is a kind of a reflection that we are 
making, about how smart some of these people were a long time 
ago, in terms of looking at electrification, realizing the 
lower levels of pollution. And that is really what we are 
committed to doing.
    So I guess what I would ask, Madam Mayor, are there other 
steps that you want the T to be taking here, in order to move, 
in order to be able to implement your dream of the city?
    Ms. Wu. I think the general manager knows my list well. 
There are a couple of them that I have been harping on for some 
time.
    I think what I would like to emphasize is that there are 
big projects that are going to take time and resources, and 
just listen to Jarrod on every one of those.
    But there are things that can be done in the very, very 
immediate short term, as well. Fare equity on the commuter rail 
system could be done tomorrow and would likely boost ridership 
on the commuter rail, to then ease the congestion and the load 
and burden on other forms of transit and on traffic, as well.
    Moving to expand our fare-free bus pilot. Thinking about 
how the City of Boston and another municipality have a direct 
seat in the governing structure through the legislation that is 
up at the State House right now. That would be a game changer 
for how we move forward, even starting right now.
    Senator Markey. And Mr. Johnson, I just want to give you a 
chance to echo what the Mayor just said about equity, about 
justice, about ensuring that we have cleaner, fairer system.
    Mr. Johnson. Absolutely. I mean, I would echo the points 
that Mayor Wu made. But I think one of the first things that we 
have got to do, too, is we have to address the headways on the 
subway and the bus. So that means, whether that is working with 
the FTA on newer drug testing, that is conscious of the fact 
that marijuana is legal in Massachusetts; working with local 
community colleges to get more people into the pipeline; again, 
working with labor to have some collaborative solutions on how 
we can raise pay, improve working conditions, and get people 
started at full-time pay.
    And I think one of the other things is the T needs to move 
towards a 24-hour system. Not only will this help third-shift 
workers, hospitality workers, some of the lowest income folks 
in our community, but it could also be part of the solution for 
bus drivers. Right now, you can't get to a bus garage if you 
don't have access to a vehicle all the time, for an early 
shift.
    And again, echoing what Mayor Wu said on the fare system. 
We have to have a simpler and cheaper fare system. A great 
example is, in Lynn, two-thirds of the people in the immediate 
station area around Lynn are low income. But less than 10 
percent of the ridership on the commuter rail is low income, 
because of those fares. That is something that the T could do 
tomorrow.
    And then, finally, addressing the connectivity and some of 
the commitments that the T needs to honor to environmental just 
communities. So things like the Mayor mentioned earlier, Red to 
Blue connector; advancing the great work that the T and the 
City are doing along Blue Hill Ave.; addressing the Mattapan 
line; and again, just thinking bigger about what the T can 
accomplish.
    Thank you.
    Senator Markey. So thank you. And thanks to the both of you 
for giving us a vision for a more just, more equitable, more 
sustainable, and more efficient public transportation system in 
the city of Boston, as a model for the rest of the country. 
Thank you so much.
    And thank you, Senator Warren, for bringing this hearing to 
Boston in an extremely important, timely moment in our history. 
Thank you.
    Chair Warren. Thank you very much, Senator Markey. You are 
always a great partner in these things.
    We held this hearing because it is crucial to understand 
what has gone wrong, so that we can remedy it and move forward 
to something, not just a little better, but a whole lot better.
    The people of the Commonwealth eserve a reliable transit 
system that works for them and works for their families. And to 
achieve that vision, we need new leadership from top to bottom. 
We need people with experience who will listen to the voices of 
workers and riders and other local partners. Senator Markey and 
I are committed to being good partners at the Federal level and 
we will continue to fight for funding for transit. But the 
State has to use that funding responsibly. Ultimately, the 
Governor has the authority and the responsibility to hold 
accountable the entire chain of command at the T. The current 
governor is leaving, but the incoming governor will have an 
opportunity to step up with a vision, a plan, and a willingness 
to hold T management accountable for turning that plan into a 
reality.
    If we truly commit to it, I have no doubt that the MBTA can 
once again be a leader in public transportation for our entire 
Nation.
    I want to thank all of our witnesses for being here.
    Senator Markey and I want to hear from our Massachusetts 
constituents on the issues that we discussed today. You can go, 
anyone who wants to can visit my website at Warren.Senate.gov 
to share your comments about these issues, and they will be 
included in the official record of the hearing.
    Questions for the record are due 1 week from today, Friday, 
October 21st.
    And for our witnesses, you will have 45 days to respond to 
any questions.
    So thank you again for being here.
    And with that, this hearing is adjourned.
    [Whereupon, at 1:14 p.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
    [Prepared statements responses to written questions, and 
additional material supplied for the record follow:]
              PREPARED STATEMENT OF CHAIR ELIZABETH WARREN
    Welcome to a hearing of the Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban 
Affairs' Subcommittee on Economic Policy.
    Public transportation is an essential service that directly 
influences economic growth and access to employment in Boston and other 
U.S. cities, which are key issues for the Economic Policy Subcommittee. 
That's why I thought it was crucial to convene this hearing about the 
state of the T and invite my good friend, Senator Markey, to join me.
    The T is the beating heart of Greater Boston. Millions of people 
rely on it to get to work, to school, to our stores and restaurants, to 
go to the game, to visit friends and family-and to make it back home. 
The T helps cut pollution, and, without it, Boston traffic would be 
even worse. Without the T--which, in one form or another, has been 
around for over 150 years--our city and our Commonwealth would not be 
the same.
    For generations, we have relied on the T, and we have counted on 
the people and organizations in charge to make it work for us--to make 
the buses and trains run safely and on time. But we can no longer rely 
on the T. The T is failing.
    In the last 2 years, there has been a series of dangerous and even 
deadly collisions, derailments, and accidents on the T. Multiple 
derailments on the red line. A collision on the green line that injured 
dozens. Workplace injuries. A horrific death when a red line passenger 
was caught in a door and dragged off a platform.
    Finally, the Federal government stepped in. The Federal Transit 
Administration, or FTA, conducted an in-depth study and concluded that, 
in this 2-year period, there were [quote] ``numbers and rates of 
derailments and collisions on the MBTA rail transit system that far 
exceed industry average and the safety performance of MBTA's peer 
transit systems.''
    The list of management failures is a long one.
    After the April 2022 fatality on the Red Line, the Federal Transit 
Administration opened a broad safety investigation of the MBTA, and the 
Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities, or DPU, which is 
responsible for oversight of the T.
    The results of that investigation were released in August, and it 
is a long and scary list of problems. Just a partial list of troubles 
that FTA identified includes:

    MBTA does not have enough staff to carry out current 
        operations--and that the agency has--quote--``not demonstrated 
        the organizational capacity to recruit and hire personnel.''

    FTA found that, quote, ``Operating and maintenance rules 
        and procedures are not implemented as required, and that 
        technical training is ``underresourced . . . without sufficient 
        resources and . . . lacks oversight.''

    FTA found that MBTA was not conducting adequate oversight 
        of its contractors.

    FTA found that safety risk assessment guidance was 
        ambiguous and confusing, that management tools were not up to 
        the task of addressing safety risks, and that MBTA's 
        investigations of safety problems were not looking at all the 
        right information.

    And FTA really laid into the T's management, finding that--and 
again, I quote: ``MBTA's Executive Management does not consistently 
ensure its decisions related to safety risks are based on safety data 
analysis or documented facts.'' Simple translation? When it comes to 
safety, the T's management is just making it up.
    And there's more. There is another State agency responsible for 
oversight of the T, the Department of Public Utilities. For over 50 
years, DPU has been responsible for oversight of equipment safety and 
operations at MBTA. In other words, DPU is responsible for managing the 
management of MBTA.
    But here's what FTA had to say about how badly DPU does its job:

    FTA found that the DPU does not use its resources 
        effectively to identify and resolve safety risks.

    FTA found that DPU lacks independence from MBTA.

    FTA found that ``DPU has not used its authority to ensure 
        the identification and resolution of safety issues at MBTA.''

    And FTA reached a simple and devastating conclusion. Again, I 
quote, according to FTA, ``DPU has not demonstrated an ability to 
address [MBTA] safety issues and concerns.''
    Overall, the FTA analysis contained 20 findings regarding safety 
problems at MTBA and provided the agency with a list of 53 actions 
required to address these concerns. It also contained 4 findings 
regarding DPU's failures and provided DPU with a list of 9 actions 
required to address these concerns. And by the way, FTA also found that 
seven leftover action items from a 2019 audit of DPU were still 
unresolved.
    This is a dangerous situation that has been allowed to fester for 
far too long. We are here today at our field hearing to examine 
management of the MBTA and DPU and to press for change.
    Every single FTA action item needs to be checked off--immediately. 
But that alone is not enough. The people of Massachusetts need a safe 
system, but they also need a transit system that works-a system that is 
reliable, accessible, frequent, dependable, clean, and that gets you 
where you need to go without crazy delays.
    Here's the good news: Thanks to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, 
we've got the resources to do it--that law will provide $580 million 
for modernization and safety improvements at MBTA. In addition, 
Massachusetts currently has a massive tax revenue surplus.
    But here's the bad news: We can't just buy our way out of these 
problems and wish our way to a T that works. We need the right 
leadership in place at MBTA and DPU so that we can have a functioning T 
that riders throughout the region can depend on.
    I know we have the right leadership in the Mayor of Boston, and I 
appreciate Mayor Wu joining us today to talk about the importance of 
the T for the city and the whole metro area. We also have excellent 
leadership from the community. I appreciate Jarred Johnson of Transit 
Matters being here to discuss the scope of the T's problems and their 
impact on residents of our community.
    I also want to thank Administrator Fernandez of the FTA for 
accepting my invitation to join us in Boston today. The FTA report on 
MBTA safety is a bombshell. She will help explain what the agency 
found, and what role they will play in getting it fixed.
    And finally, I'm glad Mr. Poftak, the MBTA General Manager, and Mr. 
Nelson, the DPU Chair, also accepted my invitation to appear as 
witnesses. We need to hear firsthand from them about how the MBTA got 
into this mess, and how DPU allowed it to happen--and find out what 
they are doing to clean it up and get it back on track. That's why I 
invited them to testify before this subcommittee: so the public can 
hold the MBTA and DPU to account.
    Thank you to our witnesses, and I will now turn it over to Senator 
Markey for his opening statement. Senator Markey, I am so glad you were 
able to join me at this hearing--thank you for coming.
                                 ______
                                 
    PREPARED STATEMENT OF SENATOR EDWARD J. MARKEY OF MASSACHUSETTS
    Thank you, I'm glad to be here with you today. My deep thanks to my 
colleague, Senator Warren, for chairing this hearing and for convening 
us all today. I'm also grateful to Administrator Fernandez, Mayor Wu, 
and Jarred Johnson, for being generous with their time here today and 
for all that they do to push for transit justice, here in Boston and 
across the United States. Finally, my thanks to General Manager Poftak 
and Chairmen Nelson for their willingness to come before us.
    There are two stories we must tell today.
    The first is the story of how the MBTA came to a screeching halt, 
arriving at this entirely preventable point, where deep service cuts 
and wholesale shutdowns of subway lines are deemed necessary to get the 
T back on track. I believe we need to understand the missteps and 
negligence that brought us to this moment of crisis, so that we never 
find ourselves back here again.
    The second story pertains to how we move forward, how we build a 
brighter future for the MBTA. Greater Boston needs a public transit 
system that is truly a public good and effectively serves the needs of 
the people of the Commonwealth. While this current crisis never should 
have occurred, it has presented the chance for a conversation about how 
we build a transit system that is safe, sustainable, accessible, 
reliable, and free. With the proper care and decision-making, we can 
turn the T from a punchline into a model for our shared transit future.
    I'm hopeful we can get there, but I want to make it clear: I am 
angry.
    It is shameful that the first public transportation system in our 
country has been put last, and has lost the faith of the people of 
Massachusetts. In the last year alone, we've witnessed several crashes, 
derailments, and escalator malfunctions, seen passengers jumping from 
windows of flaming Orange Line trains, and experienced the 
unconscionable death of a passenger on the Red Line.
    As Senator Warren just explained, the Federal Transit 
Administration's report on the MBTA is damning, painting a picture of 
an organization that is woefully understaffed, lacking in basic 
communication and training protocols, and more focused on delivering 
capital projects on time than on fundamental operations and 
maintenance. All of this has stretched the T to a breaking point where 
safety and reliability are far from guaranteed.
    The problems at the T did not happen overnight but have festered 
for decades. Like mold creeping between the baseboards of a home, poor 
management and disinvestment have eaten away at the foundation of our 
vaunted public transit system. Where the T once stood as a national 
model for reliable public transportation, today it serves as a warning 
sign for what happens when officials take their eye off the ball.
    And too often, when problems arose, officials hid the ball 
altogether, leaving the public in the dark about the true state of the 
T.
    Unfortunately, amidst this crisis, the T's playbook hasn't changed. 
During the recent Orange Line shutdown, the MBTA promised that the 
track work would allow the trains to run faster. Now, we are seeing 
that this hasn't been true.
    More transparent communication also means acknowledging that far 
too often, the burden of the T's failures has fallen on riders, 
especially the Black, brown, disabled, and lower-income individuals who 
disproportionately use the T.
    I was a commuter student, who was able to attend college by living 
at home in Malden and taking the Orange Line and the bus out to Boston 
College. I know how public transit opens doors of opportunity to people 
who may not have the privilege to own and drive a car or live close to 
their school or workplace. It is people without resources and time to 
spare who are experiencing the worst impacts of the T's crisis. That is 
inexcusable.
    As we collectively rebuild and modernize this essential public 
utility, riders cannot be asked to shoulder the burden. Digging out of 
this hole will need the concerted effort of everyone from MBTA 
officials to community leaders to Federal, State, and local 
policymakers. It will require the MBTA to improve its safety and 
communication practices, and the Department of Public Utilities to 
conduct robust, independent, and transparent safety oversight of the 
MBTA.
    In Congress, Senator Warren and I will keep fighting for bold 
Federal investments in public transit, on top of the $580 million in 
Federal funding that has gone to the MBTA this year. As Massachusetts' 
Senators, we have a vested interest in ensuring those Federal dollars 
are spent well.
    A better T is possible, especially in a State as abundant in 
resources and brainpower as Massachusetts. In order for us to fight for 
a better future, we have to know what it will look like.
    So today, we will spend some time identifying and illustrating a 
picture of the future with public transit as a public good.
    We know that when you lower the barriers to entry and make public 
transit accessible and reliable--when you make it free--people will use 
it. Increased ridership gets cars off roads, which reduces traffic and 
carbon emissions that pollute our air and warm our planet. Expanding 
service also creates good-paying jobs--jobs for union workers who will 
revitalize our aging transit infrastructure and operate the buses, 
trains, and ferries that will connect communities, stimulate the 
regional economy, and get our residents where they need to go. So as we 
interrogate and investigate the T today, we can also imagine that 
brighter future, a world where the T puts ``public'' back in ``public 
transit.''
    But you can't chart a new path without knowing where you are now--
and as any rider of the T could tell you, the MBTA has a long way to 
go.
    Greater Boston's identity is inseparable from the T. It is the 
lifeblood of the metro region, and for too long it has not been treated 
with the care it deserves. Let this hearing today be an honest and 
unsparing account of the T's neglect, as well as a first step toward 
making the T a vibrant, prosperous transit system worthy of our 
Commonwealth and its people. Thank you.
                                 ______
                                 
                 PREPARED STATEMENT OF NURIA FERNANDEZ
             Administrator, Federal Transit Administration
                            October 14, 2022
    Good morning, Senators Warren and Markey.
    Thank you for your attention to the Federal Transit 
Administration's oversight efforts to improve the quality and safety of 
the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA) rail system.
    As is often noted by Secretary Buttigieg, safety is our North Star 
at the U.S. Department of Transportation. At FTA, our primary 
responsibility is to ensure people are safe on the billions of annual 
transit rides they take each year, while also ensuring a safe working 
environment for transit workers. We accomplish this in several ways:

  1.  Investing in capital infrastructure and rolling stock at transit 
        agencies;

  2.  Reviewing the oversight provided to transit agencies by State 
        Safety Oversight Agencies, which have primary responsibility 
        for the safety of rail transit operators;

  3.  Conducting detailed examinations into specific safety issues to 
        determine the appropriate action to mitigate these issues.

    The last point is why we're here today, and it's why FTA began a 
Safety Management Inspection of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation 
Authority's rail system. Following that inspection, FTA issued eight 
safety directives to MBTA identifying areas of safety focus. 
Importantly, two directives were also issued to MBTA's State Safety 
Oversight Agency, the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities 
(DPU).
    By Federal law, the DPU is responsible for day-to-day oversight of 
the MBTA, ensuring rail operations in the Commonwealth are safe-every 
ride, every day.
    Transit agencies like the MBTA make the day-to-day decisions on 
how, who, what, where, and when they maintain and operate their 
systems. The safety of passengers and workers cannot be compromised by 
these decisions.
    Earlier this year, MBTA experienced a concerning rate of reportable 
safety events including derailments, train collisions, injuries and 
fatalities. The pattern and number of serious incidents indicated that 
safety risk was headed in an unacceptable direction. Importantly, FTA 
also became concerned about the efficacy of DPU's oversight of MBTA.
    With those concerns in mind, particularly due to concerns about the 
quality of DPU's oversight, FTA initiated a Safety Management 
Inspection (SMI) of both the MBTA rail operations and DPU's oversight.
    The SMI focused on MBTA's processes, procedures, and resources 
regarding safety decision-making, and how the DPU oversees the MBTA's 
safety performance.
    On August 31, FTA issued an SMI report identifying 24 findings (20 
to MBTA and 4 to DPU) in 5 categories (4 to MBTA and 1 to DPU) that 
require continued attention and resources from both the MBTA and DPU to 
prioritize safety and to ensure system maintenance that supports safe 
operations. At that time FTA issued four additional special directives 
to the T, for a total of eight, along with an additional special 
directive to the DPU.
    FTA instructed the DPU to enforce the safety requirements specified 
in the Special Directives issued to the MBTA and to enhance their 
oversight, including a reassessment of DPU's staffing and capacity.
    We expect that the DPU and the MBTA will coordinate work to quickly 
begin developing and prioritizing corrective actions that will address 
the findings and required actions identified in the SMI report. FTA 
will continue to monitor and track the MBTA and DPU's performance in 
implementing the Special Directives.
    As the MBTA addresses FTA's Special Directives, it, like all 
transit agencies, must also consider and adequately support both safety 
and service. Our report indicated, in part, that MBTA was not 
adequately staffed, across the agency, to meet the demands of both an 
aggressive capital expansion program and the basic day-to-day safe 
operation of the system. Properly aligning the staffing of an agency, 
within the funding available, is absolutely critical to keep a rail 
transit system in a proper state of good repair. Even with COVID relief 
funds awarded to the system, the staffing resources were not properly 
aligned to perform important maintenance.
    FTA found that the MBTA's Operations Training Department is 
significantly understaffed and, while recent improvements have been 
made, additional resources are required to update rules, procedures, 
and training and to monitor the performance and recertification of 
MBTA's operations.
    The Special Directives are intended to ensure that the MBTA 
prioritizes the repair of safety-critical assets and that DPU provides 
ongoing, effective oversight of the MBTA.
    Regularly maintained transit systems mean better service and 
improved safety for riders. They're on-time more often, and fail less 
frequently.
    The path forward for the MBTA will require community buy-in. As the 
T improves, it will need the support of its Board, and patience from 
the riding public and stakeholders. Tough decisions will have to be 
made now, to create a better, safer future. There will be service 
impacts the public will feel, but support and understanding will help 
ensure appropriate stewardship of the system.
    While FTA's SMI inspection of the MBTA has concluded, our focus on 
safety, and our support for improving it at the MBTA, will not stop. 
Since it was handed the mantle of ensuring passenger and transit worker 
safety throughout this country, FTA has led the way for agencies all 
over the country. We will continue to do that, with more funding to 
create even safer systems.
    Thanks to President Biden, and Congress's passage of the Bipartisan 
Infrastructure Law, FTA received a seventy two percent increase in 
funding, more than $21 billion over the next five years, to invest in 
the State of Good Repair of transit assets and systems throughout the 
United States.
    The MBTA receives $415 million in FTA formula funding each year, 
including $224 million in State of Good Repair formula funding.
    The DPU receives more than $2 million in FTA State Safety Oversight 
formula funds each year. The DPU is also certified and funded by the 
FTA to conduct proper oversight, and the agency must be accountable to 
that role.
    FTA will continue investing in transit throughout Massachusetts, 
working closely with the MBTA and the DPU to ensure the highest level 
of safety for users and employees of the system.
    Thank you again for your attention to improving transit through 
these shared goals of safety and service.
                                 ______
                                 
                   PREPARED STATEMENT OF MICHELLE WU
                         Mayor, City of Boston
                            October 14, 2022
    Thank you Sen. Warren and Sen. Markey for convening this hearing, 
and for your leadership.
    When Boston began building the first subway system in the country 
in 1895, the idea was labeled dangerous and radical.
    Business owners organized an ``Anti-Subway League,'' warning that 
construction would disturb snakes and rats underground, forcing them to 
the surface spreading fear and disease. The League's president, W.G. 
Harris, spoke of the ``great disadvantage and damage to business'' that 
would result from tearing up the street.
    Thankfully, decisionmakers looked to the future, investing in our 
Nation's very first subway tunnel running from Park Street to Boylston.
    It took tremendous innovation--electrifying trolley cars to run 
underground without suffocating coal smoke--and it reshaped what growth 
looked like in our city, and our country, as more people were able to 
escape traffic above-ground, and reach their destinations en masse.
    Today we must continue investing in our future to make Boston a 
city for everyone-green and growing, where families can thrive.
    We are so grateful for your partnership--and that of the Biden 
administration--in deploying necessary resources for our collective 
recovery. We've allocated our ARPA funds, and are looking to stretch 
every dollar from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation 
Reduction Act to reinvigorate our city.
    But none of that matters if residents can't rely on public 
transportation to get where they need to go. We're here today because 
all that investment--in housing, schools, economic development, and 
healthy communities--is constrained by the state of public transit in 
Massachusetts.
    As someone who's been taking the T for decades--as a college 
student, a young professional, and a mom pushing a big double stroller 
through MBTA elevators, buses, and trains to get to child care--this 
discussion isn't a theoretical one for me.
    On Wednesday I took the Orange Line to work, grateful that it was 
back in service, and excited to board a shiny new train at Forest 
Hills. The ride went smoothly, but there were still 12 minute headways 
at peak rush hour.
    After an unprecedented 30-day shutdown of our busiest subway line, 
we all still hold our breath and cross our fingers when we step into 
stations and look up to see when the next train will arrive.
    In recent weeks, the T has acted with more urgency than we've seen 
in years, but my experience as a commuter--like so many others--is 
still emblematic of the broader, systemic problem:
    For too long, our approach has focused on fiscal management at the 
expense of long-term vision.
    The result is a system constantly on the verge of collapse--one 
that directs all our energy toward meeting basic safety requirements 
rather than growing and expanding public transit as critical 
infrastructure.
    If we want Boston to be a thriving, competitive, global city.we 
can't continue to sabotage ourselves by taking a piecemeal, reactive, 
bare-minimum approach.
    The people of Massachusetts deserve safe, reliable, accessible 
public transit. But that needs to be our starting point, not our finish 
line.
    Our transit system today isn't equipped to meet the needs of our 
growing region. Restaurants and small businesses are desperate for foot 
traffic after years of economic hardship. Large employers struggling to 
get workers back in person are facing staffing shortages across every 
industry because people can't afford to live close enough to walk to 
work, and don't want to deal with a stressful, unreliable commute.
    As a hub for health care and life sciences, innovation and 
education--our possibilities are endless, if we could just connect 
``all'' our communities to the opportunities here.
    Doing so will require a strategic vision for the T:

    One that secures long-term, sustainable funding,

    Establishes a workforce development strategy,

    Expands access and affordability,

    And ensures that the communities most affected by the 
        system are the ones most empowered to shape it.

    That means an MBTA Board seat for Boston, fare equity and 
electrification for our commuter rail system, fare-free buses, and 
accelerated progress on the red-blue connector and West Station.
    Thank you, and I look forward to a productive conversation about 
turning the T into a source of pride and connection for all our 
residents.
                                 ______
                                 
                  PREPARED STATEMENT OF JARRED JOHNSON
                   Executive Director, TransitMatters
                            October 14, 2022
    The MBTA is a key part of the success of Greater Boston. One only 
has to look at the cranes adding millions of square feet of housing, 
office, commercial, and lab space right next to MBTA stations. A report 
by ``A Better City'' found that through travel time and cost savings, 
savings from avoided vehicular crashes and injuries, and reduced carbon 
emissions, the MBTA provides an estimated value of $13.2 billion to 
Greater Boston each year. \1\ This value benefits both transit riders 
and non-riders alike. That value is also more than six times the T's 
annual operating budget of approximately $2 billion.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
     \1\ ``The Transportation Dividend'', A Better City, 2019 (benefit 
adjusted for inflation).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The T is also hugely important on a human level and is essential 
for social mobility, equity, and cohesion. According to AAA Northeast, 
the average cost of car ownership in the Commonwealth is $10,728 a 
year. \2\ The ability to live without a car or share one is a 
significant savings, especially for low and moderate-income households. 
A Harvard University study on ``Equality of Opportunity'' found that 
``the relationship between transportation and social mobility is 
stronger than that between mobility and several other factors, like 
crime, elementary school test scores or the percentage of two-parent 
families in a community''. \3\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
     \2\ ``Annual Cost of New Car Ownership Exceeds $10,000 in 
Massachusetts'', Berkshire Eagle, 2022.
     \3\ ``Transportation Emerges as Crucial To Escaping Poverty'', 
Mikayla Bouchard, The New York Times, 2015.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Yet this value is being diminished by unprecedented reductions in 
service delivery and quality, the abysmal state of good repair and 
safety concerns, and lackluster leadership that has substituted 
austerity for vision, and is now suffering the consequences of that 
failed approach to transit operations.
    The Baker Administration has bragged about more than $7 billion in 
capital spending, \4\ \5\ and yet few would say that the reliability or 
service quality of the T has gotten better in the past 8 years. The 
agency's capital spending quite literally came at the expense of the 
operating budget. As recently as this spring $500 million was unwisely 
transferred from the operating to the capital budget, \6\ only months 
before the FTA cited unsafe staffing levels at the T's control center 
and inadequate staffing in the maintenance department. \7\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
     \4\ MBTA Crisis--Part II, Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, 
2020.
     \5\ MBTA finance cast a long, red shadow for incoming leaders, 
Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, 2021.
     \6\ T board blesses $500m transfer for capital programs, Bruce 
Mohl, Commonwealth, 2022.
     \7\ ``Here Are the 24 Findings the FTA . . . '', Sahar Fatima and 
Taylor Dolven, The Boston Globe, 2022.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Deliberate decisions made by T leadership have led to outcomes that 
are causing daily harm to our economy, to our air quality, and to 
social equity. As a direct consequence of an understaffed Operations 
Control Center, the T was directed by the FTA to take corrective 
action. \8\ That action has slowed down subway service in ways that 
cause real harm to our most vulnerable transit riders. Residents of 
neighborhoods like Mattapan, with some of the highest travel times in 
the region, often spend an extra 15-20 minutes added to their daily 
commute. Residents along the Orange Line are dealing with increased 
headways as well as slow zones nearly a month after the T promised 
their service would improve. \9\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
     \8\ ``Under Pressure From Regulators on Staffing . . . '', Laura 
Crimaldi, The Boston Globe, 2022.
     \9\ ``The Shutdown Was Supposed To Make the Orange Line Faster . . 
. '', Taylor Dolven, The Boston Globe, 2022.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The Metro Boston region cannot tolerate more disruptive shutdowns. 
The MBTA needs a larger, more stable operating budget to perform more 
regular maintenance. It needs to learn from peers who are able to 
perform more trackwork during longer overnight periods, without 
complete disruptive shutdowns. It needs to treat hiring more bus 
operators and subway dispatchers like an emergency because it is one. 
The agency must regain the trust of riders and stakeholders by being 
honest and transparent. The double-speak around the Orange Line slow 
zones and the political interference during the Blue Line shutdown \10\ 
have severely damaged trust. Finally, the agency has to move beyond the 
``good enough mindset'' and understand that it has an obligation to 
provide high-quality service, even when it must perform extensive 
maintenance.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
     \10\ ``Three T Derailments in Three Days . . . '', Taylor Dolven, 
The Boston Globe, 2022.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    T riders deserve more than what the T's acting COO, called ``a more 
manageable and palatable level of interruption''. \11\ Riders deserve 
service frequent and reliable enough to avoid lost wages, and most 
importantly, they deserve to know that their public transit system is 
safe. Riders deserve to know when they will have a fully functional, 
slow zone-free transit system and the steps that it will take to 
achieve this goal. MBTA employees deserve leadership that works 
tirelessly to improve their quality of life and works collaboratively 
with labor to address worker shortages. Businesses deserve a transit 
system that enables customers and employees to reach them conveniently, 
reliably, and sustainably. And the region deserves a transit agency 
that provides high-quality service for today and one that has a vision 
for how to grow and modernize to meet tomorrow's needs as well.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
     \11\ ``The Shutdown Was Supposed To Make the Orange Line Faster . 
. . '', Taylor Dolven, The Boston Globe, 2022.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The T needs leadership that can address the T's long-standing needs 
and expands access to drive mode shift and shorten travel times for 
environmental justice communities. Our climate, our economy, and our 
fight for transit and economic justice can't wait.
                                 ______
                                 
                  PREPARED STATEMENT OF MATTHEW NELSON
          Chair, Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities
                            October 14, 2022
    Good morning, Chair Warren and Senator Markey. Thank you for the 
opportunity to testify regarding the Department of Public Utilities' 
(``Department'' or ``DPU'') oversight of safety management practices at 
the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA).
    The Department of Public Utilities is responsible for oversight of 
investor-owned electric power, natural gas, and water utilities in the 
Commonwealth, and the agency is also charged with developing 
alternatives to traditional regulation, monitoring service quality, 
regulating safety in the transportation, steam distribution and gas 
pipeline areas, and the siting of energy facilities. The DPU is 
comprised of numerous Divisions, such as the Consumer Division, 
Pipeline Safety Division, Electric Power Division, Transportation 
Network Companies Division, Gas Division, and Transportation Oversight 
Division.
    The Transportation Oversight Division serves both consumer 
protection and public safety functions. It primarily regulates safety 
practices of common carriers used to transport passengers and property 
including trucks, railways, buses, household moving companies, and 
towing companies. The Division also licenses Massachusetts-based 
intrastate motor bus companies and investigates consumer complaints 
regarding a driving violation or an accident involving a Department-
licensed common carrier.
    Additionally, and most pertinent to the subject of today's hearing, 
within the Transportation Oversight Division, the Rail Transit Division 
serves as the Commonwealth of Massachusetts' State Safety Oversight 
Agency (SSOA) for the rail fixed guideway public transportation system. 
The only such system in Massachusetts is the MBTA. Federal regulations 
(49 CFR 674) outline a SSOA's responsibility for overseeing the safety 
of the system and assessing the effectiveness of the Public 
Transportation Agency Safety Plan (ASP) in ensuring safety.
    The chief activities of the Rail Transit Division can be divided 
into three general areas: (1) accident investigations; (2) ongoing 
monitoring of safety practices; and (3) monitoring of large capital 
delivery projects. Our Rail Transit Division has staff on-call-24 hours 
per day, seven days per week-to respond to accidents and incidents. 
While on scene, staff take notes, photos, and meet with MBTA personnel 
to get an initial sense of what has happened. Division staff observe 
the MBTA's investigation of an incident from beginning to end for the 
purpose of ensuring that the MBTA's investigation into the cause and 
circumstances of the incident are ``sufficient and thorough.''
    In addition to responding to incidents, the Rail Transit staff 
observes the MBTA's day-to-day safety practices and compliance with its 
own Agency Safety Plan. Last year, the Rail Transit staff conducted 472 
oversight activities, including: (1) document reviews, rules reviews, 
and record reviews; (2) field observations conducted on-site at MBTA 
properties to observe implementation of processes and procedures 
referred to in the Agency Safety Plan, including site visits to yards, 
car houses, and stations; (3) interviews with MBTA employees after the 
DPU has made a field observation; and (4) inspections, meaning that DPU 
observes an MBTA official conducting a safety activity or inspection 
and then the DPU evaluates MBTA's compliance with procedure and 
standards.
    The Department also oversees the certification of large capital 
delivery projects, like Green Line Extension (GLX) and Green Line Train 
Protection System (GLTPS). The MBTA has its own Safety Certification 
process for capital projects, and the DPU must observe and verify that 
the MBTA follows its own Safety Certification process of new 
construction.
    In carrying out these functions, the Division operates under a set 
of generally applicable principles. The MBTA is responsible for the 
development of safety procedures and protocols for its rail system. The 
DPU is responsible for safety oversight to ensure fulfillment of the 
MBTA's safety functions.
    The DPU takes its responsibility to ensure the safety of riders of 
the MBTA's transit system very seriously, and we have been working 
closely with the FTA and the MBTA to implement the FTA's 
recommendations as outlined in the final Safety Management Inspection 
report issued on August 31, 2022. DPU agrees that the actions directed 
by the FTA are necessary for enhancing public transportation system 
safety, and the DPU is working diligently to implement those actions. 
DPU has already expanded its field work, including by conducting more 
in-person observations, and is working to increase its resources to be 
able to conduct even more field work and additional auditing of the 
MBTA. The DPU is also working to hire additional staff with transit 
safety experience in our Rail Transit Division, and we are actively 
recruiting and continually posting jobs.
    The Department is dedicated to our efforts in these areas, and we 
look forward to ongoing work with the FTA and the MBTA to ensure riders 
receive a safe and reliable transportation system. Thank you for the 
opportunity to testify. I look forward to answering your questions.
                                 ______
                                 
                   PREPARED STATEMENT OF STEVE POFTAK
      General Manager, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
                            October 14, 2022
    Good morning, Chair Warren, Senator Markey, and Members of the 
Committee. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to address the 
Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs' Subcommittee 
on Economic Policy today.
    As the oldest transit system in the country, the MBTA is a system 
of incredible complexity. Every day, the hard working, dedicated 
employees of the MBTA provide safe and constant service to more than 
600,000 customers by utilizing 12 ferries, 100 locomotives, 300+ 
commuter rail coaches, 600 subway cars, 800 RIDE vehicles, and more 
than a thousand buses.
    Over the past several months, the MBTA has faced a series of 
incidents that have raised concerns about the safety of the system. I 
want to state unequivocally today to the Committee and to our customers 
that the system is safe--but we can and will do better. I am committed, 
just as I know all of the employees of the T are committed, to 
continuing to make the T a safer, and more reliable transportation 
system. I look forward to sharing with this committee the significant 
progress we have made and will continue to make towards that goal.
    I am a regular MBTA rider, and my family regularly takes the T. The 
City of Boston doesn't run a fleet of school buses for Grades 7-12. 
Instead, the T provides the transportation to 25,000 school kids, 
including mine.
    We take this role in our riders' lives seriously. We get people 
where they need to go, to grocery stores and medical appointments and 
school classes and jobs. We do it through blizzards, during parades, on 
holidays. And we did it throughout a pandemic that forced us to 
continually pivot on a sometimes day-to-day basis, rethinking our 
transit services as our ridership plummeted--all the while, with the 
goal of not only providing safe and reliable trips for our riders but 
also protecting the health of our riders and employees.
    As riders continue to return to the system now, I understand the 
frustration many of them feel. On behalf of the more than 6,400 
hardworking men and women of the MBTA, we acknowledge that safety 
incidents have occurred and that our service levels aren't where we 
want them to be due to staffing challenges that have forced us to make 
hard decisions that represent prioritizing safety above all else. These 
challenges are impacting major transit agencies across the country.
    Some of those incidents have had tragic results, and I again extend 
deep condolences to the affected families on behalf of myself and all 
of the employees at the T.
    Safety has been and continues to be our top priority. In 2019, the 
Fiscal and Management Control Board, on its own, commissioned a Report, 
with the full support of MBTA management, by an independent Safety 
Review Panel. All MBTA employees from all departments were fully 
engaged and candid throughout the process. The MBTA embraced the 
opportunity to review our safety processes and then make all necessary 
changes in our safety procedures.
    One of the Report's findings, for example, was that the MBTA's 
Safety Management System (SMS) was lacking. The T had experienced a 
number of operational incidents that the Safety Review Panel directly 
attributed to ineffective SMS practices.
    SMS is defined as a formalized, top-down, organizationwide, data-
driven approach to managing safety. Every day, in every part of the 
MBTA, and even after the Report's release as the pandemic's first wave 
began in 2020, we continue to steadily implement SMS and best 
practices, setting safety performance targets as well as tracking and 
communicating them in order to make agency-wide decisions.
    Much like we embraced the process of the Safety Review Panel in 
2019, we have fully supported and collaborated with the Federal Transit 
Administration (FTA) during their Safety Management Inspection process, 
which has focused on the heavy rail portion of the MBTA system. For the 
past several months, most of our MBTA departments and individual T 
staff members have conducted comprehensive, productive briefings with 
the FTA on just about a daily basis. We have welcomed this opportunity 
to go into great detail with the FTA about the safety initiatives we've 
accomplished, those that are currently underway, and the areas that 
need improvement.
    At the front end of the process, the FTA identified some areas that 
required early priority attention. Four early special directives were 
issued, June 15, with defined timelines for corrective action plans 
(CAPs). We immediately began to make both long-term, lasting plans; and 
implement immediate corrective actions wherever possible.
    For example, with respect to the hours that our operations staff 
were working, within days of receipt of the early special directives, 
we instituted a fatigue management plan to increase our operations 
staff rest intervals. This meant an immediate reduction in service 
levels but was necessary to prioritize the safety of our riders and our 
employees. We also, almost as instantly, augmented our hiring 
activities for the Operations Control Center (the OCC) so that we could 
ultimately return our service levels to meet the needs of our riders' 
expectations.
    For the OCC, we authorized a $10,000 sign-on bonus and launched an 
immediate internal hiring blitz to attract more heavy rail dispatchers. 
This is a critical-skills position with the unique and imperative 
requirement that applicants already work within subway operations so 
that their service as a dispatcher can benefit from their working 
knowledge of the system.
    For the early FTA special directive 22-4, we have addressed the 
areas specific to the speed restriction for the Tufts to Back Bay 
curve. The worn rail was replaced ahead of schedule, as were 
approximately 400 Cologne Egg fasteners. As a result, speeds were 
increased from 10 mph to 18 mph. Some of this work was conducted during 
the Orange Line Surge which was a topic of our Special Maintenance 
Repair Plan (SMRP) submitted as part of our Corrective Action Plan for 
SD 22-4. We are in active discussions with the FTA to further improve 
system speed but this requires some additional plans for fasteners, 
which the FTA wants to review first. This effort is a solid example of 
the collaboration and rigorous ongoing engagement between the MBTA and 
the FTA.
    On August 3, we announced a 30-day suspension in Orange Line 
service along the entire line beginning August 19 and resuming 
September 19. We shut down the line to make major, expansive, and 
comprehensive progress on a number of priorities identified in 
directives from the FTA and to accelerate additional critical track 
upgrades and other improvements.
    It had become clear to us (and to the FTA) that traditional 
intermittent service shutdowns were not offering us the essential 
amount of time needed to perform the improvements required. The only 
way to deliver the positive rider experience in a timely way was to 
immediately invest a meaningful amount of time for repairs and 
upgrades. Thus, we embarked on the extraordinary effort to allow 100 
percent unencumbered access to the system for 30 continuous days to 
accomplish the important work needed and reopen a line that our riders 
deserve. While the Orange Line shutdown was the largest closure of a 
line the MBTA has undertaken, we have had success with other targeted 
large-scale closures over the past several years across the system.
    During this unprecedented service diversion, we successfully made 
sweeping improvements to the system and delivered a service to our 
riders on schedule. Thirty days of 24-hour access to the Orange Line's 
more-than-121,000 feet of track, its 20 stations, and the entirety of 
its rights of way allowed us to accomplish a profound amount of highly 
complex work that would have otherwise taken more than 5 years of 
weekend and nighttime diversions, all leading to less delays and 
unplanned service interruptions; and faster, more reliable, safer trips 
for our riders.

    We replaced track and ties across the entire Orange Line 
        that brought us into a state of good repair.

    We replaced track in slow zones and have lifted speed 
        restrictions across the Orange Line--specifically Jackson 
        Square, Back Bay, and Tufts.

    We upgraded signals at Oak Grove and Malden and replaced 
        two major crossover track areas that facilitate train 
        movements.

    We upgraded track and rail within the Wellington Yard and 
        Maintenance Facility to provide a safer and more accessible 
        environment for workers, and to improve service reliability for 
        riders.

    We are now running all new Orange Line cars and have begun 
        the scrapping process for the decades-old cars.

    The August SMI highlighted the concern over the workforce levels at 
the MBTA, and we agree this is an area where we absolutely need to do 
better. We are not alone in our staffing concerns. Our peer transit 
agencies around the country are also struggling to staff up their ranks 
with proficient, fully trained, fully certified employees. A February 
2022 Survey conducted by the American Public Transportation Association 
(where 117 Transit Agencies responded) revealed that 92 percent of our 
public transit agencies are experiencing difficulties hiring employees 
(particularly bus operators), 71 percent of public transit agencies 
have either cut service or delayed service increases due to worker 
shortage issues, 66 percent of agencies are having difficulty retaining 
employees, and 20-50 percent of agencies have implemented actions such 
as increasing starting pay, including sign-on bonuses, introducing 
referral bonuses and implementing retention bonuses to attract and 
retain employees. APTA, just this week provided a survey update that 
noted the workforce shortage continues to impact 96 percent of public 
transit agencies (60 percent response rate). The MBTA not only shares 
the same challenges as noted by APTA but also has implemented similar 
actions along with many others.
    We fully accept the FTA's Safety Management Inspection, and we are 
continuing to work with the FTA. We are committed to fully funding all 
actions to remedy any and all safety issues the FTA identifies.
    We continue to refine the FTA CAP cost estimates for the four early 
special directives, made up of 22 corrective action plans, provided to 
the MBTA June 15. We cannot predict the full funding needs for these 
directives at this time since we are still in the process of responding 
and working through unknown considerations to respond to the FTA in the 
short and medium term but anticipate the need for approximately $300 
million in costs. The costs are a mix of funded and unfunded items, and 
current estimates are preliminary, with likely more than $200 million 
in costs that are not currently budgeted to address the four early 
special directives.
    For the four directives from the August SMI report, cost estimates 
are currently being developed through a combination of one-time, 
recurring, and contingency costs between capital and operating 
initiatives spread over multiple years. Early estimates forecast a need 
for $225-300M for Fiscal Years 2023 through 2028. Our estimates are 
limited by current information available and are being updated 
frequently (and contain many preliminary assumptions pertaining to 
headcount, headcount costs, funded and unfunded costs).
    We are working with the Administration to identify funding sources 
to support these efforts. Governor Charlie Baker has filed a 
supplemental budget which includes $200 million for the MBTA to provide 
additional resources towards addressing the FTA's safety directives and 
ensuring a safe, reliable transit network for its riders. The 
supplemental budget also includes $10 million for MassDOT, in 
collaboration with the MBTA, to develop a training academy to create a 
talent pipeline to address the staffing challenges at the MBTA. These 
funds will be used in FY23 to help cover costs arising out of the FTA 
Safety Management Inspection, to fund material and equipment purchases, 
increased staffing and recruiting, and will also support key safety-
focused maintenance efforts.
    At the MBTA, we recognize the important role we play in the daily 
lives of the communities we serve, and we know the transit services we 
provide are critical. The heart and core of what we do is providing 
reliable, safe transit service to riders who expect and deserve a 
modern, best-in-class system. Modernizing and upgrading the T, 
including aspects related to safety, can and does take time, but we're 
continuing to make progress. Safety is our number one priority at the 
MBTA, and we fully support all opportunities to review our practices 
and make changes to become a safer service and organization, including 
in the areas identified by the 2019 Safety Review Panel Report as well 
as the current FTA Safety Management Inspection, focusing on our heavy 
rail. The SMI report summarized issues that will take many years to 
resolve. While the early directives were tactical in nature, the August 
directives were strategic and systemic. They will take years to resolve 
but the work is already well underway. As I said at the beginning of my 
testimony, I am committed to continuing to working as hard as I can to 
achieve these goals.
    Thank you again for allowing me this opportunity to speak. I look 
forward to continuing to partner with the Legislature as we advance 
these initiatives at the T, and to sharing more about our progress in 
making the MBTA a safer place.
         RESPONSES TO WRITTEN QUESTIONS OF CHAIR WARREN
                      FROM MATTHEW NELSON

Q.1. What changes has the DPU made to ensure proper oversight 
of the MBTA? Should these changes still in progress to reach 
optimal performance, what is the timeline to a full strength 
DPU?

A.1. The Department of Public Utilities (DPU) has taken action 
to enhance the DPU's oversight of the safety management 
practices of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority 
(MBTA), both prior to and in response to the Federal Transit 
Administration's (FTA) 2022 Final Report on the Safety 
Management Inspection (SMI) of the MBTA and the DPU.
    Throughout my tenure as Chair, the DPU has been working 
with the FTA to shift to a more proactive approach to safety 
oversight. Historically, the DPU's approach to safety oversight 
concentrated on accident investigation and determination of the 
root cause of an accident after it occurred. In recent years, 
the DPU Rail Transit Division is working toward a more 
proactive approach to identify hazards and risks before they 
occur, while also remaining vigilant to the function of root 
cause analysis. Similarly, the MBTA is implementing a more 
proactive approach to safety through the MBTA Safety Management 
System.
    As part of the FTA's 2022 Report on the SMI of the MBTA and 
the DPU, the FTA issued Special Directives requiring the DPU 
and the MBTA to take certain actions to address the FTA's 
findings. The Special Directives required the DPU to, among 
other things, review and oversee the implementation of the 
MBTA's Corrective Action Plans (CAPs), which are step-by-step 
plans of actions developed to achieve the resolution of 
identified problems. The Special Directives also direct the DPU 
to submit CAPs to the FTA describing how the DPU will monitor 
the MBTA's CAPs, and to provide more robust oversight of the 
MBTA, including through the timely resolution of all MBTA CAPs.
    In response to the 2022 Report on the SMI of the MBTA and 
the DPU, the DPU has worked with the FTA to identify MBTA-
required actions and ensure that the MBTA's CAPs are sufficient 
and properly executed. The DPU has been conducting timely 
review of the MBTA's CAPs and submitting our review to the FTA. 
The DPU has also created Inspection and Verification Plans for 
each MBTA Corrective Action and sent copies to the FTA. In 
addition, the DPU has submitted to the FTA a CAP that responds 
to the issues that FTA directed DPU to address.
    The DPU has also increased the number of full-time 
employees that work on rail safety oversight beyond previous 
levels, and we are working to hire additional staff. DPU 
targets 18 full time employees dedicated to rail safety 
oversight. In addition to a Director of Transportation and a 
Program Manager, the DPU currently has six full time employees 
dedicated to rail safety. This number is higher than it has 
been in the past, prior to the FTA's 2019 triennial audit of 
the DPU.
    More recently, following the FTA's 2022 triennial audit of 
the DPU, the DPU will conduct a workload assessment to 
determine the right compliment of staff and resources required 
to ensure effective oversight of MBTA's Safety program. Already 
the DPU has created two new positions, a Director of Rail 
Oversight, and an Assistant Director. The DPU is also working 
to fill four vacant positions, including the positions of 
Public Utilities Engineer, Auditor, Compliance Officer, and 
Assistant General Counsel. Although identifying individuals 
with rail safety expertise is challenging, the DPU is actively 
reaching out to rail safety programs across the country, 
attending job fairs, listing postings with State universities 
and other forums, and working internally and with other 
government entities to enhance visibility of our postings. We 
have seen recent progress in our hiring efforts, and are 
currently fielding applicants, conducting interviews, and 
making offers. The DPU is also continuing efforts to engage a 
consulting firm to bring additional field staff on board to 
augment DPU Rail Transit staffing.
    The DPU is working to expand its resources to conduct more 
field work and auditing of the MBTA to provide further 
oversight and verify that the MBTA is carrying out the FTA's 
directives. The DPU's increased field and auditing work 
includes weekly unannounced visits to the MBTA Operations 
Control Center to ensure that MBTA employees are not working 
excessive hours, that there is appropriate coverage, and to 
verify sufficient internal documentation and tracking 
materials. This work also includes weekly visits to yards and 
car houses to verify safe working conditions, the 
implementation of new yard procedures, and ensuring that the 
MBTA conducts a pretrip ``circle check'' on each vehicle before 
they go into service. The Rail Transit staff also conducted 
extensive monitoring of the Orange Line ``surge'' through 
conducting field visits, attending multiple meetings, and 
attending on site Safety Briefings.
    The DPU is internally reviewing our policies and 
procedures, including updating staff's technical training plans 
and automating the DPU's process for verification of MBTA 
completed actions. The DPU is working closely with the FTA to 
develop additional notification and action procedures in order 
to ensure that any safety issue that the DPU flags is 
implemented in a timely manner and that the MBTA makes thorough 
changes to avoid ongoing safety concerns. We are reviewing and 
updating processes and thresholds for using existing 
enforcement authority to ensure timely resolution of MBTA 
required actions and will not hesitate to take enforcement 
actions if there are areas of noncompliance.
    The safe delivery of services utilizing the public way is a 
core function of the DPU. Consumer protection is also at the 
core of the DPU's mission. To fulfill its core mission, DPU 
employs subject matter experts in safety, as well as subject 
matter experts in other disciplines, including engineering, 
economics, and regulatory compliance. The DPU consistently 
utilizes an interdisciplinary team to ensure the safety of the 
public, including MBTA riders.
                                ------                                


         RESPONSES TO WRITTEN QUESTIONS OF CHAIR WARREN
                       FROM STEVE POFTAK

Q.1. I'd like to ask about the workforce at MBTA. We know that 
some of these issues can be solved by increasing the number of 
employees and ensuring everyone is getting necessary rest and 
training. During the hearing it was mentioned that the MBTA is 
1,500 to 2,000 employees short.
    What sector of employee is needed for the MBTA? Is it train 
operators, safety professionals, Department of Public Utilities 
inspectors, or station managers?

A.1. New employees are needed to fill vacancies and newly 
identified roles across all major MBTA departments and 
functions, including operations, maintenance, safety, training, 
and support areas. The specific extent of these needs will be 
articulated as part of the staffing assessment performed in 
response to the FTA Safety Management Inspection. Note that 
Department of Public Utilities inspectors are not employed by 
the MBTA, and MBTA's operational needs are not directly 
constrained by Department of Public Utilities staffing levels.

Q.2. Is there any concern about the lack of pay and benefits 
for our MBTA staff? How does the pay and benefits compare to 
other stations?

A.2. The Workforce Assessment and Hiring Plan that we are 
completing as part of our SMI response will include a review of 
the MBTA's compensation and benefits compared to our peer 
agencies or other industries where our candidates may be 
looking.

Q.3. Beyond the MBTA, the MA DPU is the oversight body 
responsible for handling accidents along transportation.

A.3. DPU is responsible for oversight of MBTA's compliance with 
external safety regulations and internal safety program 
requirements, extending to accident investigation as well as 
all other aspects of safety policy, safety risk management, 
safety assurance, and safety promotion.

Q.4. I want to address riders concern about safety on the T. I 
want to ensure that my constituents feel safe and confident 
about taking the T throughout their day.
    What other, if any, delays are expected for the T in the 
upcoming year? Will there be another shutdown of a line or a 
portion of a line?

A.4. The MBTA's maintenance and capital plans require 
significant ROW access to modernize the system and keep it in a 
state of good repair. Since the Orange Line surge, the MBTA has 
on occasion closed subway lines for one weekend at a time, or 
closed 2-3 hours early on weeknights, to carry out state-of-
good repair operations. This practice will continue. The MBTA 
does not have plans to shut down entire subway lines at this 
time.

Q.5. Following up on Senator Markey's question of future work, 
what other track maintenance is needed for the T to ensure a 
safe and enjoyable ride?
    If none, what are the next wave of improvements on deck for 
the T?

A.5. MBTA puts speed restrictions in place to ensure the safety 
of the traveling public and its employees when any wear or 
defects are identified in the track infrastructure.

Q.6. If there are more maintenance and changes necessary, how 
much time will be given to the community and government 
officials to adjust and change their schedule? I am worried 
that my constituents are surprised and shocked when changes and 
shutdowns occur, especially in situations where the T is the 
only way to get to work/school.

A.6. We understand the important role that the MBTA plays in 
moving people throughout the region. These types of disruptions 
are immensely inconvenient but necessary to bring the MBTA's 
system into a state of good repair. Going forward the MBTA will 
make every attempt to provide the riding public with as much 
time as possible to plan for future disruptions.

Q.7. During the hearing, there was much discussion from Mr. 
Johnson and Mayor Wu about ``fare equity on the commuter rail 
system'' and expanding ``fare free bus pilot'' and how these 
provisions would ease congestion throughout the MBTA and 
decrease traffic levels throughout our city. What are the plans 
to implement these programs to promote equity throughout the 
system?

A.7. On March 24, 2022, the MBTA Board approved changes that 
will expand our products for reduced fare riders and simplify 
tariff rules. Changes include:

    Permanent 5-Day FlexPasses on Commuter Rail.

    Lower pricing for 1-Day LinkPasses.

    A new 7-Day LinkPass for reduced fare riders.

    Expanding Reduced Fare Monthly Passes to all modes.

    Second transfers on bus and subway and transfers 
        between Express Buses.

    These changes went into effect by July 1, 2022.

Q.8. The MBTA is taking steps to improve its hiring process for 
bus drivers and dispatchers, including by establishing signing 
and referral bonuses, partnering with the Registry of Motor 
Vehicles (RMV) to speed up review of applicants' driving 
records, investing $20 million in its hiring team and covering 
all fees associated with earning a Class B CDL license.
    In addition to these steps, how is the MBTA planning on 
funding more competitive salaries to attract and retain talent 
among bus drivers?
    What additional flexibilities could the MBTA offer to bus 
drivers and dispatchers to attract and retain talent?

A.8. Additional options for attracting and retaining talent are 
being explored for a variety of MBTA roles, including bus 
operators and dispatchers, as a part of the ongoing response to 
the FTA Safety Management Inspection.

Q.9. The MBTA is competing with private entities seeking 
applicants with CDLs, which include other bus companies, 
Amazon, and UPS.
    What do private entities offer to prospective hires that 
the MBTA currently is not offering to applicants?

A.9. There are several significant differences that distinguish 
MBTA positions requiring a CDL from other bus companies and 
private companies including Amazon and UPS. MBTA's riders 
depend on the availability of peak service levels in the 
morning and evening to support commuting; unlike private 
distribution services, which make deliveries on fixed and 
continuous shifts, this need requires MBTA to make use of split 
shifts to ensure adequate coverage. Private trucking CDL 
operators carry freight and are not required to perform 
customer service duties, an essential part of MBTA's service 
delivery performed by its operators which requires additional 
training and skill in comparison to other roles requiring a 
CDL. These essential aspects of MBTA's service may make 
operational roles less attractive to certain individuals but 
are fundamental constraints on MBTA's ability to offer similar 
working conditions to other public or private sector roles 
requiring a CDL.

Q.10. How can the MBTA close those gaps to effectively compete 
with the private sector, aside from hiring bonuses and good 
pay?

A.10. As part of its SMI response to the FTA, the workforce 
assessment that the MBTA is currently undergoing will include 
an analysis of workforce flexibility and other incentives for 
prospective candidates.

Q.11. If approved, how would the MBTA effectively use the $10 
million proposed by the governor to create a dedicated training 
academy? How would the MBTA redirect talent from existing 
vocation programs and trade schools?

A.11. MBTA departments including Vehicle Maintenance have 
already begun exploring process changes to training programs to 
build and sustain a talent pipeline between vocational 
programs/trade schools and the MBTA. Solutions include 
development of new job classifications designed to allow 
vocational school or community college graduates to apply, 
completing programs of classroom instruction and shop floor 
guided training before being granted the opportunity to pass 
entrance and licensing exams, and interviews for full-time, 
independent positions.

Q.12. FTA has stated that the decision to shut down the orange 
line came entirely from the T. Is that correct?
    What was the basic reasoning behind the shutdown then?

A.12. Yes, it is correct that the T made the decision to shut 
down the Orange Line for 30 days to perform construction 
activities and accelerate maintenance work; allow for adjacent 
construction projects to progress with the advantage of not 
restoring train service each day; and to give the MBTA the 
ability to manage the critical Heavy Rail Dispatcher staffing 
shortage.
    The reasoning for the 30-day shutdown of the Orange Line 
was to offer improved work efficiency to perform several 
crucial initiatives that would improve the safety and 
reliability of Orange Line service. There were several factors 
that informed the MBTA's decision, including the urgency of 
needed work, breadth of work across the entire length of the 
Orange Line, and combined efficiency gained by performing the 
work simultaneously.
    The MBTA had a preexisting planned 30-day shutdown for the 
month of August to conduct construction investment into the 
North Wellington Yard interlocking and signal system upgrades 
from Wellington to Oak Grove. This work required a service 
diversion from Oak Grove to Wellington stations.
    The MBTA had recently experienced two emergency closures of 
the Orange and Green lines in the Haymarket area. These 
emergency closures were due to a major construction accident 
involving the partial collapse, and ensuing structural 
condition of the Government Center Garage. While the Government 
Center garage is a privately owned structure undergoing private 
redevelopment, the building is positioned directly above the 
tunnels for the Orange and Green lines and the private 
redevelopment project required that no trains be running and no 
public traffic be in or around the station in order to conduct 
critical demolition work. This work required a service 
diversion from North Station to Back Bay (and simultaneously 
North Station to Lechmere/Union Square on the Green Line).
    The MBTA had received Special Directive 22-4 from the FTA 
which required the MBTA to expedite planned repairs to the 
curved track segments in the Tufts Medical Center and Back Bay 
portions of the line. This work required service diversion from 
Tufts Medical Center to Ruggles. Note, with respect to the 
above, the work required service suspension from Oak Grove to 
Ruggles (15 of the 20 orange line stations).
    Furthermore, the MBTA was managing a critical shortage of 
heavy rail control center dispatchers, that limited our ability 
to simultaneously dispatch train service and implement track 
access to construction and maintenance crews until additional 
staff could be hired. By suspending Orange Line service, the 
MBTA was able to shift staff resources to manage the Red and 
Blue heavy rail lines and the MBTA administrative departments 
were afforded the 30 days to accelerate dispatcher hiring and 
training, as well as to retrain staff who had previously 
performed Heavy Rail dispatch duties.
    The MBTA's efforts to secure alternative bus service 
providers informed the MBTA that our only opportunity to secure 
the quantity of buses needed to transport the Orange Line 
ridership could be provided through the middle of September.

Q.13. Where did the timeline of 30 days come from?

A.13. The 30-day timeline needed to fit into the opportunity 
window between other major project diversions and needs, 
particularly ATC work on North Side commuter rail (an FRA 
mandate that couldn't be delayed).

Q.14. Where did the 5 years of work come from?

A.14. If all the work had occurred at night, it would have 
taken more than 5 years to perform the work.

Q.15. Given that the work is ongoing in years, how significant 
was the backlog?

A.15. The backlog for the work that was completed was 5-years' 
worth of overnight work. However, there is and will always be 
some work as maintenance is an ongoing process.

Q.16. If the backlog was 5 years or greater, would you it be 
fair to say that all riders have been receiving subpar and 
unsafe service for at least the last 5 years?

A.16. No. That would not be fair to say. Maintenance is a 
continuous cycle and does not equate to subpar or unsafe 
service. A 5-year backlog is the length of time that the work 
would take to complete if it is performed solely during 
overnight hours.

Q.17. Given that the work remains ongoing with speed 
restrictions in place, why did the MBTA open up the T after 30 
days?
    Would it have not made more sense to keep it closed down to 
finish the work?
    Do you consider it a mistake to have reopened the Orange 
Line when you did, given that the service restrictions remain 
and the work is still ongoing?

A.17. No. The MBTA needed to be cognizant of bussing 
restrictions as well as the impact to other projects/diversions 
throughout the entire MBTA network. The planned work was 
completed and was safe to reopen. Additional work is 
preventative to ensure continued reliability and state of good 
repair.

Q.18. How can you say you are not certain when the work will be 
finished if you could make the decision to reopen the T? Said 
another way, how did you have enough information to decide that 
the Orange line should be open at that juncture and work should 
continue, but don't have enough information to determine when 
the work will be completed?

A.18. The scheduled work was completed, and the work was safety 
certified. It was safe to open and reduce impact on the riders 
and municipalities. Work performed outside of a full-shutdown 
scenario is restricted to overnight hours where productivity is 
vastly reduced, due to the time required to power down, power 
up, bring in necessary resources, store resources, etc.

Q.19. In the FTA report it states that the ``MBTA reported 
that, due to the challenges and uncertainties of the COVID-19 
public health emergency, they have not completed action to 
address previous findings regarding the need to assess staffing 
needs for operations and maintenance. Nevertheless, during this 
same period MBTA aggressively moved forward with its $2 billion 
per-year capital program, supported largely by existing and 
overtime resources from the agency's operations and maintenance 
departments and contractors. In January 2022, MBTA's leadership 
team and Board of Directors took the unprecedented step of 
transferring an additional $500 million from the MBTA's 
operating budget to its capital budget.''
    Can you explain the reasoning behind this?

A.19. Capital work modernizes the system and brings it into a 
state of good repair. The $500M included almost entirely 
safety-related projects.

Q.20. In hindsight was this a mistake?

A.20. We are confident that this action was the best choice, 
given resource timing and the need to perform safety-critical 
projects.

Q.21. In the Boston Herald on 10/3/22 it stated that: ``It's 
going to cost an extra $1 billion to fund Orange and Red Line 
infrastructure improvements, MBTA officials said, beyond the 
$1.6 billion already earmarked in its capital investment 
plan.'' In light of the previous quote from the FTA report 
about the transferring of funds and the aggressive capital 
spending, would you say again knowing the additional needs that 
it was a mistake?
    Can you explain how this additional billion dollar figure 
came to be? What will the money go towards?

A.21. The capital investments programmed are to bring the Red 
and Orange Lines into states of good repair. Maintenance and 
repair work is always ongoing.

Q.22. How did you miss the billion dollars when projecting 
evaluations previously?

A.22. The $1B was not missed. We have a known, significant 
capital backlog. The CIP and operating maintenance budgets are 
fiscally constrained and do not/have not met the full 
investment needs.

Q.23. In the Globe Article on the Orange Line from 10/7/22, its 
states that MBTA had replaced 400 cologne egg fasteners but 
still had around 200 more before you can reach a top speed of 
travel between Tufts Medical and Back Bay. Was there 50 percent 
more work required on this than had been predicted/assumed?
    If yes, why did the T resume Orange Line operations before 
completing the additional work?

A.23. (Compound answer below.)

Q.24. Additionally, if yes, that seems like a significant 
underestimate. How did the MBTA miss that originally and why 
did it fail to share the extra work needed with its partners 
and the public?

A.24. (Compound answer below.)

Q.25. If no, why did the T resume Orange Line operations before 
completing the work it anticipated needing to do?

A.25. Yes, there was more work to replace the fasteners than 
originally anticipated. It is important to note that the key 
objective of the task was to replace the running rails due to 
worn rail conditions to increase the speed from the restricted 
10 mph. The worn rails were replaced as intended and are 
supported on Cologne Egg fasteners. We replaced 386 fasteners. 
Then the speed restriction was raised to 18 mph. The quantity 
and level of effort required to remove and re-install new 
fasteners was discovered to be more complex due to the 
methodology of the original 1980's-era construction, 
necessitating significantly more extensive concrete slab work 
than originally anticipated. In order to mitigate accelerated 
degradation of the rails and new fasteners (due to the 
curvature of the tracks), the line speed will remain at 18 mph 
until an additional approximately 140 Cologne Egg replacements 
are completed.
    The MBTA was able to resume service on the Orange Line 
safely and within the 30-day period that was announced.

Q.26. Can we acknowledge that ridership was down significantly 
from March 2020 and ridership remains below what it was at that 
point?

A.26. Yes, ridership decreased significantly during March of 
2020, and it has not fully rebounded. However, some services 
have rebounded better than others.

Q.27. Was there ever any consideration of doing significant 
maintenance work at that point, as it would have disrupted the 
commutes of far few riders and perhaps produced safer rides 
from that point on?

A.27. (Compound answer below.)

Q.28. If yes and you did not undertake the work, why did you 
not?
    And do you consider that a mistake?
    If no, in hindsight was that a mistake?

A.28. Preparations to complete expanded maintenance work on the 
system began not long after trends in ridership through 2020 
became evident. However, MBTA's response to the COVID-19 
pandemic was and remains the most significant safety-related 
activity to protect riders and employees performed in March 
2020 and the immediate months following. The pandemic had a 
profound effect on transit systems nationwide during this 
period: in one example, New York's MTA suffered at least 118 
employee deaths between March and July of 2020 alone. MBTA's 
efforts to protect its staff and riders and avert the 
catastrophic effects of COVID-19 required a full mobilization 
of both management and frontline staff to evaluate, procure, 
distribute, and deploy Personal Protective Equipment, update 
policies, procedures, and health guidance for employees, roll 
out technical solutions to enable remote work for select roles, 
evaluate and manage impacts on service, and communicate key 
changes to riders and other stakeholders. The absence of an 
effective COVID-19 vaccine, social distancing requirements, 
travel bans imposed by Massachusetts and other States, supply 
chain impacts on PPE and other essential equipment, and other 
factors restricted the Authority's ability to act on changes in 
ridership patterns until later in the pandemic.

Q.29. Can you provide a full accounting of what the cost of the 
work to the Commonwealth?
    How much did the shuttle bus contract cost?
    What was the original estimate for this?
    How much money overtime did the work require?
    What was the original estimate for this?
    How much did the additional communications, in all forms, 
outreach, ambassadors, fare changes, signage, etc. cost to 
explain the changes to the passengers' commute?
    What was the original estimate for this?
    How much tax revenue do you believe the Commonwealth 
businesses lost over this period?

A.29. We do not know. (For all parts of Question 29, please 
reference Attachment A.) [Not included in time for 
publication.]

Q.30. How much did ridership decline during this period?

A.30. We are able to estimate that the MBTA retained about 60 
percent of typical Orange Line ridership during the surge. For 
the ridership that remained, about 15-20 percent of usual 
passengers switched to another MBTA mode (Commuter Rail or bus) 
and the other 40-45 percent utilized the shuttles. Please note 
that these are estimates and subject to revision as we get more 
data.

Q.31. Where were the biggest budgetary surprises?
    What if any parts of the work ended up costing more?

A.31. (Compound answer below.)

Q.32. Where did the Commonwealth save money?

A.32. Contractors realize a 40 percent or more productivity 
increase with full access during a diversion compared to night 
work.

Q.33. What do you anticipate the total cost to the Commonwealth 
being to get the system to optimal safety and service as 
outlined by the FTA?

A.33. As of this moment we do not have a full estimate of what 
the total cost will be to the Commonwealth.
              Additional Material Supplied for the Record

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