WASHINGTON -- The manufacturer of America's first and only high-speed train is suing Amtrak, saying the railway's errors held up production and cost the company $200 million that it hopes to recoup in court.

Bombardier Corp. filed the lawsuit Thursday in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., claiming that Amtrak disrupted its ability to produce and deliver the Acela Express trains that reach a top speed of 150 mph and operate in the Boston-New York-Washington corridor.

Amtrak has long blamed the consortium building the trains -- Canada's Bombardier Transportation and France's Alstom Ltd. -- for delays in the introduction of Acela Express. So far Amtrak has received 15 of the 20 trains it ordered.

The lawsuit marks the first time either of the builders has explicitly blamed Amtrak for the delays.

"We think they, in their actions, are responsible for us having to incur a significant amount of cost," said Peter Stangl, president of Bombardier Corp., the U.S. subsidiary of Bombardier Inc.

Alstom is not a plaintiff in the lawsuit. A spokeswoman for the company referred questions back to Bombardier.

Amtrak released a statement accusing the company of "attempting to shift the blame for the consortium's mismanagement" of the Acela Express project.

"The consortium's record of failure - including design, subcontractor oversight, production and compliance with 'buy America' requirements - is staggering," the statement said.

Bombardier alleges Amtrak did not sufficiently upgrade tracks in the Northeast in preparation for the new trains, forcing 18 months of additional testing. Bombardier also alleges Amtrak provided inaccurate information about the dimensions of tunnels, track geometry, and electromagnetic interference in the Northeast.

The trains reach their top speed of 150 mph only on a short stretch of track between Boston and New York.

Amtrak says it has reserved the right to claim more than $250 million from the manufacturers for delays, failure to meet contract specifications and inadequate maintenance.

"It appears Bombardier is spinning a story through litigation that doesn't remotely resemble the facts," Amtrak said.

Stangl said the company tried negotiating with Amtrak for 18 months and remains "open to negotiations, binding arbitration, nonlegal ways to resolve this situation."

Amtrak spokesman Bill Schulz said the company went to court without following the specific arbitration process spelled out in the contract.

Under its contract, Amtrak can seek up to $13,500 a day in penalties for delayed delivery of each of the 20 eight-car train sets. Stangl said Amtrak already has imposed some penalties by withholding payments.