Amtrak: Bombardier Overestimated Acela Brakes

Amtrak President David Gunn said Wednesday he believes the makers of the Acela Express trains overestimated the life expectancy of their brake rotors, forcing Amtrak to pull the entire fleet out of service for repairs.

"I believe they misjudged the life of the rotors," Gunn told The Associated Press during a break in a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing on Amtrak's Fiscal 2006 budget. "Their life expectancy was less than they had planned and they were caught without a supply."

This is bad news for Bombardier here in Montreal.