Safety first: Secretary for the Environment, Transport & Works Dr Sarah Liao has ordered the KCRC to review its operations.

The Environment, Transport & Works Bureau has reprimanded the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation for not immediately notifying the Government when it found problems with its East Rail trains.

Secretary for the Environment, Transport & Works Dr Sarah Liao said today she has ordered the KCRC to inspect all its trains, and did not rule out stopping services if there are safety doubts.

Passenger safety is the prime concern, she said, while inconvenience to commuters will also be taken into account.

She said as there is no immediate danger to passengers, train services will run as normal. A contingency plan is in place giving commuters alternative transport should services be stopped.

The KCRC chairman has been told to conduct repairs immediately and find the cause of the problem.

KCRC to review operations

Dr Liao ordered the chairman to review the corporation's operations, including its management and overall system, and submit a report.

KCRC Chairman Michael Tien said he accepts responsibility for the corporation's poor judgement in not sharing the information with the public in a timely matter.

He said there was no cover-up, adding it planned to disclose the problems when it had more details and had tried its best to ensure the safe running of services.

The bureau issued a statement last night condemning the corporation for mishandling the case. It warned the KCRC should promptly notify the Government of any problem or incident in future.

The KCRC yesterday presented to its managing board the possible need to strengthen the mounts that hold equipment underneath East Rail trains.

Expert inspection

The corporation verbally notified the Railway Inspectorate on December 21 that at Fo Tan Station, a driver found the compressor mounted beneath the train was loose and passengers were moved to another train.

The bureau said since then, it had not received any other report of similar problems.

On January 10, the KCRC informed the inspectorate the equipment mounts located underneath other East Rail trains might similarly need to be strengthened.

The bureau has formed an expert team, comprising the railway inspectorate and relevant departments, to inspect the East Rail trains concerned.

The bureau said the KCRC has implemented measures to strengthen the mounting of equipment under the trains. The manufacturer and local independent experts have verified this.

Mitigation measures

The KCRC said since December 23 it has:

* commissioned an independent laboratory to investigate the root cause of the compressor cracked welding issue;

* performed fleet-wise testing on major underframe equipment;

* conducted tests and visual inspections for major underframe equipment every 48 hours; and,

* added nylon belts to reinforce all major underframe equipment and inspected their integrity every 48 hours.

As the addition of nylon belts is a temporary measure, metal cradles will be added by January 26.

The KCRC has also commissioned an independent panel to review the mitigation measures, comprising former Institute of Engineers chairman Edmund Leung, two Polytechnic University professors, plus another from the University of Hong Kong, and an engineering consultant.

The KCRC will probe into the root cause of the problem jointly with the independent review panel and the manufacturer.

No immediate danger

Experts said these measures will minimise the mounting problem and ensure safe services.

The bureau said its initial assessment concurred with the experts, adding there is no immediate danger to passengers.

The bureau ordered the KCRC enhance maintenance, review the condition of trains and its railway maintenance regime, and submit a report as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, the Subcommittee on Matters Relating to Railways of the Legislative Council Panel on Transport will also conduct a site visit to the KCRC Fo Tan depot on January 17.