A train on Shanghai's subway Line 10 ran in the opposite direction on July 28 because of a mix-up in communication during the upgrading and debugging of the train control signal, according to Shanghai Shentong Metro Group. This makes it obvious that safety of passengers is not ensured, for even a minor miscalculation or mix-up can lead to a breakdown in the system, says an article in Guangzhou Daily. Excerpts:

Surprisingly, the subway train ran in the opposite direction without meeting with an accident. However, the incident should not be understated and the authorities should take measures to prevent recurrence of such weird situations. The passengers were lucky this time, but they may not always be.

After the mix-up, the Shanghai metro company simply informed the public of the causes that led to the accident on its official micro blog instead of holding a press conference to formally apologize to passengers.

It is thus worth asking whether or not the company has any concern for passengers' safety. Debugging of a subway's communication system should be carried out at a specific time, preferably during off hours when there are no passengers on trains. But the train was full when the mix-up occurred.

We need to find out whether repeated signal failures were caused by technical defects or management problems.

Even minor problems with the signal system could lead to such incidents or major accidents. And the frequent failures in the signal system of the railways, both on surface and underground, are beyond public endurance.

Apart from conducting thorough tests at the technical level, the authorities should also solve the management problems, which include internal management of separate operation wings and supervision issues.

Moreover, relevant laws and regulations need to be strengthened to create favorable conditions for public supervision of the railway system.

China Daily

(China Daily 08/03/2011 page9)