Drivers, train personnel face raps over MRT mishap

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Transportation and Communication (DOTC) will file an administrative case against the driver of the Metro Rail Transit 3 train that overshot railway tracks in Pasay City last week.

Transportation Secretary Jun Abaya said the driver of the assisting train and two control center personnel on duty during the incident at the Taft Station will also face administrative charges.

Abaya said the four individuals will be charged for gross neglect and inefficiency in the performance of their official functions and for violating office rules and regulations.

Once the report on the incident has been finalized, it will be forwarded to the DOTC legal division, which will take over the administrative case, Abaya said.

According to the findings of a DOTC investigation, human error caused the accident that injured more than 30 people.

Citing findings from the investigation, Abaya said standard operating procedure was not followed in handling distressed trains including the proper railway coupling.

He explained that based on the office order, the distressed train should have been pulled back to the nearest station—Magallanes—for passenger evacuation.

The assisting train that pushed the distressed train to the Taft Station also ran at 40 kilometers per hour, exceeding the procedural speed limit of 15 kilometers per hour, Abaya said.

There was also poor coordination and reporting procedure between the train drivers and the control center, the investigation found out.

Abaya accused the two control center personnel of "vague appreciation" of the situation as they failed even to note the location of the distressed train. - Louis Bacani