Five months before brake problems on the Zip Mobile snarled thousands of West Oahu commuters in a morning traffic jam, the vehicle’s manufacturer told the company that runs the ZipperLane in a report that the brakes should be replaced.
But the head of that company, Safety Systems and Signs Hawaii, says his management didn’t receive that report until the day of the jam and that they didn’t know of any potential brake problems until it was too late.
The incident raises larger questions about the state’s aging fleet of two Zip Mobiles, which thousands of West Oahu drivers rely on each workday to get into town, and whether they need to be rebuilt or replaced. The 15-year-old machines create an extra eastbound lane on the H-1 freeway each weekday morning that accommodates 4,000 more drivers in that direction and helps keep traffic flowing.
However, on Jan. 17 those thousands of drivers faced lengthy delays when the ZipperLane unexpectedly shut down. The Zip Mobile’s brakes had "locked up," Department of Transportation officials explained at the time, making the Zip Mobile immobile.
Meanwhile, the agency’s other Zip Mobile — the backup — was also out of service after having broken down Dec. 30 due to what Safety Systems and Signs Chief Executive Officer Greg Grosch described as an electrical fire. Crews used the brakes from the backup vehicle, which were in good working order, to fix the other Zip Mobile and get it operational later that day.
Prior to the Jan. 17 breakdown, in an Aug. 5 report, Zip Mobile manufacturer Lindsay Transportation Solutions Sales and Service advised Grosch’s company that the vehicle’s brakes "need to be changed." Lindsay inspectors had come to Oahu to assess the two 15-year-old Zip Mobiles’ condition.
They found that both Zip Mobiles were in "good condition from an overall perspective" — but they also recommended 20 components on those machines be replaced, including the brakes. Grosch said it was the first time Lindsay published such a report. "It never made it to the office," he added.
DOT officials said in a statement Friday, "For the past 15 years the Zip Mobiles have been very reliable with few issues until recently. As the machines are getting older, the HDOT is currently evaluating if it is time to replace one or both of the Zip Mobiles."
Grosch said it would be too expensive to ship Oahu’s Zip Mobiles back to the mainland to be rebuilt, but if the components were brought to the island, they could be rebuilt in about 21/2 months.
Safety Systems and Signs Hawaii has dealt with about five of the 20 parts that Lindsay recommended be replaced, whether in direct response to the report or through routine maintenance, Grosch said. Both machines now have working brakes, he added.
Safety Systems has operated the ZipperLane for the state for the past 14 years, and it currently runs the system for an annual contract cost of about $2 million. The company also faces a $6,817 penalty for the Jan. 17 breakdown, DOT spokeswoman Caroline Sluyter said.
The state started putting the ZipperLane contract out to bid last year, Grosch said. It recently selected another company, Zip UThere Inc., which bid $1.58 million to run the ZipperLane, according to Sluyter. However, Safety Systems and Signs is challenging that selection on the basis that the new company doesn’t meet the bid criteria, Grosch said. In the meantime, Safety Systems continues to operate the ZipperLane.
