Watchdog urges T to release work site agreement
A government watchdog said the public needs to know what precautions the MBTA is taking to protect passengers as the agency has yet to release its license agreement with Suffolk Construction, whose work at a construction site near the Silver Line led to concrete falling from the ceiling at the World Trade Center station.
“They claimed the problem was that the construction company exceeded tolerances. You want to look and see what tolerances were exceeded,” said Greg Sullivan, research director at the conservative Pioneer Institute and a former inspector general for the state. “People should be able to look at that, it should be available to anybody upon request.”
Construction companies are required to enter license agreements with the MBTA when they work near T facilities — such as Suffolk Construction, which is building the Waterside Place luxury residential tower at 501 Congress St.
At a board meeting Monday, T General Manager Luis Ramirez said Suffolk Construction “performed work which exceeded specified engineering tolerances” that led to the top of a concrete column at the World Trade Center Station cracking and pieces falling to the floor below, shutting down the station.
MBTA officials said they are “processing” Herald requests for Suffolk’s licensing agreement and for the number of licensing agreements currently in effect. A T spokesman said the construction went beyond specific engineering tolerances, not the scope of any agreement, but did not respond to questions of where those tolerances were specified.
Sullivan said the license agreement needs to be released so the public can see what measures are in place to prevent further problems at the station.
“They’ve said the problem occurred because the construction company exceeded tolerances, that raises questions about what tolerances were included in the licensing agreement,” Sullivan added.