Bus sent for inspection
The Star (17 Oct 2007)
By CHRISTINA CHIN
PENANG: Puspakom and the manufacturer of the Rapid Penang buses will submit their reports “very soon” on the emergency exit door of a bus that threw open leading to the death of a passenger.
On Saturday morning, passenger Ng Siam Kiang, 35, fell to her death after being flung out of the bus near the Jalan Air Itam bus station.
Puspakom (Teluk Kumbar) branch head Tan Wai Fu said the vehicle was sent to the branch for inspection yesterday.
“We will need only about an hour to check the bus because everything is computerised. A report will be handed over to the police by Thursday at the latest.
“In my 20 years of service in the state Road Transport Department (JPJ) and Puspakom, I have never heard of such an incident.
Safety precautions:Dr Teng(left)and Rapid Penang board member Ong Thean Lye reminding passengers to hold on to the handrails when travelling in buses.
“It is usually very difficult to get the emergency exit door to open. Even emergency exit doors on buses that are two decades old do not open easily,” he told a press conference at the Rapid Penang office on Lorong Kulit yesterday.
Rapid Penang chief executive officer Azhar Ahmad said the company was “satisfied” that all its buses had the necessary safety measures in place.
“Every morning, the drivers would conduct checks on their vehicles according to a list of 10 safety features. If something is wrong, the bus will be sent to the workshop imme-diately.
“We have taken a look at Saturday’s checklist and are satisfied that the driver had been thorough and was not at fault.
“A witness has also come forward to say that Ng was not holding on to the handrails when the accident occurred. We hope that the media can help educate the public on the importance of adhering to the various safety measures when riding on a bus,” he said, adding that DRB Hicom Deftech, the manufacturer of the new Rapid Penang buses, was also in town to check the buses.
“We expect a report from them very soon. This is a very unfortunate accident but it has not deterred the public from riding on Rapid Penang. In fact, our daily passenger load has exceeded 40,000 during the first three days of Hari Raya. .
“Since we started operations in August, our passenger load has increased by 100%,” he said.
State Local Government Committee chair-man Datuk Dr Teng Hock Nan said he was “satisfied” with Rapid Penang’s “proactive” action of placing orange plastic cones near the buses’ emergency exit doors to warn commuters against leaning there.
Later, DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng’s political secretary Ng Wei Aik handed a protest letter over the incident to Rapid Penang (CEO office) executive Alisa Ali at the company’s office.
Ng said the company should accept responsibility for the accident and compensate the victim’s family for their loss.
“We also urge Rapid Penang to improve its services because we have received complaints about rude and reckless drivers,” he said.
By CHRISTINA CHIN
PENANG: Puspakom and the manufacturer of the Rapid Penang buses will submit their reports “very soon” on the emergency exit door of a bus that threw open leading to the death of a passenger.
On Saturday morning, passenger Ng Siam Kiang, 35, fell to her death after being flung out of the bus near the Jalan Air Itam bus station.
Puspakom (Teluk Kumbar) branch head Tan Wai Fu said the vehicle was sent to the branch for inspection yesterday.
“We will need only about an hour to check the bus because everything is computerised. A report will be handed over to the police by Thursday at the latest.
“In my 20 years of service in the state Road Transport Department (JPJ) and Puspakom, I have never heard of such an incident.
Safety precautions:Dr Teng(left)and Rapid Penang board member Ong Thean Lye reminding passengers to hold on to the handrails when travelling in buses.
“It is usually very difficult to get the emergency exit door to open. Even emergency exit doors on buses that are two decades old do not open easily,” he told a press conference at the Rapid Penang office on Lorong Kulit yesterday.
Rapid Penang chief executive officer Azhar Ahmad said the company was “satisfied” that all its buses had the necessary safety measures in place.
“Every morning, the drivers would conduct checks on their vehicles according to a list of 10 safety features. If something is wrong, the bus will be sent to the workshop imme-diately.
“We have taken a look at Saturday’s checklist and are satisfied that the driver had been thorough and was not at fault.
“A witness has also come forward to say that Ng was not holding on to the handrails when the accident occurred. We hope that the media can help educate the public on the importance of adhering to the various safety measures when riding on a bus,” he said, adding that DRB Hicom Deftech, the manufacturer of the new Rapid Penang buses, was also in town to check the buses.
“We expect a report from them very soon. This is a very unfortunate accident but it has not deterred the public from riding on Rapid Penang. In fact, our daily passenger load has exceeded 40,000 during the first three days of Hari Raya. .
“Since we started operations in August, our passenger load has increased by 100%,” he said.
State Local Government Committee chair-man Datuk Dr Teng Hock Nan said he was “satisfied” with Rapid Penang’s “proactive” action of placing orange plastic cones near the buses’ emergency exit doors to warn commuters against leaning there.
Later, DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng’s political secretary Ng Wei Aik handed a protest letter over the incident to Rapid Penang (CEO office) executive Alisa Ali at the company’s office.
Ng said the company should accept responsibility for the accident and compensate the victim’s family for their loss.
“We also urge Rapid Penang to improve its services because we have received complaints about rude and reckless drivers,” he said.
posted by weiaik at
19:08
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home