Metro Gets $34.3 Million for New Cars

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senators from Maryland and Virginia announced Wednesday that the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) will receive $34.3 million for the purchase of 52 new Metro cars.

The news comes two days after the worst crash in Metro's 33-year history. On Monday, nine people were killed and 76 were injured when one Red Line train slammed into another between the Fort Totten and Takoma Park stations.

U.S. Senators Benjamin L. Cardin and Barbara A. Mikulski (Both D-MD), along with Senators Jim Webb and Mark R. Warner (Both D-VA) made the announcement. They said this was the last installment of a three-year, $104 million appropriations commitment, and it comes and just one day after all four senators sent a letter to the Senate Appropriations Committee leadership urging them to provide $150 million in FY2010 federal funding for capital upgrades and improvements to the WMATA system.

The Federal Rail Safety Improvement Act, which was signed into law in October 2008, authorized $1.5 billion in federal funds over 10 years, to be matched dollar-for-dollar by Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia.

Monday's deadly accident shined a spotlight on the need for improvements and upgrades to Metrorail's infrastructure.  

Senator Cardin said funding shortfalls have caused Metro to make repairs instead of replacing aging equipment and structures. He said the $34.3 million grant is urgently needed, but a steady stream of funding will help WMATA make the investments needed to reassure riders, residents, and anyone who uses Metro that it is as safe and reliable as possible.

While the exact cause of Monday's tragic collision is not known, Senator Mikulski said we do know that Metros infrastructure is aging-- and for too long funding shortfalls have meant short-term fixes in place of long-term solutions. Mikulski said more needs to be done, and she will continue fighting to make sure WMATA gets the funding it needs to keep commuters safe and on the move.

"This final installment on a federal commitment to Metrorail is timely as commuters in this region are focused on Monday's tragedy near Fort Totten," Senator Warner said. "Our Metro partners must continue to work together to make sure Metro is able to provide safe, efficient public transit service."

Metro has a list of ready-to-go projects totaling about $530 million and $11 billion in capital funding needs over the next decade.