(The following story by Christina S. N. Lewis appeared on the Stamford Advocate website on February 19.)
STAMFORD, Conn. — The aging New Haven Line railcars will get quicker and more efficient repairs under a handshake deal struck by Amtrak, Metro-North Railroad and the state Department of Transportation, officials said yesterday.
The agreement will transfer 13 railcar repair stalls from Amtrak to Metro-North’s control, nearly doubling the 18 bays the New Haven Line uses now and reducing the shortages and delays that plagued the line this winter.
“With everything that was going on, we had to do something,” said Raymond Cox, an assistant rail administrator who said the agreement was a “pretty radical” contract change that had upset several state transportation officials. It was approved only as a last-ditch effort to improve service.
The spare stalls are in a New Haven shop used by Amtrak, which operates and maintains Shore Line East. Under the new agreement, Amtrak would continue to operate the line but the $3 million equipment maintenance contract would go to Metro-North.
Cox did not say last night how often the 13 repair stalls are in use for Shore Line East.
Details of the agreement were announced and discussed during last night’s meeting of the Connecticut Rail Commuter Council meeting at 1 Landmark Square in Stamford.
The agency brokered the agreement this week, Cox said, and the additional work bays should be in use by July.
The change initially would increase costs because Metro-North employees make more than Amtrak workers. But Cox predicted the move would eventually save money through increased efficiency.
The move, however, is only a short-term fix, Cox said, because a new repair facility, which would cost about $300 million, is needed.
Rail officials also reported during the nearly two-hour meeting that the line had successfully resumed a regular rush-hour schedule after nearly a month of reduced service.
The railroad was only 10 cars short Tuesday, the first-day of returned service, rail officials said. On average, about 50 of the line’s 364 railcars are out of service at a given time, the officials said.
The council also discussed the 5 1/2 percent fare-hike proposed by Gov. John Rowland two weeks ago. Several attendees were displeased but resigned to the fare increase in light of the state’s ongoing budget crunch. The council officially remained neutral on the issue.
The group approved a resolution calling for a 3 cent per gallon increase to the gas tax with the proceeds earmarked for railroad capital improvements.