LRT-Failure

Rapid Rail has apologised to commuters for the inconvenience caused by two incidents of brake-related failures on the Kelana Jaya LRT line yesterday. The first incident involved faulty brakes on a four-car Gombak-bound train at Setiawangsa station at 8.19 am, disrupting services for nearly half an hour. The line finally resumed operating at around 8.45 am.

The second also involved another Gombak-bound train near Universiti station, with the disruption occuring at 12.18 pm. This time however, the implications of the problem were far more serious – a fire broke out on the train as a result of this failure, forcing the KJ line to halt services until 12.35, when line operation was switched to an alternate track.

A total of 53 passengers were on the train and had already been transferred to a rescue train when the brief fire occurred, Rapid Rail said in a statement. Both fires were put out by Rapid Rail rescue team members, using fire extinguishers in the trains.

The company said it had been aware of problems with the brakes from early this year and had brought this to the attention of train manufacturer Bombardier and brake manufacturer Knorr Brake Company, which have acknowledged that there is a design issue with the brakes.

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Rapid Rail said that until Bombardier and Knorr Brake Company can come out with a permanent solution, it is replacing the brake seals in the calipers of its 35 four-car train fleet as a containment measure. As of now, some 40% of the 560 units of brake calipers have been fitted with new brake seals.

The company said that the brake-related issue has resulted in lower number of serviceable trains in a number of occasions over the last few months, and added that it had been conducting special checks on the brake systems of trains running on the KJ line to ensure the safety of the passengers was not compromised.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak has said that he wants a safety audit to be carried out on LRT services following the two incidents, The Star reports.

"I am thankful that no one was injured in the incidents involving the LRT at the Setiawangsa and Universiti stations. A safety audit must be carried out so that the safety of passengers is always given priority," Najib said in posts on Facebook and Twitter.