MTR tackles faults with $2b package
Measures include an improved signal system and devices to detect power glitches
The MTR Corporation yesterday unveiled a 20-measure, $2 billion-a-year improvement package to minimise technical failures that have recently plagued the railway.
The plan was announced by deputy operations director Andrew McCusker, just hours after a five-minute MTR delay caused by a fault in the doors of a train on the Kwun Tong line.
The improvements, drawn up by a recently formed taskforce chaired by Mr McCusker, include the provision of equipment to give early warning of power leakages, an additional 1,000 switches in the signalling system and improved train door seals.
Mr McCusker said 'dielectric testers', devices commonly used in the power supply industry, would be used to inspect the high-voltage cables on trains to detect the smallest power leakage. 'Being able to detect potential problems at an earlier stage will help to prevent incidents like the one on October 13, when a faulty cable on a train near Quarry Bay station caused one of the train's circuit breakers to trip, making a loud noise and frightening some passengers, even though their safety was never at risk,' he said.
Some testers were already in use, and installation would be completed at all depots by the end of this month.
Mr McCusker said the cause of the failure of train doors to close at Choi Hung at 8.53am yesterday - forcing hundreds of Tiu Keng Leng-bound passengers to change trains - was still being investigated.
But he said new rubber seals would better detect objects blocking doors.
The 'more robust signalling' switches were expected to improve reliability. Other measures included rapid deployment of staff at stations during service disruptions and efforts to improve communication with passengers in the event of a problem.
The measures are being put in place ahead of recommendations by British-based rail expert, Lloyd's Register Rail, which has already started a review of the train service's vital systems.
The MTR Corporation yesterday reported a monthly average of 26 delays in excess of five minutes in the first 10 months of this year - an improvement of 18 per cent, or about five delays, over the same period last year, Mr McCusker noted.
More than 1,000 passengers had to get off a KCR train at 8.45am at Fo Tan Station after smoke was seen in one of the carriages as the Kowloon-bound train pulled into the station. The KCR Corporation claimed that no delay was caused by the incident, and the passengers simply boarded another train.
The Light Rail Transit system suffered a five-minute delay caused by a faulty track-direction changer at Tin Yat Station at 1.12pm.
