*********************
Following is a question by the Hon Michael Tien and a written reply by the Secretary for Transport and Housing, Professor Anthony Cheung Bing-leung, in the Legislative Council today (December 9):
Question:
On the second of last month, a section of the railway tracks on the viaduct near MTR Lai King Station broke and moved sideways, and trains passing through the said section had to slow down while repair works were being carried out. As a result, the overall travelling time for trains running from Central to Tsuen Wan increased by about 10 to 15 minutes. The incident has aroused public concern about the frequent occurrence of MTR incidents (in particular those involving cracks found in tracks). There are views that increased train frequency generates additional loading for the railway system, thus causing frequent railway incidents. It has also been reported that the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL) generally does not take the initiative to disclose incidents concerning cracks found in tracks as long as railway services have not been affected. Even if railway services have been affected by such an incident, MTRCL often announces only that railway services have been affected by a signalling failure. As such, the public can hardly grasp the exact number of incidents concerning cracks found in tracks. Regarding railway services and safety, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether it knows, in respect of each railway line (except for the Disneyland Resort Line, and the same exception applies below), the average patronage and, calculated on the basis of four persons (standing) per square metre, the loading per hour per direction during morning peak hours for critical links last year (set out in a table);
(2) whether it knows the details and progress of MTRCL's work in relation to increasing train frequency of each railway line this year, and the impact of increased train frequency on the loading of the railway system;
(3) whether it knows the respective numbers of incidents of service disruption in each year since 2011 that lasted for more than eight minutes, 30 minutes and one hour on each railway line, and the respective numbers of passengers affected, and set out a breakdown by cause of the incidents in a table;
(4) whether it knows the following details of the incidents referred to in (3) (set out in a table): (i) the dates of occurrence, (ii) the time of occurrence, (iii) the railway lines involved, (iv) the causes of the incidents/investigation outcome, (v) the follow-up actions taken and (vi) the durations of service disruption (minutes);
(5) whether it knows the following details of the incidents concerning cracks found in tracks in each year since 2012 (set out in a table): (i) the dates of occurrence, (ii) the railway lines involved, (iii) the widths of the cracks, (iv) the causes of the incidents/investigation outcome, (v) the follow-up actions taken, (vi) the names of the rail manufacturers, (vii) the number of years for which the tracks had been in use, and (viii) if the incidents were disclosed to the media (and if they were not disclosed, the reasons for not disclosing); and
(6) of the existing mechanism for monitoring the safety of railway services; in each year since 2010, the number of inspections conducted by the staff members of the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department and other government departments on various parts (including tracks, trains, overhead lines and signalling systems, etc) of the railway system, the departments responsible for conducting the inspections, the details of the inspections and the standards adopted?
Reply:
President,
Railways form the backbone of the public transport services of Hong Kong. A safe, reliable and efficient railway operation is therefore of paramount importance. Understanding the very high expectation of the public on MTR service, the Government has been requesting that the MTR Corporation Limited (MTRCL) carry out stringent railway maintenance for the sake of minimising risks of incidents and maintaining a high standard of service quality. The Government has also put in place a stringent regulatory regime to enhance railway safety.
Railways are normally installed in open space and tunnels. Due to natural corrosion and temperature variation, together with repeated stresses resulting from heavy train traffic, development of cracks may occur on metal tracks. Various kinds of regular inspection can undoubtedly reduce the risk of occurrence of rail cracks, but the risk cannot be totally eliminated. This is a common challenge faced by the railway industry worldwide. In general, cracks are formed over a longer period of time. Through regular inspection and maintenance, irregularities or initial cracks can be detected at an early stage so that preventive maintenance or replacement of tracks can be arranged in a timely manner. According to the MTRCL, most of the cracks can be discovered in their early stages of development during daily inspection. The Corporation has also put in place stringent procedures on inspection and maintenance of tracks. Regular inspections include ultrasonic rail testing, visual inspection and dye penetration testing. Visual inspection will be carried out by the MTRCL staff once every three or four days while checking by ultrasonic rail testing vehicles be conducted at intervals of two to six weeks to raise the accuracy and efficiency of the inspections. Besides, the MTRCL will carry out two to three dye penetration testing and hand-held ultrasonic testing per year on the track components of different railway lines. These inspections aim to identify irregularities or rail cracks in their early stages of development so that preventive maintenance or replacement of tracks can be arranged in a timely manner.
At present, the MTRCL will carry out maintenance in respect of any irregularities or cracks detected during inspections at the first opportunity. If cracks are detected during service hours, the maintenance personnel will conduct detailed examination and assessment at the scene, and will arrange temporary repair by fixing the defective tracks with steel plates to ensure safe operation of trains. During temporary repair, railway services need not be suspended normally, but train frequency will be reduced so as to enable the maintenance personnel to fix the problem at the scene. Replacement of defective tracks will be carried out during non-traffic hours at night. The MTRCL will launch a thorough investigation afterwards and have the defective rails examined by laboratories. If train service is disrupted by the incident, the MTRCL will proactively inform passengers through different channels, including the media, the public announcement systems at stations and on trains, and mobile phone apps.
The MTRCL has handled the rail crack incident on Tsuen Wan Line on November 2, 2015 in accordance with the procedures mentioned above. The incident did not affect railway safety. The MTRCL is currently investigating into the incident in conjunction with the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department (EMSD). The investigation results will be announced when the investigation is completed.
My reply to the various parts of the Hon Michael Tien's question is as follows:
(1) All train compartments of the existing MTR heavy rail lines are designed based on the industry standard adopted at the time of the construction of railway lines. The maximum carrying capacity of train compartments is calculated based on accommodating up to six persons (standing) per square metre (ppsm) on average. Apart from the train compartment size, the formulation of the standard has also taken into account the underground operation of the railway services. On ensuring the safety of passengers (including evacuation in case of emergency), the design of railway station structures, platform size, passageways, and throughput of escalators and other facilities should also be taken into account at the same time.
According to the observation in recent years, passengers' travelling behaviour and preferences have changed. Despite the fact that trains are designed based on a passenger density of six ppsm, trains running during the busiest hours on the busiest corridors can only achieve a passenger density of around four ppsm in actual operation. Based on a passenger density of four ppsm, the passenger loading during morning peak for critical links of heavy rail lines ranges from 26% to 104%. Please see Annex 1 for details.
Information on Annex 1 shows that the passenger loading of three railway lines (Tseung Kwan O Line, West Rail Line and East Rail Line) has reached 100% or above. For the Tseung Kwan O Line, MTRCL has introduced a new "2+1" train service arrangement for Tseung Kwan O Line during the morning and evening peak periods since December 8, 2014. Under the arrangement, for every group of three trains departing from North Point Station, the first two trains will head to Po Lam Station while the third train will terminate at LOHAS Park Station. After the implementation of this "2+1" train service arrangement, the loading has decreased from 102% to 91%. As regards the West Rail Line, to complement the commissioning of the Shatin-to-Central Link project (SCL), the existing seven-car trains on the West Rail Line will be replaced by eight-car trains in phases starting from January 2016, thereby increasing the carrying capacity gradually. When all the eight-car trains have been put into service in 2018, the overall carrying capacity of the West Rail Line will be enhanced by about 14%. For the East Rail Line, after the commissioning of the "East-West Corridor" of the SCL, it is estimated that about 20% of the passengers of the East Rail Line from the section between Tai Wai and Kowloon Tong will switch to the "East-West Corridor" of the SCL for onward trips to Kowloon East and Hong Kong Island. This diversion of passengers will help alleviate the loading of the East Rail Line.
The design capacity of a Light Rail Vehicle (LRV) is about 240 passengers per vehicle. As the Light Rail is operating at grade, its infrastructure and station facilities are not as complex as the heavy rail. The carrying capacity of LRVs largely depends on the loading which can be safely carried by the vehicles, instead of being limited by other infrastructure (eg station concourse and escalators) like the heavy rail. Therefore, within the same space, LRVs can carry more passengers than heavy rail trains in terms of design capacity, and a passenger density of eight ppsm can be achieved (higher than the six ppsm of heavy rail as a safety design standard). The actual carrying capacity of LRVs is affected by various factors, including passengers' travelling behaviours. Based on on-site observation, a single-set LRV can carry a maximum of about 200 passengers in actual operation.
The MTRCL advised that the Light Rail adopted an open fare collection system and that there may be LRVs of more than one route calling at the same stop. It is therefore difficult for the Corporation to know which route a passenger will take after he/she purchases a ticket or validates his/her Octopus card at a stop. Under the circumstances, the method used by the heavy rail to calculate passenger loading (viz calculating the actual passenger loading of railway lines for the busiest section of the morning peak hours through gate entry/exit records of passengers) is not applicable in the case of the Light Rail for the accurate calculation of passenger patronage and loading. Currently, the patronage of the Light Rail is obtained through on-site surveys conducted by the MTRCL. Staff of the MTRCL will observe the number of vacant space in a LRV to assess the patronage. According to the on-site observation of the MTRCL, the overall passenger loading during the busiest hour of the morning peak hours for the Light Rail is around 80% in 2014, assuming a carrying capacity of 200 passengers for each LRV.
(2) Since 2012, the MTRCL has added more than 3 300 weekly train trips. As compared with 2014, up to October 2015, 153 and 446 trips per week have been added in the heavy rail and Light Rail network respectively. Details are set out at Annex 2.
If a gap between trains under scheduled train services allows safe running of trains, the MTRCL will try to arrange as far as possible short-haul train trips to run between busy stations to increase the carrying capacity. However, these train trips are not always possible and can only reduce passenger waiting time at some stations.
In the long run, only by upgrading the signalling system can the train trips and carrying capacity be increased substantially, while further enhancing the overall service reliability and efficiency. The MTRCL awarded the contract to replace the signalling systems in March 2015. The new signalling system for six MTR lines (including Tsuen Wan Line, Island Line, Kwun Tong Line, Tseung Kwan O Line, Disneyland Resort Line and Tung Chung Line) and the Airport Express will be commissioned in phases from 2018. Upon the full completion of the upgrading of signalling system in 2026, the overall carrying capacity will be enhanced by about 10%. Among them, the advance works of the upgrading of the Tsuen Wan Line signalling system will commence this month.
Meanwhile, the MTRCL has continuously enhanced repair and maintenance for the railway system. Each year, MTRCL allocates over $6 billion to replace, upgrade and maintain railway assets and infrastructural facilities. Due to proper maintenance, the increase in train frequency has not affected the safety and reliability of train services, as evidenced by the figures on railway service disruptions and incidents in recent years.
(3) and (4) The safety and reliability of MTR service have been maintained at an internationally recognised high standard, as can be demonstrated by the MTR's excellent rankings in the benchmark comparison of the Community of Metros over the years. Since the rail merger in December 2007, there has been a continuous increase in MTR train frequency from an average daily total of around 7 300 trips in 2008 to an average daily total of over 8 100 trips at present. During the same period, the total route length of the MTR network has also increased from 211 kilometres to 220 kilometres.
Despite the increase in train frequency and the expansion of the railway network, the total number of railway service disruptions has remained stable in the past few years. The figures of service disruption incidents of eight minutes or above caused by equipment failure or human factors from 2011 to October 2015 are at Annex 3. Details on service disruption incidents of 31 minutes or above (including the causes of incident, course of events, duration of disruption, investigation results and follow-up action taken) are at Annex 4. As regards details on service disruption incidents between eight to 30 minutes, more time is required to collate the information and it will be submitted to the Council in due course.
As regards the number of passengers affected by the incidents, the MTRCL advised that they had not kept relevant statistics.
(5) Information on rail cracks identified by the MTRCL between 2012 and November 2015 is detailed at Annex 5.
(6) The EMSD is the statutory regulatory authority on railway safety. Pursuant to the Mass Transit Railway Ordinance (Ordinance) (Cap 556) and Mass Transit Railway Regulation (Regulation) (Cap 556A), the EMSD regulates and monitors the safe operation of the MTR system. Major functions of the EMSD include ensuring the adoption of appropriate safety measures by the MTRCL; assessing and vetting new railway projects and major modifications of existing railway facilities; assessing and following up with MTRCL on improvement measures in respect of railway safety; and investigating into railway incidents.
The EMSD adopts a "risk-based approach" in monitoring the safety of the MTR service. The department will step up inspections on the safety-critical components of the railway system, railway equipment with higher safety risks, or facilities with higher rates of failure. Under the Ordinance and the Regulation, the EMSD may enter the railway premises of the MTRCL to conduct inspection for the sake of ensuring railway safety and investigation of railway incidents; and request the MTRCL to submit information or documents.
To ensure that its maintenance work are in line with international standard, the MTRCL has formulated guidelines in respect of the maintenance of different railway components on the basis of the standards recognised by the international railway industry or recommended by railway component manufacturers. In the course of inspection, the EMSD will examine, in particular, whether the MTRCL has strictly adhered to these established guidelines in performing the maintenance work, and will look through the work log of maintenance staff of the MTRCL. Besides, the EMSD will conduct functional tests of various components (particularly safety-critical components) to ensure normal operation.
The figures of inspections on various components of railway systems by the EMSD personnel between 2010 and October 2015 are at Annex 6.
Ends/Wednesday, December 9, 2015
Issued at HKT 17:13
NNNN
