A signal failure caused passengers on Bangkok's BTS system to be blocked in carriages when a train en route from Ha Yaek Lat Phrao Station (N9) to Mo Chit (N8) stopped en route for more than 30 minutes.
The Ministry of Railway Transport said it intends to discuss troubleshooting measures with the operator of the BTS system in Bangkok and provide assistance to affected passengers.
The director of the department, Pichet Kunathamarax, said on Saturday that among the measures being considered will be: full refunds to affected passengers and the issuance of train delay certificates for office workers and students so that they can show these certificates at work or school. He also noted that the authorities will study effective evacuation measures and conduct evacuation drills.
The Bangkok Mass Transit System, commonly known as BTS, is operated by Bangkok Mass Transit System Plc under a concession granted by the Bangkok Municipal Government.
Pichet noted that his department also urged all operators of mass transit systems to follow the recommendations set by the national committee for the oversight and management of rail transport systems. He believes that this will reduce the number of train interruptions.
Among the recommendations of the national committee are regular scheduled maintenance, emergency drills, adequate information to passengers in the event of an emergency, and cooperation with other service providers when passengers need to be evacuated between different mass transit systems.
In recent years, Bangkok passengers have repeatedly experienced problems such as BTS trains breaking down or being stopped due to network issues.
Author of the article: Ekaterina Antonova
