He is one of those well-paid technocrats who makes sure things run smoothly, someone few people have heard of but so many depend on. Then something happens, and that cloak of invisibility disappears.
For David R. Solow, that moment occurred Sept. 12, when a Metrolink train crashed into a freight train in Chatsworth. Twenty-five people died and 135 were injured in the worst rail accident in modern state history. Suddenly Solow, chief executive of the Southern California Regional Rail Authority, which operates Metrolink, was much closer to the spotlight than he cared to be.
No member of Metrolink's board will say publicly that Solow's $220,000-a-year job is in jeopardy, but his performance is being scrutinized as never before. The board has appointed an 11-member panel composed mainly of academics and industry experts to examine the railroad's safety and operating procedures. The board also approved a review of Metrolink's emergency preparedness and crisis communications plans.
Several members have expressed disapproval of the railroad's reaction immediately after the crash, including Solow's taking four hours to arrive at the scene.
"I think he did an abysmal job the weekend of the incident," said Richard Katz, the former assemblyman whom Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa appointed to the Metrolink board shortly after the accident. Katz is also a member of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority board.
Los Angeles County Supervisors and board members Don Knabe and Mike Antonovich joined in. "There was no preparation for crisis management, crisis communication, which caused chaos and confusion, which did even more harm," said Tony Bell, Antonovich's spokesman. "There was no excuse for that."
There were other bobbles. The day after the accident, Solow told Metrolink spokeswoman Denise Tyrrell that she could let reporters know that the wreck was apparently caused by a Metrolink engineer who went through a red light. It was later learned he had been text-messaging on his cellphone seconds before the crash.
Members of Metrolink's 11-member board and federal investigators rebuked Tyrrell, even though preliminary findings from the National Transportation Safety Board said the same thing. She resigned.
