Malfunction causes rush hour delays on New Taipei Circular Line

Taipei, Oct. 7 (CNA) A malfunctioning railroad switch caused delays on the New Taipei Metro's Circular Line Monday, affecting around 800 passengers during the morning commute.

In a statement, the New Taipei Metro Corp. said that after losing connection with the switch at around 6 a.m., it asked passengers at Shisizhang Station traveling toward Dapinglin Station to board their train on another platform.

As a result of the malfunction, the headway between trains was extended from 10 minutes to 12 minutes, affecting around 800 passengers at Shisizhang Station before full service was restored at 8:55 a.m., the Metro operator said.

Based on a preliminary investigation, the malfunction was caused by a damaged hydraulic pipe union, which left the automated railroad switch unable to guide trains from one track to another, the company said.

The driverless, 15.4-kilometer Circular Line has been operating at reduced capacity since April 3, when damage caused by a magnitude 7.2 earthquake forced it to suspend services between Qiaohe and Banxin stations.

In July, New Taipei Mayor Hou Yu-ih (侯友宜) said the city hopes to complete repairs by the end of the year.

Due to the temporary closure, the Circular Line currently offers services between Dapinglin and Zhonghe stations and between Banqiao and New Taipei Industrial Park stations, with replacement buses covering Qiaohe, Zhongyuan and Banxin stations.