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The safety upgrades and recommendations are the result of investigations into Metro-North that were conducted after two derailments and several other problems have plagued the commuter rail.
Prospective vendors will be asked to design, manufacture, and deliver an on-board video recording system. The base order would cover the newest cars in the railroads’ fleets, Metro-North’s M-8s, both railroads’ M-7s and cab cars, as well as all locomotives. This includes 843 rail car cabs for Metro-North and 926 cars for LIRR.
“The MTA is committed to safe operations at all its agencies,” Thomas F. Prendergast, MTA Chairman and CEO said in a statement. “We will be systematically implementing recommendations put forward by the NTSB and other regulators to ensure the best practices are adhered to throughout the MTA family.”
Due to the complexity of implementing such a system, the railroads on Monday will ask the board of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to approve a request for proposal (RFP) instead of the traditional low-bid contract.
Vendors will be evaluated on the basis of technical capability, past performance, organizational resources, experience of team members and cost.
If the board approves the use of the RFP process, the two railroads’ project managers and teams will develop the technical specifications, the scope of work and the contract documents. Metro-North’s Procurement Department will then advertise the project.
No cost estimates for the project have been provided.
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