MTR Corporation, a majority state-owned Hong Kong company, is set to commission the new signalling system and nine car trains on the East Rail Line (EAL).
The move follows the completion of all testing as well as approvals on safe and sound condition of the new signalling system and trains from relevant Government departments.
Additionally, the company launched a dedicated team to monitor the Shatin to Central Link (SCL) project from both a technical and service readiness perspective.
The SCL Technical and Engineering Assurance Team will also identify important unknown issues of the remaining works of the project.
The SCL is a 17km-long railway line expansion in Kowloon and Hong Kong Island.
MTR said that the establishment of the team follows the completion of the Report of the Investigation Panel review into the launch delay of the EAL new signalling system in mid-September 2020.
Upon request by the government, the firm also introduced a new ‘Service Reliability Report’ as part of the government’s reviewing mechanism of the new lines commissioning.
The report, which will complement the existing System Safety Report, will ensure the timely reporting and handling of potential issues with significant reliability impact.
MTR Corporation CEO Dr Jacob Kam said: “We never compromise the safety of our passenger services, and also attach great importance to their reliability.
“This is also the case for the new signalling system and it will only be launched when the corporation and the relevant government departments are satisfied with its performance in these aspects.”
