WASHINGTON, D.C. — Trying to fix the cracked brackets that have sidelined its lucrative Acela trains, Amtrak is relying on round-the-clock welding and rigorous inspections after every run while it waits for a permanent solution, the Washington Post reported.
One by one, the popular high-speed trains are being returned to service in the Northeast Corridor. But because the root cause of the problem remains undiscovered, experts say, the cracks may well return, which could draw Amtrak into a disruptive cycle of cancellations and repairs.
“There may be additional cracks down the road,” said Cliff Black, an Amtrak spokesman. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”
Amtrak and Acela’s manufacturer, Bombardier Transportation of North America, are still investigating the cause of the cracks, which mechanics discovered two weeks ago on steel brackets attaching a shock absorber system to the body of 36 Acela locomotives and 15 nearly new high-horsepower conventional locomotives. They later found additional cracks on the locomotives’ steel frames, all of them located near the damaged brackets.
The railroad pulled its entire Acela Express fleet — 18 trains each pulled by two locomotives — out of service last week to begin repairs. Today, Amtrak will run seven of the high-speed trains, making a total of 23 departures, about half of its normal 50 on a weekday.
The cracks are the most serious breakdown to date with the Acela, which was launched two years ago to much fanfare but has been saddled with problems. The Acela trains are each scheduled for about 200 upgrades to fix a variety of equipment, including flawed braking systems and sticking restroom doors.
Amtrak says Bombardier is financially responsible for the repairs under warranty, but having the trains sidelined nonetheless compounds Amtrak’s financial woes. The 31-year-old railroad, which has never turned a profit and sought a congressional bailout earlier this year, badly needs the revenue from its premium service, but two weeks of on-again, off-again service are expected to drag its ridership down.
Acela’s ridership rose 11 percent during the past year, particularly after Sept. 11, as many business travelers, tired of heightened airline security and longer delays, began defecting to the trains from the airline shuttles.
In the absence of a long-term plan, workers from Amtrak and Bombardier are welding the cracks, sealing most of the hairline fissures with stainless steel and then grinding the surfaces until the repairs are smooth.
“Until we have a final fix, we can handle this situation with regular inspections and welding if need be,” said Marie Hervieu, a spokeswoman for Bombardier, which has mobilized about 80 workers along the Northeast corridor to repair the locomotives.
No one is quite sure how to prevent the cracks. Bombardier is now developing a stronger, redesigned bracket, which it hopes to have approved for use “within weeks.” But Amtrak is not convinced that will work. “We’re not sure what that will do,” Black said.
The Federal Railroad Administration has approved the welding and grinding plan and its inspectors are clearing each locomotive before it returns to the rails. The inspections and repairs are focused on stainless-steel brackets that attach yaw dampers — large shock absorbers designed to prevent horizontal swaying — to the Acela and the high-horsepower locomotives.
Each yaw damper assembly includes two brackets that link the 200-pound shock absorber to the locomotive’s main body. Badly cracked brackets will be replaced with slightly thicker ones; those with small cracks will be welded and returned to service, Amtrak said.
“While it may have a negative connotation, welding can make the steel as strong as it was in its original form, if not stronger,” said Robert Gould, a spokesman for the FRA. “But it has to be done properly.” Bombardier has sent teams of certified welders to Boston, New York and Washington to conduct repairs on the sidelined trains. So far, Amtrak said, welded cracks have remained sealed.
“New cracks have been discovered near where there have been repairs, but not at the repair,” said Black, the Amtrak spokesman.
A senior official at the FRA said that there is little chance the cracks will lead to what experts call “catastrophic failure,” a complete collapse that might end with derailment. “The cracks form and then grow with repeated trips,” said the senior official. “With enough comprehensive inspections, there will be no serious problem.”
Every Acela locomotive is equipped with eight yaw damper brackets — two at each corner — and there are more than 280 brackets in the entire fleet. Black said it is not clear how many of them are damaged. In one case, on Aug. 12, mechanics in Boston found a bracket that was completely fractured. The next day, Amtrak pulled all 18 trains out of service to inspect each locomotive.
Since then, the railroad has initiated a more rigorous inspection of Acela locomotives after every run, including frequent dye tests that reveal microscopic fissures invisible to the naked eye. For now, those inspections will be the main defense against new cracks.
“A permanent fix will take some time,” Black said. “It is not going to be an overnight process.”