About 300 New York City subway cars were pulled from service early Wednesday because of unreliable door mechanisms, raising questions about the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s entire US$600 million equipment order with Bombardier Inc.

“Out of an abundance of caution, NYCT removed all R179 train cars from service overnight for thorough inspection and re-deployed other spare cars to continue service for this morning’s rush and ensure minimal impacts to customers,” New York City Transit President Andy Byford, who oversees subways for the MTA, said in a statement.

The MTA has had repeated problems with Bombardier, including late delivery that resulted in the Montreal-based company compensating MTA with 18 additional so-called R179 cars. None are operational, according to the agency.

“We intend to hold the company fully accountable,” Byford said.

Statement from ⁦@NYCTSubway⁩ President Andy Byford on Bombardier R179 cars 👇🏼 pic.twitter.com/EdqRVOY0SN — Abbey Collins (@abbey_e_collins) January 8, 2020

Maryanne Roberts, a spokeswoman for Bombardier, blamed the latest issue on Kangni Mechanical & Electrical Co Ltd., a China-based company that she said supplied the problematic doors. Executives there weren’t immediately available for comment. Roberts said Bombardier would inspect all of its New York subway cars to ensure safety.

“Our investigation shows that the doors were not properly calibrated by Kangni,” she said in an email. “We value our partnership with New York City Transit and are fully committed to providing high quality, reliable, safe rail cars.”

The Bombardier cars would have accounted for more than 5 per cent of the city’s 5,400-car subway fleet used on any given day, said MTA spokesman Tim Minton.

Blistering Report

The equipment failures and the transit agency’s monitoring of the company’s performance were the subject of a blistering report by city Comptroller Scott Stringer last month. The audit found that over the seven-year contract with Bombardier, the company consistently failed to meet project deadlines, produce acceptable work and promptly correct serious defects.

The audit also showed that the MTA failed to adequately oversee Bombardier’s contract performance and failed to complete required annual evaluations.

“Bombardier sold us lemons,” Stringer said in a statement today. The comptroller, who’s considering running for mayor next year, also said the company’s poor performance was due in part to the MTA’s “layers of mismanagement.”

The company’s stock was trading at about $1.87 as of 12:38 p.m. New York time, down about 3 per cent from its $1.93 close on Tuesday.

The shares plunged to an eight-month low on Aug. 1 after Bombardier incurred about US$300 million in unanticipated costs in its rail-equipment division that forced the company to cut its financial forecasts. The company had also stumbled in performing on contracts in Toronto and on a railroad contract in Switzerland.