Comptroller: LIRR partly to blame for delays in rollout of M9s

The Long Island Rail Road deserves some of the blame for a three-year delay in the rollout of its newest fleet of trains because it knowingly accepted cars with more than 9,000 “defects or deficiencies” that later had to be repaired, a new report said.

The audit from the office of state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli chided the railroad for its inadequate oversight of its train car manufacturer, Kawasaki Rail Car Inc., and for failing to collect $5.5 million in damages because of a slew of problems on the new trains, including some that already had been put into service.

“New train cars for LIRR were delivered late and needed repairs. In addition, the railroad has yet to get any of millions of dollars it has a right to claim from the manufacturer for these conditions,” DiNapoli said in a statement. “This is unacceptable. LIRR’s commuters deserve better project management.”

Kawasaki did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In a formal response to DiNapoli’s office, then-LIRR president Phillip Eng said the railroad “fundamentally disagrees” with the audit’s conclusions, and that its “top priority and key responsibility is to ensure Kawasaki’s compliance with … the contract, and to ensure that LIRR receives safe and reliable cars for our customers and workforce.”

Between 2013 and 2017, the LIRR paid about $724 million for 202 “M9” model electric rail cars, which were supposed to be in service by 2019. But, according to the report, as of last August, only 100 of the cars were delivered to the LIRR.

The elusive nature of the M9 cars among the LIRR’s overall fleet of about 1,200 cars has led some commuters to dub the new trains the “unicorns.”

The LIRR said Friday that 126 out of the 202 cars it ordered are already in service, and that it expects to receive the remaining cars sometime later this year.

"The LIRR has been aggressively managing the contract, holding the vendor accountable to address any issues at their cost," LIRR spokesman David Steckel said. "The railroad expects that all cars will meet the high standards of quality, safety and comfort that our customers expect." 

Many of the cars the LIRR has received so far have been riddled with “deficiencies,” including “improper stripping of wire insulation, poor crimping, missing heat shrinking, and bent pins," according to the audit.

The report said, as of August 2020, the LIRR accepted 62 rail cars with “9,230 defects or deficiencies.” Other problems included “loose cab control equipments,” such as buttons and lights, and a “non-operational waste tank.” The railroad has said that Kawasaki will cover the cost of the repairs.

Because of “ineffective inspections of the rail cars before delivery to the LIRR,” many of those problems had to be addressed at an LIRR facility in Hillside, Queens — contributing to delays in their rollout.

“Proper inspection at the contractor’s facility and acceptance of only cars without defects would minimize these problems and improve car production,” the report said. 

In its response to the audit, the LIRR acknowledged the delays in the rollout of the new fleet but disputed that railroad officials allowed the cars to be shipped to them before issues identified in testing were addressed. “Any other issues that arose after the cars were delivered to LIRR were unrelated to the limited testing” they underwent before being shipped, Eng wrote. 

Eng added that the LIRR “strongly disagrees that it contributed to the delays by accepting cars with deficiencies.”

“It is an industry practice to conditionally accept cars with non-safety-related minor defects because it allows the agency to safely bring new cars to passenger service, while correcting the minor defects,” wrote Eng, who resigned in February.

Although the LIRR took several measures to address the problems, including meeting with Kawasaki executives and insisting on an increase in staffing, “ultimately … the remedial actions taken were not effective,” according to the report. 

DiNapoli’s office calculated that, under the terms of its contract, Kawasaki owes the LIRR at least $5.5 million in damages for the delays. The report projected that number to grow to $12 million. Eng said the LIRR will decide "at the appropriate time" how to assess and collect any damages.

The report also criticized the LIRR for not ensuring that Kawasaki adhered to all software safety provisions, and for not following the MTA’s guidelines for notifying the contractor of its “less-than-satisfactory performance.”

The LIRR disputed both those findings. 

By Alfonso A. Castillo

alfonso.castillo@newsday.com@alfonsoreports

Alfonso Castillo has been reporting for Newsday since 1999 and covering the transportation beat since 2008. He grew up in the Bronx and Queens and now lives in Valley Stream with his wife and two sons.