Former U.S. Transpo Secretary To Testify About MBTA

Almost three years ago, former U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood led an independent review of the MBTA and found that the T for years failed to conduct key maintenance and inspections, apply industry-wide safety standards or ensure accountability on its core transit.

Later this month, LaHood will be talking about the MBTA again, with plans to testify before the Transportation Committee as part of that panel's ongoing look at T safety management.

Committee chairs Rep. William Straus and Sen. Brendan Crighton on Thursday announced that LaHood is scheduled to participate in a 10 a.m. oversight hearing on Oct. 25. The committee said LaHood's work in 2019 "provided important background" for the Federal Transit Administration's more recent review, which ripped safety practices at the T and delivered a lengthy and expensive checklist for the transit agency to tackle.

In 2019, working with former Acting Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration Carolyn Flowers and former New York City Transit President Carmen Bianco, LaHood's panel concluded the MBTA's approach to safety was "questionable."

"In almost every area we examined, deficiencies in policies, application of safety standards or industry best practices, and accountability were apparent," the safety review panel wrote.

The report contributed to a push in 2020 to pass new transportation revenues. The House backed a $600 million tax-and-fee bill designed to raise money for transportation needs, but the bill stalled out in the Senate. In the wake of the FTA's recent work, Beacon Hill is now pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into the MBTA.

A livestream of the hearing will be accessible to the public at malegislature.gov and an in-person component will take place at the State House in Room A-2. - Michael P. Norton/SHNS | 10/13/22 4:34 PM

Source: State House News Service