Tracking down Metro's leaky tracks

So it's not news that the MetroRail line is leaking electricity — Houstonist has talked about it a couple of times already. But now it's been a year since Metro admitted to the problem, and the agency still hasn't been able to fix it.

Remember that this electricity leak isn't going to kill you if you walk near the tracks, but there is concern that it might eventually corrode metal objects near the rail line, including wiring, pipes and bridge supports. Metro and TxDOT say there's no danger that steel-reinforced structures, like bridges and freeways, are in danger, but because people are worried about it they decided to test steel in the foundations of the Pierce Elevated, Southwest Freeway and the South Loop, all of which cross the rail line. Metro also replaced anchors in the bridges over Buffalo and Brays bayous, which helped control the problem, and it traced leakages to 25 of 125 spots along the line where electrical cables are attached to the track. Those connections should be repaired by mid-June.

The problem is the remaining leaks, most of which seem to come from large concrete casings around track switches at six locations along the rail line. Metro tested one of the concrete "bathtubs" under the Pierce Elevated in March and found that the leak wasn't coming from where the rails entered the casing, as was expected. Ah well.

Even though Metro and Siemens are continuing to try to find the source of the leaks, Metro's Bryan Pennington said they're really not anything to worry about. "Our specifications are extremely conservative," he told the Chronicle. "We set a very high standard to achieve."