KUALA LUMPUR: Services on the affected section of the Ampang and Sri Petaling LRT lines are expected to resume by June 3 following a derailment near Chan Sow Lin station as authorities work to complete repairs and determine the cause of the incident.
Transport Minister Anthony Loke said repair works are expected to take between three and five days once the derailed train is removed from the tracks.
“We anticipate the track will be operational again by Wednesday, June 3, after the long weekend,” he told reporters after inspecting the site yesterday.
During the recovery period, commuters travelling between Ampang and Sentul Timur will face temporary service adjustments, with train frequencies extended to between six and eight minutes.
Passengers may also need to switch trains at designated stations, resulting in longer travel times.
Loke also announced the formation of a special task force, independent of Prasarana Malaysia Bhd, to investigate the derailment.
The investigation report is expected to be completed within 30 days before being submitted to the Cabinet and made public.
Led by Air Accident Investigation Bureau chief inspector Brig-Jen Tan Chee Kee, the task force will determine whether the incident was caused by human error, a system malfunction or technical failure.
Separately, the Land Public Transport Agency will open an investigation paper under the Land Public Transport Act 2010.
Loke stressed that it was still too early to draw conclusions or assign blame.
The minister also said he would take full responsibility for the incident and ensure appropriate action is taken once investigations are completed.
Although no injuries were reported, Loke described the derailment as a serious incident that could have resulted in a major disaster.
“We are fortunate that the train had just started moving and had not reached maximum speed when the derailment occurred during a track-switching process outside the station,” he added.
Preliminary findings point to a possible fault in the track-switching system, where the first carriage remained on the correct track while the following carriages were diverted onto a different route.
According to Loke, the rear carriages then pulled the front carriage off course, causing the first two coaches of the six-car train to derail.
He added that a thorough investigation was necessary to determine if the switching system had functioned properly.
Loke said he would also discuss with Prasarana the possibility of carrying out a broader audit of rail systems under its management, including the LRT and MRT.
The derailment occurred in the early hours of Thursday while the train was passing through a track-switch area.
Rapid KL said 25 passengers were on board at the time and all were safely evacuated without injuries.
