Track repairs to disrupt Downeaster train service

Amtrak’s Downeaster service will be interrupted this Saturday and Sunday because crews in Massachusetts will be doing extensive track work on the section between Boston and Haverhill, Mass.

On both days, there will be no train service between Boston and Haverhill. For southbound trains, Haverhill will be the last stop.

The Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority, which operates the service, has dropped its one-way fares for the weekend to $10 for adults and $5 for children between any station from Haverhill to Brunswick.

Buses may be available between Boston and some stations, including Saco, said Patricia Quinn, the rail authority’s executive director.

To determine if a bus is available, she said, people should make a reservation at www.amtrakdowneaster.com.

Quinn said the service will experience similar interruptions on May 17 and 18.

Two engineers suspended in probe of GM recall case

General Motors has suspended two engineers with pay in the first disciplinary action linked to its delayed recall of more than 2 million small cars for a potentially deadly ignition switch problem.

The move stems from GM’s internal investigation of the matter. At congressional hearings last week, lawmakers alleged that at least one company engineer tried to cover up the switch problem. GM CEO Mary Barra promised action against anyone deemed to have acted inappropriately.

GM, in a statement Thursday, said the engineers were placed on leave after a briefing from former U.S. Attorney Anton Valukas, whom GM has hired to figure out why it took more than a decade to recall the cars. GM says at least 13 people have been killed in crashes linked to the defective switch, but family members of those who died say the death toll is much higher.

Puerto Rico picked for site of aviation repair facility

German company Lufthansa Technik announced Thursday that it had signed a deal with Puerto Rico’s government to build a facility for aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul in the U.S. territory.

The facility will be based at the Rafael Hernandez International Airport in the northwest town of Aguadilla and is expected to serve short- and medium-haul aircraft, said Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla. JetBlue and another unidentified major U.S. client have committed to using the facility, officials said.

The announcement comes as the U.S. territory of 3.6 million people enters its eighth year of recession and struggles with a 15.2 percent unemployment rate, the highest compared with any U.S. state.