KUALA LUMPUR – The Kelana Jaya Line LRT Operations Control Centre (OCC) and representatives from the rail system’s original equipment manufacturer Thales Group have been running tests on the suspended commuter service, said Datuk Seri Wee Ka Siong.
In a statement on Facebook, the caretaker transport minister said he has visited the centre to receive a preliminary briefing by Thales’ business development senior representative Hugos Ramod, and project director Vincent Burdin who had arrived from Singapore yesterday.
“Together with the OCC staff, they have been continuously testing the affected system and running simulated movements of the trains at two-and-half-minute intervals and analysing the data logs from the past several days,” he said.
“Another two experts from Thales are currently on the flight from Toronto, Canada and will start work immediately to examine the affected KJL (Kelana Jaya Line).”
Yesterday, Prasarana president and group CEO Mohd Azharuddin Mat Sah said the exact cause of the crisis service disruption, which had left Klang Valley commuters stranded in the past two days, has yet to be pinpointed.
The admission comes after the company’s engineers were unable to diagnose the issue affecting the services’ automated train system (ATC) following several disruptions since Saturday.
This comes after operator RapidRail Sdn Bhd announced a sudden seven-day closure of the 16 LRT stations between Kelana Jaya and Ampang Park, which has left thousands of Klang Valley commuters fuming.
Additionally, to the required major diagnostics, Azharuddin also announced an intervention by Thales to help resolve the situation.
Wee said Prasarana and Thales have been in close communication since Monday, adding that the ministry will monitor the developments closely to ensure it is fully satisfied with the train service’s ability to operate safely without compromise.
“Of course, we want to bring the system up and running much earlier than the seven-day suspension, but it must be done with safety to passengers as the utmost priority,” Wee said.
Wee added that he will hold a press conference tomorrow morning to provide updates on the latest findings of the tests.
Meanwhile, Wee said he had received reports that the total number of buses serving the affected stations has risen to 112, which is a 44% increase in the fleet.
“Prasarana has redeployed its fleet from MRT and received support from Smart Selangor and Maraliner,” he said.
“Thank you for those lending their support…we will continue to monitor the situation to keep the queues and waiting times to a minimum.” – The Vibes, November 10, 2022
