Suvarnabhumi metro line disrupted in the coming months
It continues to struggle with the metro connection between Phaya Thai and Suvarnabhumi airport, the so-called Airport Rail Link (ARL). Passenger numbers have been disappointing since the line came into operation four years ago and trains now also have to be removed from the timetable.
The trains have traveled more than 1,32 million kilometers and that means they are due for a major service. Actually, they should have been put aside in April, but - let's just say - management blunders prevented that. In short: no budget yet, no spare parts, no German experts. The service is now scheduled for the second half of 2015.
The big question now is: are the trains unsafe? "Not necessarily," said Sitthipong Promla, deputy governor of the State Railway of Thailand (SRT), who is in charge of the SRT's maintenance division. All trains are inspected and receive the required maintenance.
A source at the SRT Electrified Train Co, the subsidiary of the SRT that operates the 28-mile (XNUMX km) line, says staff are determined not to continue the service if safety cannot be guaranteed.
Speaking through board member Pakorn Tangjetsakao, the board of directors says that passenger safety is the company's utmost concern. It is expected that the service will be disrupted in the coming months. The company has set up a working group that is responsible for repairs and maintenance work until major maintenance takes place. Pakorn promises that trains that have reached their maximum mileage without being serviced will be removed from service.
(Source: Bangkok Post, Sept. 5, 2014)
For clarity:
The metro line is the MRT. This runs underground. The Skytrain is the BTS. So it runs in the air. And yes, the line to the airport is not a metro. This name is also never used. It is the airport link and is a fast train connection.
Fortunately, most trains are made by Siemens in Germany.
If they had been cheaper Chinese copies , the disasters and downtime would have been incalculable .
Deutsche Grundlichkeit.
It will certainly be fine again, renew brake pads, lubricate and there we go again for a few years.
Just look at how many old Benzies and VWs are still driving around here in Thailand. I still recognize them all from my youth, you rarely come across imported ones from the French and Italians, or only at the scrapyard.
Jan Beute.
Moderator: Comments should be about Thailand.