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LA Transit Official Has Concerns About Derailment

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The head of the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority has asked the agency's inspector general to investigate an alignment problem on the new Expo Line that experts believe could pose a risk of derailment if left uncorrected.

The Los Angeles Times reports the agency will look at a rail junction near downtown Los Angeles to determine whether there is a derailment risk.

Local and state transit officials have been trying to get rid of a flaw in the track layout for the past two years that was damaging the wheels of trains.

The state utilities commission ordered local officials last week to replace a key piece of track that helps guide train wheels through a switch used by southbound Blue Line trains.

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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