No more traffic jams, worry about trains stopping
Since officially put into operation (December 22, 2024), Metro Line 1 (Ben Thanh - Suoi Tien) has received the attention and positive response from the people of Ho Chi Minh City. However, in addition to the benefits that the metro line brings, recently, passengers have been worried when witnessing trains continuously encountering incidents, especially the situation of sudden train stops when it rains.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Lan (55 years old, living in Thu Duc City) shared: "Since the metro was available, I have traveled much better, no longer feeling tired from traffic jams like before. But now I am worried about the train stopping halfway, especially when it rains. The day before I left, the train was running but suddenly stopped, making everyone confused".
Mr. Tran Van Hung (32 years old, working in District 1) said: "I often take the metro to save time, but these days, every time I hear that a train is having an accident, I feel uneasy, especially on rainy days".
In response to people's concerns, Mr. Phan Cong Bang, Head of the Ho Chi Minh City Urban Railway Management Board, said that in the early days of operation, the metro line had encountered a number of incidents, mainly related to the gauge, causing the train to temporarily stop for 1-2 minutes to handle. The situation of trains stopping when it rains also occurs, as before the Lunar New Year 2025, Metro No. 1 had to temporarily stop at Ba Son and Tan Cang stations.
Regarding the reason for stopping the train during the rain, Mr. Bang explained: "For the first time, it was mainly because the staff were not used to operating in rainy weather conditions, so they had to stop to assess the situation. The second time, the power line was affected by lightning."
Mr. Bang also added that the metro system of contractor Hitachi (Japan) is a Japanese production standard, while in Vietnam the intensity of lightning is much higher. Therefore, when installing and evaluating, 2 solutions were proposed.
One is that the protection system will automatically turn off the power for about 1 second, the other is to switch to manual operation to ensure safety. According to the contractor's recommendation, Metro Line 1 should be operated manually. Therefore, there was a delay in the first encounter with this situation.
Operating unit learn from experience
Mr. Bang said that the operating unit (urban Railway Company No. 1) has held a meeting to learn from experience and will have a faster solution to handle similar situations.
"During the heavy rain on the morning of February 13, the metro line installed a semi-automatic operating mode to ensure safety. It may be a few minutes late, but safety is paramount, we really hope that passengers will share," said Mr. Bang.
Despite explanations from the management unit, people are still worried about the risk of Metro No. 1 suddenly stopping when it rains.
"I think there needs to be a more fundamental solution to this problem, we cannot blame the weather forever. If trains stop every time it rains, how can people feel secure when using the metro? ", Mr. Hung asked.
According to Mr. Hung, to make people feel secure and regularly use this public transport, the unit managing and operating Metro Line 1 needs to have more synchronous and effective solutions.
