BARTD is not being compared to an airline here, thus the comment is not disingenuous.

It just so happens that in those days, many of the field engineers employed by BART's vendors came from aerospace backgrounds; thus had no experience with the railroad industry concept of fail-safe design. It was difficult for those of us who did understand to get the point across to them. My only point is that within the very different context of the airline industry, their point of view is just as valid as our point of view is in the railroad context. As I said, understanding the engineering conceptualization of "Failsafe" requires a very structured frame of reference.

In those days, the CPUC exercised much oversight over all railroads in California. Federal law has since changed, leaving private railroads mostly to the F.R.A.. While the CPUC plays a much smaller role, it does still regulate all public transit in the state. I never have understood why it is necessary for one public agency to be regulated by another state agency. Who then regulates that agency - where does it all end. I can plainly see though, that who really did need oversight here was BART's idiotic vendors.

The Late Frank Harshbarger also worked for PBTB just before going to work for BART, and at some point before that, the ATSF. He once told the story of writing letters to BART, making certain recommendations about a certain vendor's inadequate designs, but seemingly was ignored. But after he went to work for BART two years later, his first assignment was to answer some letters from PBTB - turned out to be his own letters! Sadly, when they were written, BART had no engineering staff of its own to look out for its own interests. Thus no one was actually overseeing the vendors. The PUC did not involve itself until after someone blew the whistle some time later; but still, it focused directly on BART and not on the vendors themselves. Sadly, by the time BART hired its own people, it was way too late to avoid much grief.

But this goes to show, as I have said on previous posts, that due to California State Law, municipalities and other public agencies are often sitting ducks to plundering contractors and vendors. Because of this , they have to hire their own engineers anyway, or risk being plundered. But that sad fact was not well understood at the time. Now, even with them, it is still difficult for a such an agency to avoid being taken advantage of. Municipal agencies such as BART are definitely the underdog here. State Law needs change!

OPB