MBTA Sues Over Faulty Rail Ties

BOSTON (AP) — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has sued the Colorado company that manufactured crumbling concrete railways ties used on commuter rail lines south of Boston for the cost of their replacement. The MBTA alleges in the suit filed Tuesday in Suffolk Superior Court that Rocla Concrete Tie Inc.

BOSTON (AP) — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has sued the Colorado company that manufactured crumbling concrete railways ties used on commuter rail lines south of Boston for the cost of their replacement.

The MBTA alleges in the suit filed Tuesday in Suffolk Superior Court that Rocla Concrete Tie Inc. of Denver "falsely represented" the ties would last 50 years.

The transit agency says nearly 150,000 ties are crumbling a decade after they were installed and will need to be replaced at a cost of more than $91 million. The suit claims the company has refused to honor a 15-year warranty on the ties.

Replacing the ties is expected to take two years and cause service disruptions on two rail branches.

Rocla did not return messages seeking comment.

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