B
Bus Nut
Guest
Highlighting is mine. The procurement process for the Acela trainsets was, shall we say, flawed.The best news about this order could be what we are not
hearing: So far no leak at all of finger-pointing, name-calling,
and enemy-making between Amtrak and CAF. I believe
sourness began over the Acelas before the trains went
into service, and perhaps foreshadowed the considerable
problems that spoiled the launch. So I do believe this CAF
order, despite repeated delays, is one of those cases where
"no news is good news".
Basically amounting to a company wining/dining key pols (and more, possibly) and said pols pulling the rabbit out of the hat for said company. No way to run a railroad or a government project, for that matter.
Just about everyone I knew was awed and disgusted, and, boy, Bombardier did not stint on the gaffes and fail.
Naturally, Amtrak looked to disavow themselves of the mess--they hadn't even chosen the vendor, so no reason to defend the choice, while Bombardier naturally needed someone other than their sainted selves to blame.
I'm sure Breda Ferroviare was blaming Boston and San Francisco for their own epic failures building trolley cars, like anyone cares.