Latest MRT glitch strands passengers in Makati

Yet another glitch hit Metro Manila’s light rail system this week, with the latest incident disrupting operations of the Metro Rail Transit (MRT-3) in Makati City on Saturday morning. A report by radio dzBB’s Allan Gatus said that the incident occurred at 10:12 a.m. at the southbound station of Buendia Extension in Makati City. The report quoted MRT spokesman Hernando Cabrera as saying that the problem involved a lack of electrical power to one of the MRT coaches, causing it to stall. While technicians got the coach running after a few minutes, they advised passengers to get off lest the affected coach stall again. Cabrera said the affected coach was brought to the depot for a maintenance checkup & that MRT operations were back to normal. It was the fifth glitch to hit the Light Rail Transit and MRT systems in Metro Manila this week alone. On Wednesday night, an LRT-1 coach stalled at the Carriedo station, but Cabrera blamed the glitch on "safety protocols" of the coach’s doors. "Pinakuha ko ang CCTV shot ng nangyari. Ang nangyari, nag-activate ang safety protocol ng pintuan ng tren. Ang logic, baka may mahulog na pasahero," Cabrera said in an interview on dzBB radio Thursday. (I reviewed closed-circuit television footage of what happened. Our initial finding was that the safety protocol for the train's door had activated, thereby preventing the train from leaving the station. The logic was that the train would best be prevented from leaving, lest a passenger fall off) He said the train was crowded at the time, noting that the Carriedo Station in Sta. Cruz, Manila is one of the LRT-1's busiest stations. Cabrera theorized that it was possible that some passengers may have leaned on the doors, thereby triggering the safety protocol. Wednesday evening's incident was the second for Wednesday, and the fourth for this week alone. Earlier Wednesday, one of the LRT's coaches broke down at the Carriedo station in Sta. Cruz. While technicians fixed the train, they were advised to bring it to the depot for inspection. Last Monday, four passengers were injured after smoke from a brake pad caused a commotion inside an LRT train near the United Nations Avenue station in Manila. On Tuesday, another glitch hit the LRT-1 in Manila, with one of its coaches stalling in Manila’s downtown Sta. Cruz district Tuesday morning. — AY/TJD, GMA News