Cracked brakes sideline high-speed trains

WASHINGTON – Amtrak shut down its high-speed Acela trains Friday after maintenance crews discovered cracked brake parts on several of its cars, and officials of the rail line said the trains could be out of service for months.

The problem was found on a handful of Acela cars during a routine brake inspection late Thursday at a Washington maintenance yard. A more extensive inspection of all 20 Acela trains Friday found that more than one in five brake rotors on the trains were defective. Amtrak officials said they did not know if the problem could have caused an accident.

The Acela cancellations came one day after the Bush administration released its plans for restructuring Amtrak by breaking up the rail line and turning it over to the states.

Bill Crosbie, Amtrak’s chief operating officer, said it could be two months or more before all the Acela trains were running again.

The cancellation of Acela trains between Washington and Boston forced as many as 10,000 riders to find other trains or other ways to get to their destinations. Although Amtrak pressed five additional regional trains into service, they clearly were not enough.

Amtrak runs 15 Acela weekday round trips between New York and Washington and 11 between New York and Boston. The Acela is the most advanced of Amtrak’s trains, with a top speed of 150 mph.