Bangkok, The Consumer Council recommends that the private sector inspect the installation of all new “Pink Line – Yellow Line” monorail systems. It is expected that the accidents that occurred may have come from problems with incomplete system installation.
From the accident problem of 2 Monorail electric train lines, including the Pink Line electric train. and the Yellow Line Which was open for use only for a short time, but encountered problems with electric rail cars coming loose and wheels falling off, affecting the safety of consumers.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Charlie Charoenlaphonpparat Subcommittee on Transportation and Vehicles, Consumer Council, said that from searching information abroad, there were no accidents on monorail electric trains, wheels falling off, or electrical system rails falling. This type of accident has just been discovered for the first time in Thailand. It is believed that this may be due to a problem with the staff’s expertise in installing the system. This is because both the Yellow
Line and the Pink Line are considered monorail trains. The first procession of Thailand Therefore, it is proposed that the company find the cause and inspect the safety of the entire system to see if there are any safety problems from the installation of the system or not.
‘I think the problem is not maintenance. It is likely that the system installation may not be good enough. Since it has been open for a short period of time, it has already encountered 2 problems, both the yellow line and the pink line. Therefore, it is proposed that the installation company inspect the entire installation to see if there are any other problems or not. If it is found that there are many security risks, the service should be stopped in order to adjust the installation system to be safer. More passengers,’ said Assoc. Prof. Dr. Charlie.
In this regard, the inspection of the installation system must be strict regarding safety at every point. Due to the installation of the monorail It is different from the Heavy Rail electric
train system which provides service on the Green Line, Blue Line, and Purple Line because the Heavy Rail system is designed so that the electric train tracks and all electrical systems are placed on concrete blocks.
Meanwhile, the monorail system is a straddle monorail with a single concrete track. This causes the wheels and electric rail systems to use bolts to hold them on the outside, not placed on concrete beams. Therefore, the installation system along both train lines must be inspected to see if it is installed safely and according to standards or not, especially in places where there is a bolt system that is attached to concrete bars.
‘The monorail system is a system that has a single concrete track and wheels or rails attached to the outside, causing it to fall off and fall to the ground when there is a problem. In some foreign countries, at some risky points, they have made a support grid so that if there is a problem, there won’t be one. What fell on the road? Therefore, I would like to propose th
e construction of support grids in safety-risk areas to prevent anything from falling onto the road surface,’ said Assoc. Prof. Dr. Charlie.
In this regard, regarding the incident that occurred, Eastern Bangkok Monorail Company Limited or EBM, the concessionaire for the MRT Yellow Line project, Lat Phrao – Samrong section, has come out to explain that Upon initial investigation, it was found that the bearing socket of the guide wheel was damaged, causing the wheel to fall off. The MRT Yellow Line train that was involved in the incident was a new train which is inspected and maintained on a regular basis. And now we are investigating the support wheel set that came out. To further investigate and find the cause in detail.
As for the Pink Line accident, Northern Bangkok Monorail Co., Ltd. (NBM), the concessionaire for the Pink Line project, Khae Rai – Min Buri section (currently in the process of testing the train), issued a document explaining the case of the electricity supply rail ( Conductor Rail) fell of
f and fell to the road surface. and electrical wires in front of the irrigation market were damaged. The cause of the incident is currently being investigated.
Source: Thai News Agency