MTR Corp given one week to submit report on Sha Tin-Central link safety issues
Hong Kong government tells rail operator that it must also have an expert conduct load tests on affected portion of track
The government has ordered rail operator MTR Corporation to submit a report within one week to explain safety concerns over Hong Kong’s most expensive railway after a subcontractor was found to have cut corners on a key part of the project.
The rail giant was also requested on Thursday to promptly arrange for an independent expert to conduct load testing at the Hung Hom station platforms for the Sha Tin-Central link and submit the report to the Highways Department.
The move came as project overseer MTR Corp, in response to media reports, admitted on Wednesday that a subcontractor had produced substandard work for the platform in September 2015, with staff cutting steel bars to make it seem as if they had been screwed correctly into couplers. The rail operator claimed the fault was eventually rectified.
The error happened on the floor of one of two new underground levels being built beneath Hung Hom Station to house four platforms on the under-construction Tuen Mun to Ma On Shan rail corridor, known as the Tuen Ma Line, as part of the larger link.
Leighton Contractors (Asia) was the main contractor for building the platforms. Under a HK$5.2 billion (US$662.7 million) contract in March 2013, Leighton is responsible for the construction of Hung Hom Station and stabling sidings for the Sha Tin-Central link project.