Taiwan News
Date: 2018/12/21
By:  Central News Agency

The scene after the Puyuma derailment in Yilan County. (By Central News Agency)
The three former heads of the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA) might face administrative punishment ranging from a minor demerit to a major demerit in the wake of the deadly derailment of a Puyuma express train in October, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications (MOTC) said Friday.

MOTC Acting Minister Wang Kwo-tsai (王國材) said the ministry will seek the punishment for Lu Chieh-shen (鹿潔身), who resigned four days after the accident Oct. 25, as well as his two predecessors Chou Yung-hui (周永暉) and Frank Fan (范植谷).

“We think the three former TRA heads must take responsibility for failing to establish a safety-first culture, particularly after a similar accident in 2007,” said Wang, referring to a train collision at Dali Station in Yilan County that left five people dead and 15 injured.

Like the Puyuma crash — which also occurred in Yilan — the Dali incident was the result of speeding because the driver of an electric locomotive shut off an automatic train protection (ATP) system that keeps travel speed under a safe limit after he found power problems on the train.    [FULL  STORY]