The Transport Ministry on Wednesday warned it would punish concessionaires by putting them on a blacklist if more dangerous incidents happen after a wheel fell off a Yellow Line monorail train on Tuesday and hit a taxi.
A wheel fell off the Yellow Line monorail, which operates from Lat Phrao station to Samrong station, and hit a taxi on Thepharak Road in Samut Prakan province on Tuesday. (Photo: Ruamkatanyu Foundation)
A guide wheel fell off one of the trains on Tuesday evening onto the road below, bouncing and then hitting a taxi on Thepharak Road between Thipphawan and Si Thepha stations. The operator on Tuesday night attributed the accident to defective ball bearings.
Transport Minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit on Wednesday told the media that an initial check showed the fallen wheel had been on the right side of the train.
The train was newly procured, yet a maintenance log showed the train is regularly checked. The manufacturer, Alstom, is currently trying to establish the cause of the accident, he said.
The Transport Ministry assures the safety of the Yellow Line monorail system and will proceed with every measure to prevent any repeated incidents.
Deputy Transport Minister Surapong Piyachote said the Yellow Line operator, Eastern Bangkok Monorail Co, was ordered to make thorough safety checks on all trains before they were put back into service on Wednesday.
"It remains uncertain if the wheel fell off because of heat or due to the ball bearings. There must be a thorough examination. I assume the problem also affects other wheels, and this must be checked," Mr Surapong said.
The deputy transport minister said the expected life span of Yellow Line train wheels was about 300,000 hours, and they had been in use for only about 60,000 hours.
He ordered transport officials to work with Eastern Bangkok Monorail to carefully check the safety of every Yellow Line train before they were put back in service on Wednesday. This caused services to be cut back to every 30 minutes instead of the normal 5-10 minutes.
"Today's service intervals are longer… The Transport Ministry must guarantee maximum service safety," Mr Surapong said on Wednesday.
Mr Suriya called EBM representatives in to discuss safety measures on Wednesday afternoon.
The Yellow Line monorail runs between eastern Bangkok and Samut Prakan.
The trains were manufactured in China by CRRC Puzhen Bombardier Transportation Systems, a joint venture of Canada-based Bombardier and CRRC Nanjing Puzhen.