Six recommendations to improve the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) oversight of future rolling stock procurements were made as part of a new audit report released by the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of the Inspector General (USDOT OIG).
A Hawaii Senate Committee mistakenly passes a rail tax extension that would raise funding for the Honolulu Authority for Rapid Transit (HART). Also, Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) ridership is up 12% compared with a year ago; a draft study for the New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT) finds that commuter rail service between Boston and Manchester, N.H., would cost $782 million to build; Transit Wireless expands its partnership with the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA); and the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of the Inspector General (USDOT OIG) will audit Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority’s (SEPTA) compliance with Buy America requirements for rolling stock.
A new Siemens Mobility trainset is heading to Brightline, Florida’s private-sector passenger railroad. Also, the California High-Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) is passed over for Multimodal Project Disciplinary Grants from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT); and a recent audit finds that USDOT oversight of Seattle’s transportation-funds management is insufficient.
