Photo by Liliang

The U.S. Federal Transit Administration is directing WMATA to complete nearly four dozen actions to prevent Metrorail’s all-too-common smoke and fire incidents.

The FTA’s directive is based on findings from an investigation report released today that details the condition of Metrorail’s traction power electrification (TPE) system, which is used to electrify trains. It has “deteriorated with age, deferred maintenance, and increased exposure to water and other contaminating materials,” according to the FTA.

The administration also found that, in response to financial and staffing issues, WMATA cut preventive maintenance programs that would have predicted failures, and eliminated or cut back on cleaning and testing programs.

Earlier this year, the administration directed WMATA to repair the TPE system on segments of the Red Line where 18 electrical arcing incidents took place between March 1 and June 14. In addition to being safety hazards, these types of incidences have also caused station closures resulting in massive delays throughout the system.

As a result of the targeted maintenance on the Red Line, the number and severity of such incidents have been reduced, according to the FTA.

However, the new report suggests that there’s still more work to be done, and the FTA has issued 47 action items. Now, WMATA has to develop plans to address the findings of the report and submit them to the FTA for approval. The administration says it will then continue to monitor the system’s progress.

As a reminder, here’s what one electrical arcing incident last May at Metro’s Federal Center SW Station looked like: