THE Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation is investigating how damage to a new overhead line disrupted its train service for five hours yesterday morning, delaying 100,000 commuters.
The power supply was cut off at 9.45 am between University and Sheung Shui stations for trains travelling in both directions.
Head of operations for the corporation Martin Brown said the automatic power cut was a measure to ensure passenger safety in case of problems with power lines.
About 2,000 passengers were stranded in a southbound train after it came to a halt at the break for 50 minutes between Tai Po Market and University stations before moving on again.
The 600 passengers on a nearby northbound train were transferred to another southbound train after 75 minutes.
The operator will today conduct a system-wide inspection of overhead lines and collect evidence at the scene where a fracture in a three-month-old component caused the delay.