BALTIMORE — Baltimore’s Board of Estimates, which awards contracts and supervises city spending, will vote this week to settle a lawsuit by CSX Transportation over a water main failure that caused a 2019 derailment in the Howard Street Tunnel.
The Maryland Daily Record reports the board will vote Wednesday, June 7, on a proposed $245,000 settlement. CSX’s suit says the city failed to repair a leaking water main above the tunnel, leading to a major break that flooded the tunnel, derailed the train, and collapsed an underground structure [see “CSX sues over 2019 flood, derailment …,” Trains News Wire, July 25, 2022].
The railroad had sought $2.5 million, plus costs, from the city and Maryland Transit Administration. Claims against the MTA were dismissed because of a jurisdictional issue.
CSX said it had notified the city of the issue before the flooding occurred, and that after the water main broke on July 8, 2019, the MTA continued running light rail for another seven hours, leading to the collapse of an underground vault that caused additional damage to CSX property. Several city workers were trapped when the underground vault collapsed and another was reportedly injured while conducting related electrical work. The derailment also disrupted MARC commuter service [see “Broken water main floods CSX tunnel …,” News Wire, July 9, 2019].
Good luck squeezing money out of Baltimore!
$245,000 out of 2.5 million is kinda chump change, isn’t it?