WASHINGTON --
Amtrak returned two Acela Express trains to service July 11 and
said it plans to bring others back in the months to come.
Amtrak said the
Acela Express trains will operate on a schedule that includes four
daily departures, two each from New York and Washington.
The trains will
operate Mondays through Fridays with two morning and two afternoon
departures from New York and Washington, and will serve all regular
Acela destinations including Newark; Philadelphia; Wilmington,
Del.; Baltimore; and Baltimore-Washington Airport.
The Acela Express
fleet, which encompasses 20 trainsets, was pulled from service on
April 15 after 300 cracks, or stress fractures, were found during
routine maintenance inspections on the 1,440 brake discs or rotors
used on the trains.
Amtrak brought in
additional trains to make up for the Acela Express' absence.
Amtrak, while attempting to determining the cause of cracks, has
been working to replace the parts, unique to the Acela Express,
ever since.
Amtrak expects to
bring more of the fleet into service over the next few months, but
no specific timetable was announced.
It is estimated
that the sidelined, premium Acela Express service is costing Amtrak
about $1 million per day in lost revenue.
To contact the
reporter who wrote this article, send e-mail to Michael Milligan at
[email protected].