Escalators are involved in nearly half of all accidents reported on the Taipei MRT metropolitan railway system, Taipei Rapid Transit Corp said on Saturday, following an incident the evening before in which an escalator changed direction without warning.
At 10:26pm, an escalator bringing passengers up to the ticketing area from the platform at Xinpu Station on the Blue Line changed direction before stopping suddenly.
Four of the escalator’s approximately 30 passengers were injured, including one who was taken to a hospital and later diagnosed with a sprained ankle.
The MRT operator on Saturday apologized for the incident, saying that a preliminary investigation showed a malfunction in the braking system.
The contractor is to retrieve the faulty components for further investigation, while all 100 to 200 escalators of the same type in the MRT system are to be inspected, it added.
There is a strict monthly maintenance schedule for all escalators on the system, the operator said.
Maintenance firm Otis Elevator is responsible for the Xinpu escalator, which was functioning normally when inspected on Monday last week, it said.
BRAKE MALFUNCTION
A malfunction in the braking system is no small matter, as it functions as a safety mechanism that is only activated when danger is detected, it said.
Affected passengers who did not leave their contact information are requested to visit the station’s information counter or contact the MRT service center.
Of the 337 injuries recorded on the MRT in 2020, nearly half involved escalators, the company said.
Common causes included missing a step, unstable balance and overweight luggage, resulting in compensation payouts totaling more than NT$3.72 million (US$130,972) that year, it said.
The worst MRT escalator incident occurred on New Year’s Eve 2004 after the opening of Taipei 101, as a large number of people entered MRT Taipei City Hall Station to return home after the fireworks display.
The extra weight caused an escalator to speed up, injuring five passengers in the resultant pileup.
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