Hong Kong lawmaker urges MTR to install surveillance cameras in tunnels to keep evacuating passengers safe
- Rail operator acted slowly to emergency and did not halt traffic immediately, says lawmaker Ben Chan
- Government evaluates MTR Corp’s fare-adjustment mechanism, which involves providing fare discounts under service disruption
Hong Kong’s rail operator has been urged to install a surveillance system in its tunnels after passengers evacuated a derailed train and walked along tracks while nearby lines were still in use.
Lawmaker Ben Chan Han-pan of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong on Thursday said the MTR Corporation reacted “very slowly” as it did not halt traffic immediately after the incident occurred.
“It was extremely dangerous as passengers walked along the tracks when other trains were still operating, and the situation was not alerted [to staff] by any means,” Chan told a radio programme.
The rail giant on Wednesday apologised for Sunday’s incident, in which two sets of carriage doors ripped off when the train arrived at the platform at Yau Ma Tei station, with hundreds of passengers evacuated, including 150 of them leaving the vehicle from the rear emergency exit.
The railway operator said there was a time gap before the operations control centre managed to halt any traffic inside the tunnel because the train’s alarm system was damaged and the driver was not alerted about the use of the emergency exit ramp.