FTA unveils plan to transfer WMATA oversight to safety commission

The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) yesterday outlined the process to transfer federal safety oversight of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority's (WMATA) rail system to the newly established Metrorail Safety Commission (MSC).

In October 2015, FTA assumed temporary and direct safety oversight of the system at the order of then-U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx.

Established by the District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia, the MSC will serve as the designated state safety oversight (SSO) agency for WMATA's rail system. However, the MSC first must submit its SSO program certification to the FTA.

Before the application is submitted, MSC's leaders must approve the program, and the commission must be adequately staffed to perform safety oversight duties, according to an FTA press release.

After the FTA receives the application and sends a letter acknowledging it's under review, the administration will conduct a "knowledge transfer" to the commission, including technical sessions on all six core areas of safety responsibilities and the status of each.

The six areas are inspections, investigations, corrective action plans, emergency management, safety and security certifications, and triennial audits.

During the transition, MSC staff will shadow FTA inspectors and investigators in the field to increase familiarity with WMATA's rail system, FTA officials said.

The third and final step will be the FTA's certification of the MSC's SSO program. Like other states and territories with transit-rail systems in operation, the MSC must obtain certification of its SSO program by April 15, 2019.

If the commission fails to meet the deadline, transit providers in the District, Maryland and Virginia could lose out on a minimum of $638 million in fiscal-year 2019 federal transit funding, according to the FTA.

David Mayer, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's former chief safety officer, is leading the MSC.