Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, November 17) — The Metro Rail Transit Line 3 will have shorter operating hours starting Friday, November 17, following another glitch on Thursday.
The MRT will now run from 5:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. instead of its usual 5 to 11 p.m. schedule, authorities said.
The new schedule means shorter operating hours for commuters, but will give the MRT staff more time to perform maintenance and inspection of trains.
This comes after two MRT coaches decoupled during the morning rush hour on Thursday, forcing more than a hundred passengers to get off between the Buendia and Ayala stations. They had to walk on the tracks for 10 minutes to safety.
READ: Passengers walk from Ayala to Buendia stations after MRT train detaches
The link between the MRT coaches broke while the northbound train was headed towards the Buendia station from the Ayala Station.
Authorities are still investigating how the incident happened, and how the two coaches were able to proceed to the next station without the remaining coach.
Normally when a coach detaches, the power will shut off and cause the train to stop, MRT Transport Division Chief Engr. Ric Inotorio said.
“In this incident hindi po nangyari yon, tuloy-tuloy pa rin, may power kaya yung tren na dinadrive ni Mr. ano is nakarating sa buendia pagdating sa buendia doon niya lang napansin na 2 car na lang siya,” said Inotorio.
[Translation: In this incident, the coach didn’t stop running– it still continued because there was power. The driver reached Buendia, he only noticed that there were only two cars when he reached Buendia.
Authorities are looking into three angles for the mishap- electrical, mechanical or human error.
“Ngayong pangyayaring ito wala kaming makitang electrical fault, mechanical fault, yung ano lang na mechanical para maghiwalay yung gear it pertains sa human intervention kasi kami baffled talaga kami,” Rolling stocks specialist Roel Jose said.
[Translation: With this incident, we can’t see any electrical fault, mechanical fault– the only mechanical way for the gear to separate, it pertains to human intervention,. We’re very baffled.]
READ: Transport official: Missing MRT train ‘black box’ a possible sabotage
Following the incident, MRT authorities said they will add rail marshals to police their employees, and especially the MRT riders who usually force their way in and bypass the train’s signaling systems.
Despite the incident, MRT authorities said commuters have nothing to worry about, as it is still safe to ride the MRT.
An estimated 500,000 people ride the MRT train system per day.
