Surprised nobody has posted this news yet.
San Diego County's North County Transit District (NCTD) suspended SPRINTER diesel light railway transit (DLRT) service Saturday "in order to perform necessary maintenance repairs"—repairs that some observers say could take months.http://www.railwayage.com/index.php/pas ... -last.html
Bus replacement service will be instituted along the length of its SPRINTER route, which normally operates between Oceanside and Escondido, Calif.
Worn brake rotors are the direct cause of the service disruption. Local media reported that NCTD Executive Director Matthew Tuckersaid the rotors "don't meet the standards of compliance," even though the light rail vehicles "are still safe to operate."
North County Transit District officials say a former employee knew early on about the brake problems that have idled the $477 million Sprinter light-rail line and did not communicate them up the chain of command.http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/mar ... n-in-flux/
That chain of command was in nearly constant flux, according to transit district records obtained by U-T Watchdog.
The operations division that former transit employee Richard Berk worked for underwent at least four reorganizations in three years. During that time, Berk had three supervisors, only one of whom remains with the district.
The structural changes have been caused in part by the economy and also stemmed from the agency’s decision to outsource all of its operations and maintenance functions to private contractors in 2009. Maintenance for the Sprinter was outsourced from its inception in 2008.