Bill filed to remove commuter rail operations from MBTA

Keolis has run VRE in Virginia since 2010 and was expected to run the MARC trains until someone got them effectively banned from contracting in Maryland with claims that SNCF has not fully documented its role in the Nazi holocaust.

And yet nobody questioned Siemens building equipment for Amtrak and a whole host of states...

Regardless, it seems some people are so opposed to contracting out they will use whatever strawman argument they can to say why it's better to have more state employees than it is to be good stewards of how tax dollars are spent...

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In MARCs case, MARC's contract with CSX was ending (CSX did not bid for the new contract) and the new contract ultimately went to Bombardier (now Alstom). AFAIK MARC always contracted out its rail services and does not seem inclined to change that.

This should probably be another topic, but isn’t Keolis’ contract, including extensions, up next year? And with inflation the next operator will want more money!!

eolesen wrote: ↑Sun Apr 16, 2023 7:42 pmAnd yet nobody questioned Siemens building equipment for Amtrak and a whole host of states...

Regardless, it seems some people are so opposed to contracting out they will use whatever strawman argument they can to say why it's better to have more state employees than it is to be good stewards of how tax dollars are spent..

People are so caught up in corporate worship culture they will regard plain as day examples of corporate greed pillaging government services as "strawman arguments" and make believe advocating for our tax dollars to line corporate pockets rather than compensate our very own men and women makes them "good stewards" of taxpayer protection.

Keolis Commuter Services operates nothing but the MBTA Commuter Rail system. Without the T's contract, Keolis Commuter Services ceases to exist. This has already been explained.

Buying from a manufacturer and outsourcing are not comparable.

Indeed. I've never understood why hiring a for-profit company to do an ongoing, everyday service is any better than using the government's own people. It can only be cheaper if the contractor skimps on maintenance or pays the workers less so as to save enough to more than cover profit for its investors--and I'd rather have higher salaries here at home than profits sent to France or wherever the investors of Keolis (if any of them are private investors as opposed to the government of France) are. And a private contractor in a multi-year contract doesn't have any more incentive to run things well than a government employee appointed (and potentially fired) by politicians serving elected terms that are usually shorter than the contracts. And I would need a lot of evidence to believe that the engineers, conductors, MOW employees (or equivalent workers in some other public service) work better for a contractor than they would for the state.

Keolis has kept the Commuter Rail running very well over the past few years, contrary to the state-run subway/bus systems which are pretty much broken right now. Just sayin.

rethcir wrote: ↑Wed Apr 19, 2023 10:00 am Keolis has kept the Commuter Rail running very well over the past few years, contrary to the state-run subway/bus systems which are pretty much broken right now. Just sayin.

They also do a fine job running VRE. The difference is that VARPA has government side competent management, and vision, {1}, and MBATA does not.
{1} someone needs to plan for DMU/EMU/BMU for joint running with MARC, but interstate agency planning is not their job.

rethcir wrote: ↑Wed Apr 19, 2023 10:00 am Keolis has kept the Commuter Rail running very well over the past few years, contrary to the state-run subway/bus systems which are pretty much broken right now. Just sayin.

Those are some pretty spiffy rose colored glasses you've got on!
Ex-Keolis Employee Charged in Scheme to Steal $8M Meant for MBTA Commuter Rail Repairs
MBTA Commuter Rail train derails near Beverly, Massachusetts
Railroad crossing safety gates fail at same location where woman was killed, Wilmington town officials say
Commuter Rail train derails after collision at South Station
Keolis: Wheel Came Off MBTA Commuter Rail Train, Causing Derailment
MBTA scolds Keolis over ‘disappointing’ day on commuter rail
Keolis lost $29.3M in first year of MBTA contract
And that's just a few bits that made headlines.

I don't know what you're referring to about broken bus service, but the subway side of the T is definitely an embarrassment right now. I believe that's largely the result of a gubernatorial administration that regarded the T as burden during its tenure, allowing an already dysfunctional organization to fall deeper into turmoil. Getting back to the subject at hand, it's why I believe removing the Commonwealth's railroad from the T is certainly a worthwhile endeavor.

The MBTA doesn’t have the capability to internalize commuter rail, I don’t think. Nor does MassDOT. Last time around, Amtrak did not bid. Maybe Metro-North should put in a bid. Maybe the new MBTA GM has some ideas, is he on the clock yet? Last time we had true reform in state government was the Ward Commission, and if you have read about it the state government deprived him of his livelihood and literally drove him to commit suicide. Asking the new GM what to do is actually the best bet.

I could easily believe that an agency that's been contracting for commuter rail (or whatever) should keep contracting for it unless there's substantial evidence of substantial gains. Change is expensive and stressful. On the other hand, any large organization--any organization that acts like a large organization--can become resistant to change, full of convoluted processes and assumptions, etc.--private or public. If the shareholders or the CEO or the governor or the legislature regularly treat the organization's work as a sideline, a mere tool to make money or gain votes, people inside may get resentful and/or do a bad job, or even do a decent job of the wrong thing. Sometimes a shakeup might actually help, just because it's a change, but it'll work better if it's done by people who have a good understanding of what the organization is for and how it works.

But I don't see that private is automatically better than public, and if I were starting my own state-funded rail system, I'd build up the management infrastructure in-house, like UTA did with Frontrunner.

OT, I've got a plaque on my office wall that says "One must act as if one makes a difference," from my John William Ward fellowship in the summer of 1992--the time I was an intern in the EOTC in a program created in memory of the late corruption fighter.

All I can say is that between JFK/UMass and South Station I have two choices: commuter rail or the Red Line. When I can, I choose the commuter rail, because the Red Line is so slow I could almost walk there faster. Indeed, I'll bet any of the people who finished Monday's marathon could beat Red Line train from South Station to JFK right now.

Keolis and Herzog have both done pretty well running commuter rail operations for various state and regional agencies.

If crail is going to split hairs about Keolis Commuter Services not existing beyond the bounds of the MBTA contract, then you also have to be honest about the fact that Bombardier operates transit as completely separate paper entities from the manufacturing side of their business.

The only thing Bombardier transportation and Bombardier manufacturing have in common is the name, and even that doesn't exist anymore since they sold out to Alstom, who also operates these as separate legal entities. You don't want the liability for a accident as a commuter rail operator taking down your manufacturing capability....

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The Joint Committee on Transportation has scheduled a hearing to receive public input on this bill for Monday afternoon May 8th.

Anyone with a view on this topic should consider appearing before the committee to provide testimony, or if that is asking to much then you should consider submitting your submit testimony in writing.

Hard to read the tea lives on this one, but it could be that this is being teed up to be added to a future bond bill.

Further details here, https://malegislature.gov/Bills/193/HD3315

In the 1970a & 1980s my work often sent me to LAX for 16 -20 hour layovers. At that time the public transit was impossible to navigate rationally. The SCRTD appeared unable to rationalize getting around from the near airport hotels. When Prop "A" was proposed my feeling was "what a waste" the car centric layout will never give up on the spread out area of the LA basin and on to San Diego...

The opening of the line to Long Beach and subsequent opening have all be missed. However, from what I have read the coordination and implementation of commuter rail , subways, light rail, and buses is very well choregraphed. What make this system work?. I have no idea since not being in the area anymore. State laws, local laws, important posts filled by veery dedicated competent persons.?

What ever it is MBTA needs to study the actions and results. Then implement them the Boston area wide. Probably some state wide agency, has to have the authority to bring the 2 x 4s out bringing all transportation agencies both public and private businesses to the woodshed! Then coordination might happen.