Minister of Transport Dipuo Peters‚ has called for railway authorities to expedite the testing of a faulty signalling system that has been blamed for a train accident in Johannesburg on Friday which left more than 230 people injured.
The accident between two Metrorail trains occurred during the evening peak period between Booysens and Crown stations.
According to the Railway Safety Regulator‚ which conducted an independent investigation into the cause of the accident‚ one of the trains was stationery at a red signal just before Crown Station at the time of the collision.
The second train departed from Booysens Station. The signals were yellow for the second train‚ which indicated that it should proceed with caution as the subsequent signal would be red.
“During the investigation‚ the RSR discovered that the stationary train was not amply protected due to a defective signalling system. The signals which were supposed to protect train 9934 (the one travelling from Booysens) were observed to be yellow‚ when instead‚ it should have been red. This resulted in the rear-end collision between the two trains‚ where 239 people were injured‚” the regulator said in a statement.
All the injured were referred to the nearest hospitals for medical attention. Some‚ including the driver of the second train‚ have already been discharged. The collision also resulted in the derailment of some of the coaches‚ as well as minor damage to infrastructure‚ RSR said.
“The RSR is of the view that the defective signalling system in the section between Kazerne and New Canada Stations is an immediate threat to safe railway operations. The RSR has therefore taken the decision to issue a Prohibition Directive with immediate effect on the utilisation of the signalling system as a primary mode of train protection.
In a statement‚ transport minister Dipuo Peters‚ called on the regulator and the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) to expedite the testing of the signalling system between Johannesburg and Naledi as well as between Booysens and New Canada.
She added that both PRASA and the RSR had assured the minister that the entire operation would be concluded on Sunday afternoon.
“Should the signal testing operations take longer than anticipated‚ both PRASA and RSR should efficiency and effectively communicate any contingency plans to the affected communities through the mass media and Metro Rail communication channels‚” the transport ministry said.
Peters said the government remained committed to providing a reliable‚ safe and cost effective rail service to the people of South Africa.
Minister calls for speedy testing of rail signalling system in wake of crash
Minister of Transport Dipuo Peters‚ has called for railway authorities to expedite the testing of a faulty signalling system that has been blamed for a train accident in Johannesburg on Friday which left more than 230 people injured.
The accident between two Metrorail trains occurred during the evening peak period between Booysens and Crown stations.
According to the Railway Safety Regulator‚ which conducted an independent investigation into the cause of the accident‚ one of the trains was stationery at a red signal just before Crown Station at the time of the collision.
The second train departed from Booysens Station. The signals were yellow for the second train‚ which indicated that it should proceed with caution as the subsequent signal would be red.
“During the investigation‚ the RSR discovered that the stationary train was not amply protected due to a defective signalling system. The signals which were supposed to protect train 9934 (the one travelling from Booysens) were observed to be yellow‚ when instead‚ it should have been red. This resulted in the rear-end collision between the two trains‚ where 239 people were injured‚” the regulator said in a statement.
All the injured were referred to the nearest hospitals for medical attention. Some‚ including the driver of the second train‚ have already been discharged. The collision also resulted in the derailment of some of the coaches‚ as well as minor damage to infrastructure‚ RSR said.
“The RSR is of the view that the defective signalling system in the section between Kazerne and New Canada Stations is an immediate threat to safe railway operations. The RSR has therefore taken the decision to issue a Prohibition Directive with immediate effect on the utilisation of the signalling system as a primary mode of train protection.
In a statement‚ transport minister Dipuo Peters‚ called on the regulator and the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) to expedite the testing of the signalling system between Johannesburg and Naledi as well as between Booysens and New Canada.
She added that both PRASA and the RSR had assured the minister that the entire operation would be concluded on Sunday afternoon.
“Should the signal testing operations take longer than anticipated‚ both PRASA and RSR should efficiency and effectively communicate any contingency plans to the affected communities through the mass media and Metro Rail communication channels‚” the transport ministry said.
Peters said the government remained committed to providing a reliable‚ safe and cost effective rail service to the people of South Africa.
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