Md., Va. Senators Team Up on Metro Funding Bill

Senators from Virginia and Maryland are pushing new legislation to ensure that the Washington, D.C.-area Metro system gets up to $200 million each year from the federal government — with some strings attached.

Virginia Democratic Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine joined Maryland Democratic Sens. Benjamin L. Cardin and Chris Van Hollen at a news conference Thursday to announce their measure aimed at extending federal funding over the next decade for the Washington region’s transit system.

“I think we all know as local representatives that Metro is really the federal government’s and our nation’s capital’s key transportation system,” Warner said at the Capitol South Metro station outside a U.S. House office building. “Without Metro, the gridlock that would exist, or the ability to get to this hill would be greatly diminished, and we think it’s time for our federal partners to step up.”

Metro has received $150 million per year from the federal government over the last decade for capital expenses, but that’s set to lapse this year unless Congress enacts an extension. Last year, Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia all agreed to record funding levels for the transit system.

The federal funding the senators are seeking could also include an extra $50 million per year under the new bill, assuming the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority meets certain safety requirements and boosts the powers of the inspector general. The measure would also prohibit Metro from using federal funds to buy Chinese railcars after lawmakers raised concerns about the safety and security of those cars.

Given some of the safety and maintenance challenges facing the aging transit system, “We need to take it to the next level with an additional $50 million a year. And that’s what we’re supporting based on certain reforms taking place,” Cardin said. “We think that’s a responsible way for Congress to act and to increase the federal government’s commitment to the Metro system during this next decade.”

The lawmakers said they’re expecting widespread support for the measure in Congress, due in part to the proliferation of Metro users across Capitol Hill.

Without the Metro system, Kaine said, the region “would come to a complete standstill, the federal government would come to a standstill. Metro users are in every congressional office and every Senate office on the Hill and every federal agency. Metro and the success of the D.C. region are completely linked.”

Van Hollen stressed that lawmakers want to make it very clear that Metro must have “top-notch” cybersecurity. “We’ve been very clear that as part of that effort, we should not be purchasing the railcars for the Washington Metro system from China, in order to assure the security of communications in this region.”

The Washington Post reported last month that China’s state-owned rail company, the China Railway Rolling Stock Corp., was pursuing a Metro contract upwards of $1 billion to build up to 800 of its new 8000-series rail cars. But critics have warned that such a deal could hurt U.S. manufacturers and pose cyber espionage threats.

“This is a matter of national security,” Cardin said. “We will work with Metro to make sure that Chinese technology does not get into the new equipment that is needed by Metro. We’ll figure out a way to comply with law to make sure that our national security is protected.”

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