The Taiwan Railways Administration plans to ask Hyundai Rotem to address a “craftsmanship flaw” in doors of EMU900 commuter trains, after they opened on their own several times over the past year, the agency said yesterday.
To replace its aging fleet, the nation’s largest railway operator spent NT$25.3 billion (US$909.09 million at the current exchange rate) on 520 EMU900 carriages from the South Korean rolling stock manufacturer. An EMU900-series train consists of 10 carriages.
Sixteen EMU900 trains have been delivered, of which 15 have been in operation since April last year. The agency is still testing one EMU900 train.
Photo: Chen Hsin-yu, Taipei Times
Problems with the EMU900 trains have been reported in the past 11 months.
On Sunday, three doors of an EMU900, train No. 1235, malfunctioned during operation. On Jan. 1, doors on another EMU900 train were unable to open normally. On Dec. 13 last year, train No. 1292 had malfunctioning carriage doors.
Agency officials said that they were concerned that a manufacturing flaw might only be the tip of the iceberg regarding problems with the model.
The agency said that its preliminary judgement was that the doors might have been installed improperly.
The installations were slanted, it said, adding that when a motor in an anti-pinch device at a door registers a large electrical current, it incorrectly opens the door.
The agency is to meet with Hyundai Rotem this week to discuss a comprehensive adjustment of all EMU900 trains, the agency said, adding that it has yet to fully accept the trains from the manufacturer.
The flaw should be corrected according to terms of the contract, and the manufacturer must correct problems with the trains, the agency said.
SEND A MESSAGE: Sinking the amphibious assault ship, the lead warship of its class, is meant to show China the US Navy is capable of sinking their ships, an analyst said The US and allied navies plan to sink a 40,000-tonne ship at the latest Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise to simulate defeating a Chinese amphibious assault on Taiwan. This year’s RIMPAC — the 29th iteration of the world’s largest naval exercise — involves the US, 28 partners, more than 25,000 personnel, 40 warships, three submarines and more than 150 aircraft operating in and around Hawaii from yesterday to Aug. 1, the US Navy said in a press release. The major components of the event include multidomain warfare exercises in multiship surface engagements, anti-submarine warfare and multi-axis defense of a carrier strike
Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China when traveling in countries with close ties to Beijing, Taiwan Association of University Professors deputy chairman Chen Li-fu (陳俐甫) said on Friday. Chen’s comments came after China on Friday last week announced new judicial guidelines targeting Taiwanese independence advocates. Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Djibouti are among the countries where Taiwanese could risk being extradited to China, he said. The Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday elevated the travel alert for China, Hong Kong and Macau to “orange” after Beijing announced its guidelines to “severely punish Taiwanese independence diehards for splitting the country and inciting secession.” Extradition treaties
A new message broadcast on the Taipei MRT’s Wenhu (Brown) Line urging passengers to yield their seats to those in need, not necessarily elderly people, would be extended to other MRT lines and public transportation in the capital, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said yesterday. Chiang was responding to reporters’ questions on the sidelines of a news conference at Taipei City Hall promoting healthy walking. Several disputes over priority seats on public transportation have recently been reported, sparking debate about who qualifies to sit in them, as most of the cases involved elderly people asking young people to give up their
The airspace around Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport and Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) is to be closed for an hour on July 25 and July 23 respectively, due to the Han Kuang military exercises, the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. The annual exercise is to be held on Taiwan proper and its outlying islands from July 22 to 26. During last year’s exercise, the military conducted anti-aircraft landing drills at the Taoyuan airport for the first time, for which a one-hour no-fly ban was issued. Based on a live-fire bulletin sent out by the Maritime and Port Bureau, the nation’s