MBTA OFFICIALS have been weighing how to approach the next contract for the operations and maintenance of the commuter rail while also modernizing the system, which serves 550,000 passengers every week.
They plan to roll out the details of their decision to companies potentially interested in bidding on the contract at a meeting inside the state transportation building in downtown Boston later this month.
When the MBTA asked for industry feedback last year, most companies said they wanted the opportunity to bid on multiple contracts, including breaking out operations and maintenance separately.
But the scope of the new contract is going to look familiar, because it’s expected to be similar to the current one, according to transportation officials: Operations and maintenance will be handled by one company, as it is right now by Keolis Commuter Services, which has had a contract since 2014.
The Keolis contract, a $4 billion agreement that saw several extensions, is now set to expire in June 2027. A request for proposals is slated to go out this fall, with plans for a new contract awarded by the end of 2026 or beginning of 2027, leaving a tight timeframe to transition to the new contract if Keolis is not the operator.
The contract for the modernization of the commuter rail will be handled separately, state transportation officials told CommonWealth Beacon. In discussing modernization of the system, MBTA officials have talked of swapping diesel-powered locomotives for electric ones and offering more frequent trips.
Those discussions are expected to continue as the MBTA focuses on locking down a contract for operating and maintaining the current system. “I think they’ve done a lot of research and hard work to put this forward, to make sure we get what’s best for the T, but just as important best for the commonwealth, in terms of the next contract,” said Thomas McGee, chair of the MBTA’s board of directors.
A public notice on the T’s website touts an “Industry Day” on May 13. “The event is intended for businesses and suppliers in passenger rail operations, rolling stock [locomotives and passenger car] maintenance, and existing infrastructure maintenance,” the notice says.
In the days following the event, the MBTA is also offering confidential one-on-one meetings to organizations interested in responding to the procurement process. “Conducting a robust and highly competitive bidding process is paramount to ensuring the delivery of reliable, safe and accessible Commuter Rail service for many years to come,” MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo said in a statement.
Brian Kane, the head of the MBTA Advisory Board, a watchdog of the public transit agency, said the MBTA’s decision to stick with a scope similar to the current set-up raises questions. “Like many people I still have a lot of questions, mostly around the contract’s duration. Are they going to give someone, not necessarily Keolis, but someone, a ten-year deal, a 20-year deal? And does that set the timeline for when regional rail [modernization] is meant to begin? And how is that transition going to be managed? Because transitions are where it gets tricky,” he said. “There are just more questions than answers right now.”
Kane also voiced a concern that the T’s approach could be viewed as giving Keolis, the current operator, a “big advantage.” The perception of an advantage could drive away other contract bidders, he said. “I don’t want that perception because this is too important.”
Kane added that the MBTA should more seriously analyze bringing everything in-house, similar to the structure that Phil Eng, the MBTA’s general manager, oversaw in New York when headed up the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Long Island Rail Road (LIRR).
Rich Davey, who worked for MBCR, the company that held the commuter rail contract before Keolis and later left to become MBTA general manager and then state transportation secretary, said he didn’t have a strong opinion on how the contract should be structured, but emphasized that whatever scenario emerges, it should be a competitive bidding process.
“I don’t think people realize – whatever the contract length, 10 years, 20 years, 70 years – it’s expensive,” said Davey, who now heads up the Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport), which owns and operates Logan International Airport. “And commuter rail contractors do not grow on trees, globally. I’ve been involved in this, in and out for the last 20 years. It’s usually two or three competitors at best.”