Moment-by-Moment Account of Airport Train Striking Truck Trapped on Poris Railway Crossing
A harrowing incident occurred at a level crossing near Poris Station in Tangerang, Banten, on Friday (20 February) morning.
An airport train operating the Jakarta–Soekarno-Hatta International Airport route struck a truck trapped in the middle of the railway tracks. As a result, one set of carriages was derailed and both airport rail and commuter line (KRL) services were temporarily paralysed.
The incident began at approximately 06:00 local time when a trailer truck was crossing the level crossing. Whilst directly on the tracks, the underside of the vehicle reportedly became stuck, leaving the truck unable to move either forwards or backwards.
According to local residents, the truck had been stationary on the crossing for a considerable period. Unfortunately, an airport train was approaching from the Jakarta direction at normal speed.
An eyewitness at the scene, Imam, said the train driver was believed to have been unable to halt the train in time because the distance was already too short.
“The truck was stopped in the middle of the tracks, as if it was stuck. The train came from the Jakarta direction and hit it immediately because it was already too close,” Imam said.
A violent collision was unavoidable. The front of the train sustained considerable damage. Several wheels of the carriages were reported to have come off the rails, causing the train to derail.
The accident site was located not far from Poris Station. Ria, a passenger waiting at Poris Station, explained that events unfolded extremely quickly — the airport train, which does not stop at the station, struck the truck that was stranded on the tracks.
At the time of reporting, the trailer truck had been evacuated from the crossing first. Meanwhile, the process of lifting the derailed carriages back onto the tracks was still ongoing into the afternoon.
A joint team from PT KAI, the police and related agencies was deployed to carry out the evacuation and conduct a thorough inspection of the track condition. The carriages had to be returned to the rails whilst the track infrastructure was checked to ensure travel safety.
As a consequence of the incident, airport train and commuter line services on the affected route were temporarily halted. Passengers heading to Soekarno-Hatta Airport were advised to use alternative modes of transport.
Although the incident caused major disruption to morning transport services, there were no fatalities. Authorities are still investigating the precise cause of the accident, including suspected negligence on the part of the truck driver and safety factors at the level crossing.