Nine officials quizzed over runaway train<\/p>\n
Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung<\/p>\n
State-owned railway company PT KAI said on Tuesday nine employees
\nwere being questioned in relation to a recent accident involving
\na train that rolled without a driver for up to 50 kilometers into
\nthe center of the capital.<\/p>\n
KAI spokesman Patria Supriyoso said the employees from the
\nrailway stations in Bogor, West Java, and Pasar Minggu and
\nManggarai, Jakarta, had been questioned since Monday by the
\ncompany's investigative team.<\/p>\n
A preliminary investigation showed that the nine suspects were
\nreckless while on duty during the accident.<\/p>\n
"An investigation into the case has concluded that a parking
\nblock was not installed properly," Patria told a news conference
\nat his office in Bandung, West Java.<\/p>\n
"The employees failed to activate the parking block system,
\nmaking it easier for the train to start moving once the tracks
\nwere vibrated by the passing of other trains," he added.<\/p>\n
He declined to disclose the names of the nine officials.<\/p>\n
The accident took place last Friday when the driverless,
\neight-carriage train rolled from its parking spot at Bogor
\nstation to Manggarai station at a speed of about 60 kilometers
\nper hour.<\/p>\n
The train stopped only after it encountered a rising gradient
\nin Cikini, Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
KAI staffer Jayadi, who was on duty at Bogor station's first
\nsignal box, was the first person to realize that the train was
\nrolling without a driver.<\/p>\n
He immediately reported the case to his superior at the same
\nstation, according to Patria.<\/p>\n
No fatalities or injuries were reported after the train's
\ndriverless journey.<\/p>\n
However, a KAI employee, Rahmat Hidayat, jumped into the train
\nwhen it started to roll, but was unable to activate an emergency
\nbrake to stop it.<\/p>\n
Rahmat later alerted all staff members at railway stations
\nbetween Bogor and Jakarta to clear the tracks while the
\ndriverless train continued.<\/p>\n
Patria said his company would discipline the employees blamed
\nfor failing to park the train properly.<\/p>\n
They could face administrative sanctions, as stipulated in
\nGovernment Regulation No. 30\/1980 on civil servants, he said.<\/p>\n
Patria conceded the recent incident was not the first of its
\nkind. In 1967, a driverless train moved from its parking spot in
\nBandung station to the West Java town, Cicalengka.<\/p>\n
A student from Bandung-based Parahiyangan University, who was
\ncrossing the intersection on Jl. Merdeka, was killed after being
\nhit by the train, he added.<\/p>\n
The country's railways are in a chronic state, with frequent
\nderailments and other, more deadly accidents. Passengers
\nfrequently cling to the sides of packed carriages or perch on the
\nroofs.<\/p>\n
During the recent Idul Fitri holidays alone, three trains
\nderailed on Java's north coast railroad on three consecutive
\ndays. No casualties were reported, however.<\/p>\n
KAI management has blamed aging trains and tracks, as well as
\nother infrastructure of the company, as the cause of the frequent
\naccidents.<\/p>",
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