Healey says rails didn't cause Green Line derailment, cites possible human error

Gov. Maura Healey said the Tuesday afternoon derailment on the Green Line is "not attributable to the rail or the track," and suggested that federal investigators are instead focusing on other factors including the operator as a potential root cause.

A day after a train came off the tracks near Lechmere Station, Healey invoked the extensive work the MBTA conducted during her administration to fix Green Line Extension rails that were installed too narrowly.

"It's not related to the rail, it's not related to the track," Healey told reporters at an unrelated event Wednesday. "Remember, we did all that repair work. When we came in as an administration, we had to redo the Green Line Extension because it wasn't done correctly the first time. We did that, and that rail is good, okay? So this is not attributable to the rail or the track. The look is at the operator."

The train derailed just after 4:45 p.m. on Tuesday, causing about 50 passengers to evacuate and sending six to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

The National Transportation Safety Board deployed an investigatory team Wednesday, and the Federal Transit Administration is examining the incident as well.

The T announced around 10:30 a.m. that regular service is once again running from North Station to Medford/Tufts and Union Square, the two endpoints on the Green Line Extension's branches, and that shuttle buses have been phased out. Trolley service had been suspended since Tuesday afternoon.

"What a scary incident for the passengers. I'm really sorry about that. I can imagine the horror, right, with that incident, and I'm really sorry that people were injured," Healey said.

A string of safety incidents prompted a blistering investigation by the Federal Transit Administration in 2022, which concluded by identifying deep-rooted problems at the T that required action.

Healey said federal regulators "have been impressed with our team and the strides made by General Manager [Phil] Eng" since then.

"We're on course to finish those slow zones, clearing up those slow zones ... Times are going to improve. People have seen that already. They've seen continued improvements with that. We beefed up the workforce. We have more inspectors and operators and the like," she said. "We continue to be in good communication with the federal authorities on this, but I think they definitely see that Massachusetts in the last 20 months under this administration, under the leadership of [MBTA General Manager] Eng, we've turned a corner."

Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect that Green Line Extension service resumed Thursday afternoon.