MTR Service Disruptions (港鐵故障)

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政府促港鐵港島綫早上事故交報告
[16:54] 2011/08/03



【on.cc 東方互動 專訊】 港鐵港島綫一列由銅鑼灣開往上環的列車，早上9時因電力系統跳掣，令港島綫天后至金鐘一段列車服務受影響，2班列車逾2,000名乘客需要落車，以駛回車廠檢查，服務於上午9時20分恢復正常。政府表示，港鐵已按機制向運輸署及機電署通報事故，當局已要求港鐵提交報告。

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港鐵3日4事故 涉維修資源減
工會：欠人手減檢查 部分外判損質素
2011年08月04日 星期四
經濟日報





港鐵昨日先後發生上班繁忙時間列車供電系統故障、以及剛完成大修列車電綫起火事故，連同之前兩天的短短3天內，共發生4宗事故，數以萬計乘客受影響。

今年首季港鐵事故數字較去年同期急增4成半，敲響鐵路安全警號。多個港鐵工會透露，港鐵近年不斷削減維修保養資源，人手不足令工作量增，被迫縮減檢查頻率，部分保養工序外判亦影響質素；有工程師認為，加強維修保養可降低事故風險，惟此舉會令成本上升，或引致加價。

涉港島綫 出事列車剛檢查完

昨晨9時，於上周二（26日）剛完成例行檢查的港鐵港島綫銅鑼灣往灣仔列車，其供電系統出現跳掣，導致天后至金鐘共4班西行列車「死火」，服務受阻20分鐘，估計上萬名市民受影響。

稍後於中午12時40分，一列剛完成三年一度大修的舊款東鐵綫列車，於大圍站往羅湖方向月台，因冷氣系統電綫短路冒煙，約500名乘客需下車。

連同上述意外，港鐵過去3日發生了4宗事故，兩事故均發生在上班繁忙時段，令不少市民質疑港鐵的維修保養問題。有港鐵工會人士透露，港鐵近年削減維修資源，前綫維修保養人手不足：「假設新綫需要100名維修員，公司只會聘請約60人，其餘就從現有路綫抽調，變相增加舊綫員工工作量。」

他透露，東涌綫及機場快綫於98年通車時，由40名維修員負責維修保養，但目前僅餘下20多人：「少了3成人手，但工序不減，惟有縮減部分項目檢查頻率，例如訊號系統輔助裝置、開關掣，以及配電設備等等。」

另一名港鐵員工指，港鐵近年大量聘請外判公司負責幕門、電梯及消防系統等維修保養工序，例如將軍澳綫大部分維修工序交由外判商負責，港鐵僅負責技術支援和即時搶修，但外判商質素參差，每2至3年要更換，保養質素難免遜色：「我們（港鐵維修員）出錯要『孭上身』，維修時一定較外判工仔細！」

港鐵：外判維修 符同一標準

按港鐵提交立法會數據顯示，今年首季，港鐵共有86宗事故，較去年同期59宗大升45.8%；據港鐵年報數字，2010年用於保養及相關工程的金額為9.12億元，按年減少300萬元（見另文——「去年保養費9億 議員促加碼」）。

對於被指削減維修保養開支，港鐵發言人沒有正面回應，只表示自營運以來，已聘用外判承辦商，無論維修工作是由外判或公司員工負責，均需符合同一標準及要求，公司有嚴謹制度監察承辦商的表現。

香港工程師學會前會長梁廣灝，認同故障增加與維修保養問題有關，但認為暫不涉及行車安全問題，而天氣炎熱亦會增加事故機會，他坦言系統無可能「零事故」，但加強維修保養可降低事故機會。

立法會交通事務委員會主席鄭家富認為，港鐵大小事故日趨頻繁，反映系統管理出漏洞，要求港府對港鐵設立記分制；委員陳淑莊認為，港鐵應全面檢討維修保養管理，亦要制定應對氣候變遷的維修保養政策。

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東鐵故障累乘客乾煎
2011年09月14日(三)




【本報訊】港鐵故障停不了，更累乘客烈日下「乾煎」！昨午十二時十分，港鐵東鐵線列車發生訊號故障，往來太和站與粉嶺站之間列車需慢駛，車程較平時多約兩分鐘。

影響所及，羅湖站往紅磡方向列車相隔約二十分鐘始開出，大批在內地度假回港市民頭頂逾攝氏三十度高溫，於月台上暴曬乾等，苦候多時始能登車，港鐵職員雖然透過廣播，呼籲乘客耐心等待，但仍惹來乘客埋怨。港鐵發言人表示，經工程人員搶修後，列車服務於十二時三十分陸續恢復正常。

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港鐵故障乘客逼爆月台
2011年11月15日(二)


【本報訊】港鐵又發生事故！香港站昨晨因訊號故障，引致機場快線及東涌線、來往香港站及九龍站的列車停駛，數百乘客逼爆月台，要改乘荃灣線往荔景站，再轉車繼續行程，又派出接駁巴士接載三百乘客往機場趕搭飛機，乘客怨聲載道，列車服務於三十五分鐘後恢復正常。

昨日上午九時五十五分，香港站突發生訊號故障，因機場快線及東涌線使用同一條路軌，令兩線列車同樣不能來往香港站及九龍站，需要停駛。至於九龍站往機場及東涌沿線各站則維持正常服務。

事故期間，香港站月台擠滿數百名乘客，港鐵派出客務快速應變隊到香港站及九龍站協助，又透過廣播通知乘客改乘荃灣線往荔景站，再轉回東涌線繼續行程。與此同時，港鐵派出接駁巴士到香港站，接載要趕搭飛機的旅客前往機場。

工程人員經搶修後，列車服務於上午十時三十分恢復正常，調查後證實是香港站訊號系統有一張電子卡損壞引致事故。

指示不清惹不滿

乘客對事故引致行程受阻表示不滿，其中一名姓韓女乘客指，故障時她滯留在九龍站，但站內指示不清，職員只叫乘客自行安排交通工具，完全沒有提供協助，希望港鐵作出改善。另外，來自廈門的姓周女遊客稱，很多趕乘飛機的旅客需轉乘接駁巴士，她因提早時間往機場，故雖然遲了二十分鐘才到機場，但仍可依時上機。

立法會議員王國興強烈指摘港鐵再發生事故，並指是政府欠缺監管的後果。他說，港鐵有責任維持正常服務，保障市民不受影響，希望不再發生今年七月至九月期間，幾乎每日一事故的情況。根據資料，在該三個月期間，港鐵列車服務延誤八分鐘或以上的事故有八十六宗。

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LCQ3: Contingency arrangements for railway incidents
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Government Press Release

Following is a question by the Hon Mrs Sophie Leung Lau Yau-fun and a reply by the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Ms Eva Cheng, at the Legislative Council meeting today (February 8):

Question:

The data from the Transport Department indicate that railway transport is a vital transport system in Hong Kong with 3.9 million passenger trips per day, which account for about 37% of all trips made on public transport each day. In December 2011, the underground railway in Singapore experienced the most serious disruption in 24 years, which resulted in a suspension of train services for more than five hours and affected hundreds of thousands of passengers. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:

(a) whether it knows if the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL) has a graded mechanism in place to deal with railway disruptions of different types and different levels of seriousness; if it has, of the details of the graded contingency plan; if not, of the details of the contingency plan of MTRCL; under what circumstances the authorities will intervene in handling a railway incident; and

(b) whether the Government has any contingency plan to deal with major incidents occurring in Hong Kong (e.g. power outages, terrorist attacks and natural disasters, etc.) which may paralyse the whole railway system and render it impossible to resume operation within a short time; if it has, of the specific details of its contingency plan (including, within a short time, how to notify the public of the incident, evacuate passengers from the MTR trains and stations, co-ordinate road traffic to deal with a passenger flow of nearly 1 million passenger trips, and ensure that emergency ambulance services are not affected, etc.); if not, whether the relevant government departments and MTRCL will work together as soon as possible to formulate joint contingency measures; whether the Government will step up publicity on the contingency plan for railway incidents, and publish the information to facilitate public perusal?

Reply:

President,

Our reply to the two parts of the question is as follows:

Alert System
------------

With regard to the alert sytem, the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL) is required by the Transport Department (TD) to issue an Amber or Red Alert message to TD and other public transport operators in accordance with the seriousness of the railway incident.

"Amber Alert" is defined as an early warning in respect of an incident which could lead to a serious disruption of service. Upon being alerted, other public transport operators should alert their emergency unit, prepare for possible emergency action at short notice and keep in touch with MTRCL.

"Red Alert" is defined as a signal to indicate that a serious disruption has continued or is expected to continue for over 20 minutes, and emergency transport support services from other public transport operators are required. Upon being alerted, public transport operators should urgently mobilise their resources to provide appropriate supporting services as quickly as possible.

MTRCL is required to notify TD within 8 minutes on any service disruption incident that has occurred for 8 minutes or is expected to last for 8 minutes or more. Train service disruption incidents refer to those incidents that lead to a stoppage of service at a railway station or a stop (in respect of Light Rail), or on a section of a railway line.

Besides, according to the Mass Transit Railway Regulations, MTRCL should report to the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department (EMSD) any incident that occurred at any part of the entire railway premises which has a direct bearing on the safe operation of the railway.

Emergency Transport Coordination Centre of TD
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The Emergency Transport Coordination Centre (ETCC) of TD monitors and handles traffic and public transport incidents 24-hour a day. In the light of the seriousness and the extent of the railway incidents, ETCC will timely notify other public transport service operators, the Police, Fire Services Department (FSD) and other relevant government departments and institutions to co-ordinate and implement emergency plans. TD will also disseminate relevant messages, such as emergency bus service arrangements and updated traffic information to the public through the media and other channels, so as to facilitate passengers identifying appropriate alternative services or changing their journeys to minimise the impact of the incident on them.

Contingency Arrangements for Major Incidents
--------------------------------------------

In case of a major incident, MTRCL will activate the Incident Control Post to deal with the incident together with government departments including FSD, Police and TD in accordance with established procedures of contingency plans so as to expedite safe evacuation of passengers.

In case the power supply to MTRCL is affected, a backup system on board of the trains will be activated to supply electricity to major facilities on trains, including some of the lighting, ventilation and communication systems. Moreover, staff will be swiftly deployed to assist with passenger detrainment.

The power supply system of MTRCL is supported by the Hongkong Electric Company Limited (HEC) and CLP Power Hong Kong Limited (CLP), together with their various power stations and electrical equipment. The transmission system of HEC and CLP are interconnected to enable the provision of emergency support to each other during generator failure. In fact, the power supply network for MTRCL is divided into sections. Any power failure will be confined to the respective section areas. Therefore, the risk factor of complete paralysis of the railway system due to significant power outages is minimal.

In face of an early warning of terrorist attack or a major natural disaster, the government security authorities and TD will, together with MTRCL, implement effective contingency measures as per the established anti-terrorist contingency plan or natural disaster contingency plan. Every year, MTRCL conducts a total of 12 regular drills jointly with different government departments such as the Railway Police District, FSD, TD and EMSD in order to ensure that contingency measures can be implemented smoothly when necessary.

In the event of complete paralysis of the railway system due to unpredictable factors such as terrorist attack, earthquake and tsunami, the Administration will handle the incident as a territory-wide crisis of disaster level.

Specific Contingency Arrangements of MTRCL
------------------------------------------

Specifically, MTRCL has drawn up various contingency measures for all MTR lines and the Light Rail together with TD and the Police in the light of the geographical location and specific environment of all railway lines and stations and different degrees of service disruption that may occur.

Once train service needs to be suspended, MTRCL will ascertain the situation and make assessment on the impact to train service as soon as possible, and disseminate relevant information to the passengers and the media. In particular, for passengers who have yet entered the railway system, MTRCL will request the electronic media to disseminate information on the situation of service disruption and alternative public transport. At the same time, MTRCL will look into the cause of the incident and carry out repair works for early resumption of service.

Drawing on the experiences of past incidents, MTRCL has made continuous improvement and enhancement to its contingency plans and implemented a series of new contingency measures. These include the establishment of a 60-member dedicated Customer Service Rapid Response Unit to provide advice and assistance to passengers, maintain order at affected stations and emergency bus boarding/alighting points, and make timely reports to the Operations Control Centre so as to ensure more effective co-ordination and crowd management with the departments concerned such as the Police.

Dissemination of Information
----------------------------

Regarding dissemination of information to passengers, MTRCL has formulated measures to strengthen its communication with passengers during service suspension with a view to assisting them to make appropriate arrangements. These measures include: (a) broadcasting details of the service situation at stations and in trains; (b) providing alternative public transport information such as franchised bus routes, bus stop locations and emergency bus boarding/alighting points on large information displays installed at stations; and (c) displaying signs from concourse ceilings and at street level to mark routes to emergency bus boarding/alighting points.

Moreover, MTRCL has installed LCD screens at conspicuous locations of station entry gates at 20 interchange stations to provide train service information and other important notices during service suspensions or major disruptions. All stations will have LCD screens installed by the end of 2013.

Emergency Bus
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In addition, MTRCL has devised emergency bus deployment plans for railway incidents and agreements were signed with bus operators for the provision of such services during railway incidents to take affected passengers to the nearest MTR station still under normal operation to continue their journeys.

Since the carrying capacity of emergency buses is far below that of the railway, they could only serve as a support service rather than a replacement of the entire railway service. Therefore, most passengers may have to change to other unaffected MTR lines or alternative public transport services to travel to their destinations.

Management of Passenger Flow
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Experienced staff who have undergone sufficient training and drills are on duty at each MTR station to carry out crowd management, make public announcements, issue station notices and help passengers handle fare matters according to established procedures in times of incidents. The number of station staff will be increased as needed. In addition, MTRCL will deploy staff to monitor and report the street-level situation to Operations Control Centre and Station Control Rooms during incidents, to facilitate more effective co-ordination with relevant departments such as the Police for better crowd management.

Publicity and Public Education
------------------------------

MTRCL understands the concern of passengers and the general public with regard to the contingency measures in case of railway incidents. It is also understood that more relevant information made available to affected passengers during an incident will not only facilitate evacuation, but also enable passengers to make timely adjustment to their journeys and reduce any inconvenience that might be caused.

MTRCL has published the contingency information which is of concern to public and passengers, including the types and locations of alternative road-based public transport services in the vicinity of the MTR stations, as well as the estimated arrival time, locations of and routes to boarding and alighting points of emergency buses on its Rail Service Suspension Passenger Guide (the Guide) tailor-made for each station for distribution. The Guide has also been uploaded to MTRCL's website for easy reference of the general public.

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Misery morning rush hour for MTR travelers
The Standard
Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Thousands of commuters were left fuming during the peak morning travel period, after a signal failure disrupted MTR services between Admiralty and Tsim Sha Tsui for more than an hour.

Starting at 8.30am, services along the Tsuen Wan Line yesterday were reduced to one train every four minutes instead of the usual two to three minutes.

The slowdown resulted in large crowds packing station platforms as well as the trains themselves, with many complaining of poor ventilation inside carriages.

One woman, who boarded at Mei Foo, felt faint and nearly collapsed. She was helped off at Tsim Sha Tsui station by MTR staff and given first aid.

A commuter at Tsim Sha Tsui said he normally waits five minutes at most, but the slowdown doubled this.

Another commuter bemoaned the fact disruptions seem to occur whenever he needs to rush to work, while service is virtually fuss- free during weekends and holidays.

"But what can I do?" he said.

"There's no other option as there's only one train service."

Another passenger complained that it took 45 minutes to travel from Mong Kok to Central, a journey that normally takes 15 minutes.

An MTR Corp spokeswoman said the disruption was caused by a signal fault on the section between Admiralty and Tsim Sha Tsui.

Repairs took more than an hour, with normal train service resuming at 9.50am.

At Tsim Sha Tsui, MTR staff broadcast details of the delays on the LCD screens located outside station gates, and made public announcements to warn passengers of the service disruptions.

The platform at Mong Kok was especially congested as passengers scrambled to board trains, so extra staff had to be deployed to maintain order.

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港鐵繁忙時間幕門故障
2012年02月29日(三)


【本報訊】港鐵荃灣線繼前日發生訊號故障後，佐敦站月台幕門昨晨繁忙時間又出現故障。一列由荃灣開往中環的列車駛入佐敦站月台時，幕門無法開啟，職員立即改為人手操作，港鐵其後通知維修商到場更換故障的幕門組件。

昨晨九時許，一輛開往中環列車抵達佐敦站時，月台玻璃幕門無法開啟。未幾一名車站職員跑向車頭，用人手操作打開幕門，讓乘客上下車，其後數班列車均由人手開啟幕門。其後港鐵通知維修人員到場，更換故障幕門組件後恢復正常。港鐵發言人稱涉事列車受阻僅幾十秒，其餘班次列車服務則不受影響。

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今年港鐵事故
2012年02月28日(二)


02/27 荃灣線尖沙咀至金鐘訊號故障，每班列車延誤三分鐘。

02/20 東鐵線列車在大學站故障熄燈。

01/28 國產列車在觀塘線彩虹站訊號系統有問題，乘客需轉車。

01/27 觀塘線列車在油塘站冒煙，乘客以為火警慌忙疏散。

01/14 觀塘線列車在九龍塘站接收訊號不暢順停駛。

01/11 東鐵線北行列車在九龍塘站三車廂空調系統故障。

01/08 東鐵列車在旺角東站未完全埋站就開門，車長被調職。

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港鐵訊號故障 油麻地至太子車程延長
[16:36] 2012/03/20

【on.cc 東方互動 專訊】 港鐵表示，荃灣線旺角站出現訊號故障，列車出入旺角站時需減速，列車班次雖不受影響，但油麻地至太子站一段的車程會延長約3分鐘。

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機場快線「入錯」南昌站

2012年03月27日(二)

【本報訊】港鐵列車入錯線？一列機場快線列車，昨清晨突然駛入東涌線南昌站，月台逾百候車乘客大感驚嚇，懷疑列車入錯線，擔心會釀成列車追撞災難；不過，港鐵否認列車入錯線，強調是俗稱「波口」的路軌道岔運作不暢順，機場快線列車需「兜路」經東涌線前往香港站，有專家則稱「波口」運作不暢順有機會令列車入錯線。

昨晨約六時，逾百名乘客於東涌線南昌站往香港站的四號月台候車，期間站內突發出廣播稱，列車服務因訊號問題延誤，部分搭客聞訊後一度顯得不耐煩。未幾，一列機場快線列車突然駛入月台，但沒有開門，停了十多秒才開走，由於機鐵一向不會駛入該站，乘客感到十分奇怪，懷疑列車入錯線，擔心會釀成列車追撞事故，乘客潘先生更被眼前景象嚇了一跳，「咁奇怪！仲唔係入錯線」，而東涌線列車服務約八分鐘後回復正常。

服務受阻八分鐘

港鐵發言人稱，事發時車務控制中心發現東涌線荔景站至南昌站的「波口」運作不暢順，立即通知正駛往南昌站的首班車停駛，並且派員搶修，服務受阻七至八分鐘，期間東涌線沿途各站均有廣播，而當時一列正在駛往香港站的空載機場快線列車，獲車務控制中心授權，經由東涌線駛往香港站，並非入錯線。

工程師學會前會長梁廣灝稱，路軌「波口」均為電動，並非由人手操作，估計有維修技工將路軌拆出檢修，惟裝回時未能完善接駁車務控制中心的相關訊號，因而出現運作不暢順，亦有機會因未能轉軌而入錯線。

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西鐵列車傳爆炸聲

2012年03月30日(五)



【本報訊】西鐵一列從屯門駛往紅磡的列車，昨晚駛至美孚站時，車頂突然傳出爆炸聲及冒出白煙，逾百名乘客雞飛狗走衝出車廂，未幾，車頂再傳出另一次爆炸聲，列車需駛返車廠維修。

昨晚九時許，一列西鐵列車從屯門開往紅磡，據乘客周先生稱，列車駛抵美孚站後，車頂傳出「唧唧」聲響，隨即傳出「嘭」聲巨響，並冒出白煙及燒焦味，逾百名乘客聞聲慌忙衝出車外躲避。

此時，港鐵職員發出廣播，聲稱列車發生故障，此時列車再傳出第二次爆炸聲響，冒出的白煙更多，焦味更濃。十分鐘後，列車終駛離月台回廠維修，乘客也返回月台乘搭下一班列車。

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港鐵觀塘線又故障
2012年04月08日(日)


【本報訊】港鐵又發生事故，列車服務受阻。昨晨九時許，港鐵觀塘線九龍灣至牛頭角一段路軌，懷疑有訊號系統故障，由九龍灣往牛頭角方向的列車須減速行駛，幸昨日為公眾假期，未有太多乘客受影響。經搶修後，列車服務於三十五分鐘後恢復正常。港鐵發言人稱，昨晨九時十五分，近牛頭角站一組信號系統疑發生故障，每班列車受阻約一至兩分鐘，經搶修後，至早上九時五十分服務恢復正常。

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港鐵月台壞幕門 服務受阻三小時
2012年04月12日(四)


【本報訊】港鐵柴灣站月台幕門，昨晨發生故障無法開合，列車只能改用另一月台上落客，服務一度受阻延，沿線各站均擠滿候車乘客，三小時後始搶修完畢恢復正常運作，有乘客炮轟港鐵只識加價，「年年加價賺咁多，服務好少少都唔得」。

昨晨六時半，港鐵柴灣站二號月台幕門無法正常開合，列車須改用一號月台埋站上落客，月台助理在場指示市民上車。乘客霍先生指列車離開柴灣站駛往杏花邨途中，一度停車近一分鐘。 杏花邨站、筲箕灣站及西灣河站候車乘客比平日多，幾近逼滿月台。港鐵發言人指工程人員經搶修後，於早上九時五十分恢復正常，期間列車運作暢順。

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灣仔列車故障 玩殘數百乘客
2012年04月13日(五)


【本報訊】港鐵繼前日柴灣站月台幕門無法開合令乘客受阻，昨晨又發生列車制動系統故障，在灣仔站未能開出，數百名乘客需轉車，令服務受阻十五分鐘，大批乘客塞滿車站，有乘客批評港鐵「做唔好，又加價」，對市民不公平。

昨晨八時十五分，港島線一列由上環往柴灣列車，駛入灣仔站一號月台後，車長發現制動系統故障，廣播通知車上數百名乘客下車，由於列車阻礙月台，遂將列車駛往側線停泊，騰出月台讓後至列車埋站。由於正值上班繁忙時間，沿線各車站俱擠滿候車乘客，職員不斷廣播通知乘客服務受阻。港鐵發言人表示，事故令服務受阻十五分鐘，其後陸續恢復正常。

任職售貨員的張小姐（十九歲）稱，故障受阻十分鐘仍可接受，若太久是絕不能原諒。她又指港鐵要求加價，「做好啲亦應該，但做唔好，又要加價，對市民好唔公平」。另姓王（十五歲）女學生表示，港鐵應增聘人手加強維修，「如果連基本嘢都做唔好，就唔好同我講加價。」

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港鐵故障累客險撞門
2012年04月21日(六)


【本報訊】港鐵東涌線又發生故障！昨晨十時，就讀理工大學的歐陽小姐稱，她乘搭港鐵東涌線返學，如常在東涌站月台候車，當列車埋站，月台幕門打開，惟車門緊閉，她因未及收步，險撞向車門。她急忙轉往其他車門上車，發現該車門玻璃貼有「此門停用」告示。及後列車駛到其他車站時，乘客亦有相同遭遇。

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西鐵七小時兩故障
2012年04月30日(一)


港鐵西鐵線昨日七小時內兩度發生故障，分別因訊號不穩及輔助電線鬆脫，導致行車受到影響延誤，幸好是周日假期，事件並無引致混亂。港鐵本年內至今已發生十九宗事故，立法會議員促請港鐵盡快就故障事件提交報告，並建議對港鐵事故設立懲罰機制。市民更指斥港鐵只識加價，但服務水準未見「升呢」。

任職保安員的溫先生稱，昨晨七時許，他在西鐵天水圍站登上向元朗方向的列車後，發覺沿途以「龜速」緩慢行駛，其後更一度停滯不前，由元朗站至荃灣西站平日需時約十五分鐘，但該班列車足足用了約四十分鐘，車速比平日慢近兩倍。期間，發覺無「對頭車」駛過，列車車長雖有廣播發生故障，但無交代起因，令不少乘客鼓譟。溫稱，他遲了半小時才抵南昌站，頓失預算，幸好昨日並非趕着上班，但他不滿港鐵的服務，認為不應隨便加價。

電線鬆脫需單線雙程

至下午二時許，西鐵職員發現錦上路站至荃灣西站的隧道內，架空電纜上的一條輔助電線鬆脫，需派員搶修，期間來往兩站間的服務受阻，因需以單線雙程行駛，班次改為十五分鐘一班，約半小時恢復正常。

理工大學機械工程系工程師盧覺強稱，列車的輔助電線用以吊着高壓電纜，列車駛過的震盪，會令固定輔助電線的螺絲鬆脫，輔助電線一旦鬆開，高壓電纜即會下墜，令拖拉列車的吊臂受壓，最終使行車受阻或延誤。輔助電線需要定期檢查，是次電線鬆脫事故反映港鐵人員檢查不足。

港鐵發言人稱，早上近八時，錦上路站至荃灣西站之間，因車站訊號不穩，一列開往紅磡的列車受阻幾分鐘，其餘班次無受影響，不能確定是否因天雨導致事故，事發後，西鐵全線車站已作出故障廣播。

議員促設立懲罰機制

西鐵線對上一宗事故於上月二十九日發生，有列車的車頂在美孚站發生爆炸及冒煙。立法會議員王國興批評港鐵故障接二連三，港鐵應徹查事故起因，對公眾作出交代，及對立法會鐵路事宜小組委員會提交報告，並要披露檢查及維修工序是否交外判工負責。

昨天半日內兩度發生故障，反映港鐵人員未有對機件做好檢查。他又建議應考慮對港鐵事故設立懲罰機制。

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MTR sorry as 900 take a walk
The Standard
Friday, May 04, 2012





MTR chairman Raymond Ch'ien Kuo-fung apologized to around 900 passengers who were forced to walk 100 meters along the track when a train broke down yesterday.

A Hung Hom-bound train stopped at a Mei Foo station platform on the West Rail Line at 8am because of a fault in the train's power system.

It meant an incoming train to Mei Foo station was stuck in a tunnel, forcing the 900 passengers to walk to a nearby platform with the help of MTR staff and firemen.

"I apologize to the affected passengers," Ch'ien said, adding that MTR staff handled the incident "very well." The incident, he said, was "unavoidable" and the important thing is to learn from it to prevent a similar incident from happening again.

The West Rail service was disrupted for nearly two hours, causing long delays.

MTR staff checked the system and found that the Hung Hom-bound train had a power failure. They told commuters about the disruption through the public address system.

Trains between Tuen Mun and Tsuen Wan West, and between Nam Cheong and Hung Hom, were reduced to 10-minute intervals since the stalled train interfered with both routes. The trains generally run every three to four minutes at peak hours.

Due to the incident, thousands of passengers were stranded at stations on the West Rail Line.

At Kam Sheung Road station, the platform was crowded with people going to work. Most of the commuters criticized the MTR, saying it took too long to alert the public.

Federation of Trade Unions lawmaker Wong Kwok-hing was one of the stranded passengers. Wong boarded a train at Siu Hong station and it reached Tsuen Wan West at 9.30am. As a result, Wong failed to arrive at a Legislative Council meeting on time.

Some commuters criticized the MTR for failing to arrange feeder buses. It provided buses for passengers only between Nam Cheong and Tsuen Wan West.

The Transport Bureau expressed concern about the incident and urged the operator to submit a report in three days.

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Power cut hits MTR early birds
The Standard
Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Thousands of commuters on three MTR main lines were thrown off their schedules yesterday when a power failure hit the signaling system, forcing trains to slow.

The service disruption on the Tsuen Wan, Kwun Tong and Island lines happened just after 6.30am when early birds were on their way to work. Repairs took nearly four hours, with normal services resuming at 9.45am.

An MTR spokesman said "problems of electrical appliances" triggered by power upgrades caused the delays.

Trains moved at a reduced interval - from every two minutes in the rush hours to every 10 minutes.

The spokesman, while emphasizing there was no suspension of services, refused to say how many passengers were affected. But commuters were alerted and additional staff deployed to direct passenger flow.

"I am pretty worried about being late for work," said a man who was stranded at Kowloon Tong station for more than half an hour.

A women complained: "The MTRC keeps raising fares but its services have not improved. Indeed, it is rather frustrating. We are talking about mass public transport. Commuters have little choice but to use this service."

But Lo Kok-keung, a mechanical engineer at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, said the railway system is still reliable and that the slowing of trains in an emergency is a reasonable measure.

"To maintain safety, the MTR has to reduce train frequency as the entire operation is controlled by sectional computer systems rather than the main computer," Lo said.

He said the railway system is incredibly complex and a few problems such as a power failure are unavoidable.

The Transport Bureau asked the operator to submit a report within three days.

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Screen doors blaze sparks MTR chaos
The Standard
Friday, January 25, 2013









Faulty insulation in platform screen doors at North Point MTR station is suspected to have sparked a fire that severely disrupted train services.

Those on the Tseung Kwan O Line were badly hit for nearly three hours.

MTR Corp said a detailed inspection of the doors and their mechanism will be conducted to find out what went wrong.

The incident occurred yesterday at 10.23am on Platform No3 of the station. A passenger alerted staff after seeing smoke at the front end of the platform.

Firefighters extinguished the blaze after 300 passengers in the station were advised to leave.

The station was then closed and trains passing through on the Island Line did not stop.

Services between Tiu Keng Leng and Po Lam and Tiu Keng Leng to LOHAS Park stations operated at reduced intervals of five minutes and 10 minutes, respectively. Services returned to normal at 1pm.

After the fire, the screen doors were kept open. MTR staff were on hand to ensure the safety of passengers, and trains reduced their speed when approaching the platform.

Francis Li Shing-kee, head of operations, said inspections will be carried out to check similar equipment on the Tseung Kwan O Line.

"After initial investigations, we believe the incident was due to a short circuit in the supporting frame for one set of platform screen doors," Li said.

He said it was an isolated case and that the screen doors have been in use since the Tseung Kwan O line was commissioned in 2002.

"The doors had th
eir annual check last October while a three-month examination was also carried out earlier this month."

Li said shuttle buses were not arranged for affected passengers because there were other means of transport to cross the harbor.

A Fire Services Department spokesman said firefighters arrived five minutes after receiving the call and found smoke and a small fire at the supporting structure above a pair of screen doors.

The service deployed 43 firefighters, eight trucks and one ambulance to North Point, to evacuate passengers in the station.

A male passenger said they only knew they could not cross the harbor after they arrived at Yau Tong.

"The staff asked us to take the line to Admiralty station in order to transfer to the Island Line," he said.

Lo Kwok-keung, professor of mechanical engineering at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, suspects the chaos was due to aging screen doors. "The incident is a warning for the MTR," he said. "Ten years is about time for them to replace the system."

Meanwhile, Chinese University of Hong Kong Faculty of Engineering professor William Wong Kam-fai said: "The system may not have been installed or fixed properly."

Wong added the fire was a rare occurrence. "Regular checking is a must in order to lower the risk of this type of incident."

Legislative Council transport panel deputy chairman Gary Fan Kwok-wai of the Neo Democrats said: "The MTR should review its contingency plan on shuttle buses to cover the routes, including those crossing the harbor."