Metro General Manager and Chief Executive Officer Paul J. Wiedefeld has announced that as a result of an accelerated project timeline, all underground weather tight seals located on third rail power feeds and jumper cables have been successfully installed ahead of schedule.
Metro began the process to install the weather tight seals, known as sealing sleeves, immediately following a June 2015 National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) safety recommendation.
“This is an important step toward addressing not just the NTSB safety recommendation, but toward improving overall safety in the Metrorail system,” said Metro General Manager/CEO Paul J. Wiedefeld. “The sealing sleeves help protect the power cables from the intrusion of water and contaminants that may cause electrical damage.”
NTSB investigators found that some electrical connections associated with the power supply to the third rail were improperly built and mounted, allowing the potential for moisture to enter the components. As hundreds of such connections were made throughout the system, Metro initially prioritized installation locations based on water intrusion conditions and developed a three-year project timeline.
At the direction of the general manager, Metro accelerated the work following an early morning tunnel fire at McPherson Square in March. The incident also led to the unprecedented 26-hour shutdown of the Metrorail system for emergency inspections of the system’s third-rail power cables.
Installation of weather tight seals on all aboveground third rail power feeds and jumper cables will be completed by the end of the summer.
