To the ire of everyone’s Friday morning, Rapid KL announced the temporary suspension of part of the Ampang line LRT due to safety concerns. Specifically, the service is being stopped due to an issue with the track near the Bandaraya station, causing trains to turn back and leaving many passengers having to seek alternative transport.
It seems that the issue came from a “kinked” track near Bandaraya with early observations suggesting that it was due to structural damage of a flyover in the area. Rapid KL the damage is believed to have been caused by nearby construction work.
Ini merupakan sedikit gambaran tentang kerosakan struktur jejambat di Stesen LRT Bandaraya yang menyebabkan gangguan jadual perkhidmatan LRT Laluan Ampang/Sri Petaling buat masa ini. pic.twitter.com/ffVPKpTLtp
— Ask Rapid KL (@askrapidkl) January 27, 2023
The company’s engineers are currently in the affected area, assessing the situation alongside structural experts to determine safety and stability. Rapid KL updated the public with some pictures of the aforementioned damage, showing a bent track and, indeed, cracks that have formed on a column of a flyover.
In the meantime, stations between Masjid Jamek and Bandaraya will remain closed until they can assure the safety of the service, with Rapid KL providing shuttle buses to ferry passengers. On the Ampang and Sri Petaling lines, trains from Ampang and Putra Heights will turn back at Hang Tuah while trains from Sentul Timur will turn back at Bandaraya.
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The free shuttle buses to fill in the gaps can be found at Hang Tuah, Bandaraya, and Sentul Timur. These are the number rates and routes:
Bandaraya to Plaza Rakyat
- WVH9594
- W7486Q
Plaza Rakyat to Bandaraya
- WUX5708
- WVC3984
Sentul Timur to Bandaraya
- PJJ7149
- WUW1702
Bandaraya to Sentul Timur
- W3607T
While the interrupted service will undoubtedly cause inconveniences for many commuters, it’s also a sigh of relief that the problem was detected and action was taken before any disasters took place. As of writing, Rapid KL has not given an update on when we could expect the line to be restored, so those affected should plan out alternative ways to travel until further notice.
(Source: Rapid KL/Twitter)
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