(The Associated Press circulated the following article on April 17.)
WASHINGTON — Amtrak, scrambling to cover the Acela Express trips in between Washington and Boston after brake problems were discovered, will have one high-speed train back in service on Monday.
Spokeswoman Tracy Connell said the 8 a.m. Acela Express from New York to Washington will operate Monday and be turned around to make a 2 p.m. run from Washington to Boston.
She said crews were working around the clock to inspect and repair other express equipment and hoped to be able to place a second high-speed train back in service Monday.
On Sunday, the railroad ran three out of its 10 Acela trips with substitute trains and Connell said about half the 15 Acela trips normally run on weekdays will be covered with alternative equipment on Monday.
She said other Amtrak passengers who normally take Acela trips would be accommodated on regular Amtrak trains and that prospective passengers should check with Amtrak reservation lines or ticket agents for the latest schedule information.
The high-speed service was suspended in the Northeast on Friday after Amtrak discovered brake problems.
Amtrak normally runs 15 Acela weekday roundtrips between New York and Washington and 11 between New York and Boston.
Bombardier Inc. of Montreal, builder of the Acela, is working to fix the brakes.
Millimeter-sized cracks were found in 300 of the Acela fleet’s 1,440 disc brake rotors. The problem surfaced when a Federal Railroad Administration worker did a routine inspection Thursday night after a high-speed run to test whether Amtrak could speed up the Acela trains slightly in New Jersey on curves between Trenton and Newark. Amtrak’s 20 Acela trains each have 72 brakes.
Acela accounts for about one-fifth of Amtrak’s service along the Northeast corridor, carrying an average of between 9,000 and 10,000 riders on weekdays.
Acela Express began operating in December 2000 and was billed as Amtrak’s answer to high-speed rail. The trains run only along the Northeast corridor, with top speeds of 150 mph. Acela trains can get from Washington to New York City in two hours and 48 minutes, while its regular fleet takes more than three hours.