MBTA applies for PTC deadline extension

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) late last week applied to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) for a two-year extension of the federally mandated deadline to implement positive train control (PTC).

MBTA submitted the request after completing all federal requirements necessary to qualify for an extension to implement PTC. Railroads are required to implement PTC by Dec. 31, or apply for an extension.

To apply for an extension, the MBTA needed to install all wayside and on-board equipment, perform field qualification testing on the Stoughton Pilot Line, train Keolis Commuter Services workers on PTC and configure its PTC management system.

The MBTA's wayside equipment included 194 interface units, 181 radios, 181 antennas, 3,097 transponders and 223 miles of fiber optic cable, according to an agency news release.

The MBTA also submitted a separate application to begin a revenue service demonstration of PTC along the Stoughton Line.

"As the highest-priority capital project for the MBTA, positive train control represents one of the most significant safety upgrades for our rail system in recent memory,” said MBTA General Manager Luis Manuel Ramirez.

Although FRA requires that PTC be implemented by December 2020, the MBTA and its contractors aim to complete deployment for the entire commuter-rail system by late August 2020, agency officials added.

The MBTA anticipates starting revenue service demonstration along the Stoughton Line in late November 2018, with the Lowell and Fairmount lines to follow over the coming months. The agency expects commissioning of the remaining lines by late August 2020.

In addition, the MBTA plans to complete vehicle fleet software upgrades in October and November, with interoperability testing to coordinated with Amtrak, CSX and Pan Am Railways on the Worcester, Needham and Franklin lines by 2020.