Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp (THSRC) yesterday said it is considering investing more than NT$200 billion (US$6.36 billion) to upgrade the high-speed rail system, following a signaling malfunction that caused major delays on May 25.
In a briefing to the legislature’s Transportation Committee, the high-speed rail operator told lawmakers the signal abnormality was caused by a power module malfunction in switch machine controllers (SMC) installed in the Miaoli section of the railway.
Thirty-four train services were canceled due to the incident, while 113 services were delayed for more than five minutes.
Photo: Wu Liang-yi, Taipei Times
The incident disrupted trips for 114,908 travelers, 66,161 of whom qualified for a refund, the company said, adding that the amount to be refunded exceeds NT$35.25 million.
The abnormality occurred after the company completed the installation of 371 of 458 SMC power modules across the system, the company said.
An investigation of the incident is being conducted by THSRC, the manufacturer of the SMCs and experts from the Railway Technical Research and Certification Center, and the Railway Technology Center of National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology.
Before the incident’s root cause is identified, the company said it has suspended the replacement of remaining SMC power modules. Eight power modules were uninstalled because of the incident, and have been sealed and stored, it said, adding that they are being closely monitored by surveillance cameras.
Despite the incident, the company said it maintained partial operations by dispatching three trains per hour in each direction, transporting about 90 percent of its daily passengers.
THSRC chairman Shih Che (史哲) said the incident has prompted the company to strengthen system maintenance and emergency response mechanisms in three phases.
“In the short term, the company is to work with the power module manufacturer and an independent third party to identify the incident’s root cause and prevent it from happening again,” Shih said.
As a medium-term objective, the company would reinforce nighttime maintenance and emergency response measures, he said.
“As the maintenance crew only have four-and-a-half hours to maintain the system, they would be asked to stand by near fencing areas or alongside the railway when the task involves crucial parts of the system. They would enter the work area immediately when they get the instruction from the operation control center,” he added.
Designated time lines for key maintenance operations would be established to assess real-time work progress and equipment conditions, and to take appropriate actions, with the top priority being that upcoming services are not affected, Shih said.
Meanwhile, the company would use big data analysis to deliver various emergency response plans, he said, adding that this would shorten decisionmaking time and reduce the impact on the system.
When an emergency occurs, the company would provide estimated arrival times for trains in operation and keep passengers informed, he added.
In the long term, the company would comprehensively examine various parts of the system, including signaling, power supply, rolling stock and track systems, Shih said.
Although asset service lifespan is 35 years, the system has already been in use for more than 20 years, he said.
“To ensure that the system continues to function stably and reliably, we are evaluating capital expenditure of more than NT$200 billion to upgrade crucial equipment earlier than scheduled,” he added.
The company also briefed lawmakers on an analysis of other recent incidents.
Among the incidents attributable to the company last year, only three caused delays of more than 30 minutes, with the percentage lower than Japan’s Shinkansen.
While there was an increase in abnormalities last year, a majority of them were caused by natural disasters, the company said.
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