Newtonville Commuter Rail 2019 Stair Outage Costs (Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA))

Dear Robert Bono,
Your request has been received and is being processed.  Your request was received in this office on October 28, 2019 and given the reference number R000646-102819 for tracking purposes. To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Massachusetts Public Records Law, I hereby request the following records:

Summary cost data line items associated with the 8/22 Newtonville MBTA stair outage, including but not limited to:

- Total sum cost of shuttles and additional drivers to ferry riders between Newtonville and West Newton in both directions during the entire extent of the outage,
- Total sum costs associated with any accidents, "fender benders" or other atypical wear-and-tear sustained by any state-owned or state-operated vehicles or equipment used during and as part of the outage response,
- Total sum cost of any police or public safety detail assigned to work the area in or around the Newtonville station in response to the stair outage,
- Total sum costs, including any applicable taxes, fees, or penalties, of any materials, new or from inventory, used in the repair and reinforcement of the stairs,
- Total sum of any knock-on costs associated with delays caused by late equipment turnaround due to congestion at West Newton resulting from increased congestion at limited train entrances,
- Total sum cost of all labor, inspection and oversight taking place during the analysis, repair and approval of the repairs,
- Total sum refunded value of any Charlie cards or other prepaid fare returned to riders as a result of the station outage,
- Any other recognized or accounted ongoing cost increases resulting from the outage or the associated damage to the stairs, such as increased risk exposure or insurance premiums.

I also request that, if appropriate, fees be waived as we believe this request is in the public interest, as suggested but not stipulated by the recommendations of the Massachusetts Supervisor of Public Records. The requested documents will be made available to the general public free of charge as part of the public information service at MuckRock.com, processed by a representative of the news media/press and is made in the process of news gathering and not for commercial usage.

I expect the request to be filled in an accessible format, including for screen readers, which provide text-to-speech for persons unable to read print. Files that are not accessible to screen readers include, for example, .pdf image files as well as physical documents.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 10 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Robert Bono

Upload documents directly: https://https://www.muckrock.comhttps://www.muckrock.com/
You can monitor the progress of your request at the link below and you'll receive an email when your request has been completed. Click Here to View Your Request (https://u8387795.ct.sendgrid.net/wf/click?upn=Ow1KccipsoIsnXbuEgm-2FN5CmmBOs9GyjBHZJOifMs2S6JwfvEM4fGgmGp5PP4woLtkVjr6cYYGnWVTmfQsjDgHiwWRTGs5qFFTsxyPOVWuoq6vUEBE3zzec1keNT7QFmqVFASsM9bQ1AtsOompMt1w-3D-3D_3yMUKDbYAdr8Z0aTyksFj-2BjaI9rNYqH7VqHzMR4tQblSfxcv5xFgFxEhu3qKZ4962YejBIG5-2F7Nwi96sJMjR38N0Us35OFS9W6UfcTCHupuCTVwO5u1OqXAAIddzIYRYs211pUGAZNVF-2BrLyWrovVh8Hu-2FON-2F0XaMKRo7vNvcZtKplrJO4DDZwjbEyROZps-2FSgblhxdTKZH3qdVZJPRrWIMFiHFvUJ2j1wp0ib0oeMSSvyH6WzRSbybxGSPrEvba-2FW5-2FXBhPJzQzjrb3OpW4PsM6SMHINis50APRgTXriWnaIYeUElzzjoP56Y2nzo4fdM1WQfaHnVkAt0R31EjYmgebNJPNVsOHOW-2FUqsLGOgKK2BlzMaEPUw4X6QSQDrJ9rdRDA2AVaVc-2B4rGfQR0qyA-3D-3D)
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Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

--- Please respond above this line ---

November 11, 2019
Robert Bono MuckRock News DEPT MR 82167 411A Highland Ave Somerville, MA 02144
Re: Public Records Request for “To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Massachusetts Public Records Law, I hereby request the following records:

Summary cost data line items associated with the 8/22 Newtonville MBTA stair outage, including but not limited to:

- Total sum cost of shuttles and additional drivers to ferry riders between Newtonville and West Newton in both directions during the entire extent of the outage,
- Total sum costs associated with any accidents, "fender benders" or other atypical wear-and-tear sustained by any state-owned or state-operated vehicles or equipment used during and as part of the outage response,
- Total sum cost of any police or public safety detail assigned to work the area in or around the Newtonville station in response to the stair outage,
- Total sum costs, including any applicable taxes, fees, or penalties, of any materials, new or from inventory, used in the repair and reinforcement of the stairs,
- Total sum of any knock-on costs associated with delays caused by late equipment turnaround due to congestion at West Newton resulting from increased congestion at limited train entrances,
- Total sum cost of all labor, inspection and oversight taking place during the analysis, repair and approval of the repairs,
- Total sum refunded value of any Charlie cards or other prepaid fare returned to riders as a result of the station outage,
- Any other recognized or accounted ongoing cost increases resulting from the outage or the associated damage to the stairs, such as increased risk exposure or insurance premiums.

I also request that, if appropriate, fees be waived as we believe this request is in the public interest, as suggested but not stipulated by the recommendations of the Massachusetts Supervisor of Public Records. The requested documents will be made available to the general public free of charge as part of the public information service at MuckRock.com, processed by a representative of the news media/press and is made in the process of news gathering and not for commercial usage.

I expect the request to be filled in an accessible format, including for screen readers, which provide text-to-speech for persons unable to read print. Files that are not accessible to screen readers include, for example, .pdf image files as well as physical documents.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 10 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

Robert Bono

Upload documents directly: https://https://www.muckrock.comhttps://www.muckrock.com/
Our Case No.: R000646-102819
Dear Mr. Bono,
The MBTA is in receipt of your request for public records dated October 28, 2019 regarding the above-referenced matter; this request was received by our Records Access Officer on October 28, 2019.
During our initial search, and in an attempt to comply with your request, it has been determined that based on your initial request the amount of records is beyond the basic purpose and intent of the public records law.  "A requester does not need absolute precision, but an agency is entitled to more than a general category of what may be thousands of documents." See The David Project, Inc. v. Boston Redevelopment Authority, 22 Mass.L.Rep. 361 (2007). There are numerous departments and records custodians who may have access to responsive records and data, and a full response is projected to take over 50 hours for the search and compilation time alone.
Please reply at your earliest convenience to clarify, or assist in the modification of the scope of, your request so that we may more efficiently or affordably accommodate you. We suggest that you identify discrete records or types of records, rather than the general categories identified in your request, and to limit your request to a smaller number of sub-requests (you are certainly free to make additional requests if you determine that you require additional records after receiving a response from the MBTA). We are unable to do any further work on this request until we receive your response.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
Julie Ciollo
Assistant General Counsel/
Records Access Officer