Muni objects to state criticism of rail lines CPUC official says S.F. has worst rail-line conditions

Richard Clark, director of the Consumer Protection & Safety Division of the California Public Utilities Commission, responds to a question concerning the PUC's oversight role regarding the Pacific Gas and Electric pipeline explosion in San Bruno, during ajoint legislative hearing at the Capitol in Sacramento, Calif., Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2010. Lawmakers investigating the blast say they may need to to change state law to increase penalties when utilities ignore problems that lead to injuries or death. less Richard Clark, director of the Consumer Protection & Safety Division of the California Public Utilities Commission, responds to a question concerning the PUC's oversight role regarding the Pacific Gas and ... more Photo: Rich Pedroncelli, AP Photo: Rich Pedroncelli, AP Image 1 of / 8 Caption Close Muni objects to state criticism of rail lines 1 / 8 Back to Gallery

The condition of San Francisco's rail transit system is the worst in the state, says a top official with the California Public Utilities Commission.

"One of the biggest issues the industry has is the state of good repair, and this is a particular problem in San Francisco, the oldest system in the state," said Richard Clark, director of consumer protection and safety for the California Public Utilities Commission. The regulatory commission oversees rail transit safety.

Last week, the commission announced that it is investigating the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency for a series of alleged violations on rail lines that could imperil public safety and lead to enforcement actions. If the allegations are upheld by an administrative law judge, Muni faces a daily $20,000 fine per violation until the problems are resolved.

Clark said the action is not unprecedented, "but it is unusual."

Muni officials plan to mount an aggressive defense and call the accusations overblown and unfair.

"We don't need the CPUC to tell us what we already know about the safety of our system," said Nathaniel Ford, executive director of the Municipal Transportation Agency. "We are working tirelessly to keep one of the oldest systems in the country in a state of good repair and as safe as possible for our customers. Their PR stunt last week did nothing more than grab a few headlines and put unnecessary fear into those who depend on our service."

The alleged violations found by the CPUC during more than 20 inspections between July 2009 and January of this year include defective track, a poorly functioning automatic train control system, junction box and cable problems, and slow response to providing corrective action. The state inspectors said they found instances of train operators speeding and in one case suspect that an operator was sleeping on the job.

Clark said he knows of no problems that necessitate closing the Muni Metro system, which has about 145,000 boardings a day. Such a move would be rare in California.

The state shut down service in the BART tunnel for three months in 1979 after a deadly electrical fire in the Transbay Tube. A small private funicular rail operation in downtown Los Angeles, the Angels Flight Railway Co., was taken out of commission in 2001 after a fatal collision and wasn't reopened for nine years.

"This is about taking action before they run to failure," Clark said of the hard line taken against San Francisco's transit agency last week. "We needed to get Muni's attention. ... We don't want to wait until somebody is seriously injured or dies before we take action."

'Muni is safe'

Muni officials bristled at the suggestion that they don't take safety seriously and that they aren't actively tending to the maintenance and repair of one of the most heavily used passenger rail operations in California.

"Safety is our No. 1 priority at this agency," Ford said. "Our riders should know that Muni is a safe way to travel."

When state inspectors identified problems, Ford said, Muni moved to rectify them. In addition, Muni officials said they provide state regulators with an evolving action plan that shows when mandated work has been completed, or when it will be.

Clark said Muni hasn't moved fast enough to repair and maintain its aging rail infrastructure.

John Haley, Muni's chief of transit operations, said nearly all of the outstanding problems are scheduled to be fixed this month. A larger rail upgrade project at the intersection of Church Street and Duboce Avenue - where track conditions were found by the CPUC to be one of the most egregious problems - is scheduled to commence this fall.

Haley and Ford said they felt blindsided by the CPUC's action. Representatives of the Federal Transit Administration, who meet every quarter with Muni and the CPUC, where the issue of safety is regularly discussed, also expressed surprise.

"During the January quarterly meeting, FTA was not made aware of the extent of the safety violations at Muni," Paul Griffo, spokesman for the agency, said Monday.

The federal agency does not have rail safety oversight authority; instead, that falls to state and regional agencies, such as the CPUC, making for inconsistent transit safety regulations in the United States.

City accountability

Ford and the chairman of the Muni governing board, Tom Nolan, briefed Mayor Ed Lee on the CPUC actions in a private meeting Monday and assured Lee that Muni prioritizes safety.

"The mayor stressed that the safety of the system is of the utmost importance," said Christine Falvey, Lee's spokeswoman. She stressed that the concerns raised by state regulators are allegations that warrant more investigation and an opportunity for San Francisco transportation officials to provide a "detailed, comprehensive response."

The mayor said he wants that done in public.

"People need to have full confidence in Muni," Falvey said. The Municipal Transportation Agency board has scheduled a public hearing on the matter at 9 a.m. Friday in City Hall, Room 408.

Muni has 30 days from last Thursday, when the enforcement action was announced, to file a formal response to the CPUC. The hearing before the administrative law judge has not been scheduled. Ford said Muni looks "forward to our continued cooperation with the CPUC to further improve our system as we go forward."