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Friday, April 15, 2016

D.C. Metrorail System Seeks Hundreds of Millions From Congress

(CNSNews.com) - The Metrorail system that serves the capital of the free world has dangerous, frayed electrical cables, an unmotivated workforce, reduced ridership, and a new manager who is determined to make changes after years of neglect.

On Wednesday, the chairman of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) told Congress that Metro needs around $25 billion over the next 10 years to run the system, address critical safety issues, and catch up on a ten-year backlog of neglected maintenance. Chairman Jack Evans said the system also faces a $2.5-billion unfunded pension liability that it has no plan or ability to address.

And if Congress doesn't pony up, "next time something happens, I'm blaming it on you guys," Evans said in a heated moment at the hearing of a House Oversight subcommittee.

In response to Republican Rep. Mark Meadows, who questioned why federal taxpayers should assume additional financial burdens for a mismanaged system, Evans got angry:

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1 comment:

Concerned Retiree said...

Bankrupt because of poor management. Increase fares or shut it down. Sell it to private company. Quit screwing the Tax Payer. The same goes for MD Dept of Transportation. No Bailout.