A Blue Line train derailed in Charlotte. Why did CATS keep it a secret? | Opinion

Ten months ago, a LYNX Blue Line train derailed due to a faulty axle bearing. An investigation subsequently found that the part defect that caused the derailment is present in all 42 of the city’s light rail vehicles — and the entire fleet needs to be repaired.

That derailment happened in May 2022. But it wasn’t until Monday night that the public — and Charlotte City Council — found out about it.

Interim Charlotte Area Transit System CEO Brent Cagle said at Monday’s council meeting that he was not informed of the situation until about two weeks ago, when he received a letter from the North Carolina Department of Transportation asking for a corrective action plan. Cagle has held the position of interim CEO since December.

“Do I believe staff should have informed me sooner, on Dec. 1? Yes,” Cagle said Monday. “Would I have liked for them to have informed me sooner? Absolutely.”

It’s easy for Cagle to put the blame on CATS staff, but he isn’t faultless here. He didn’t have to wait two weeks to tell the public what happened. He didn’t have to wait for the next council meeting. He could have done so right away in the interest of full transparency.

But no one, including Cagle, respected the public enough to speak up until now.

What does it say about the state of CATS that its chief executive was unaware of a potentially catastrophic mechanical problem for months? And more importantly, if CATS staff knew its entire light rail fleet needed repair, why didn’t they tell their leader so he could ask the city for help sooner? (And if they did, why didn’t former CEO John Lewis tell Cagle about it when he assumed the role?)

That alone suggests there may be issues with CATS’ internal communication and management. In fact, an outside management review released in December noted issues with the leadership and organizational structure of CATS — including poor communication and cooperation.

That’s not exactly comforting to voters — or state legislators — who will be expected to approve a sales tax increase down the line in order to fund the city’s audacious multibillion-dollar transit plan.

Cagle declined to discuss whether any employees would be disciplined for failing to disclose the derailment, other than to say that it is a human resources matter. He also declined to explain why COO Allen Smith was placed on administrative leave without pay last week. (CATS is now without a permanent CEO, CFO and COO.)

The NCDOT was unhappy with how CATS handled the accident, WFAE reported Tuesday, saying in a letter that CATS’ response was “unclear, insufficient, and is not acceptable.” The DOT wrote in February that CATS “has not conducted any form of risk assessment or hazard analysis.”

“We are certain that we have mitigating measures in place and we feel that in the vehicles that are running we can catch the bearing issue before it becomes a catastrophic failure,” Cagle told council members when asked if the light rail is safe to use.

That doesn’t exactly sound like a vote of confidence, and it’s unlikely to assuage the concerns of riders who may hesitate to take the light rail for the foreseeable future. After the meeting, however, Cagle told reporters he was “100% confident” that the Blue Line is safe.

Because the parts are out of warranty, the city will have to foot the bill. A cost estimate for repairs has yet to be provided, and they could take several years to complete. In the meantime, maximum train speeds have been reduced from 55 to 35 miles per hour.

The undisclosed derailment and repairs are only the latest of Charlotte’s transit woes — and yet another reason for the public to be skeptical of CATS. At the very least, it doesn’t help build trust in the system, and it’s bad optics for an agency that needs all the goodwill it can get.

City leaders surely recognize what a mess things are over at CATS. They need to take steps to fully understand and fix it. The future of transit in Charlotte — and the safety of the public — might be at risk.

This story was originally published March 14, 2023 at 4:01 PM.