Puyuma Driver's Family Apologizes to the Victims|尤振仲兒女開記者會 向受難者道歉

The driver of the Puyuma Express train Yu Cheng-chung's son and daughter accompanying by the lawyer, had a press conference this afternoon. Representing their father, they bowed and apologized to the victims.

Progress on the investigation of The Puyuma train accident which caused 18 deaths was unveiled: procurement documents of the train, stating that it must be equipped with back-up if the Automatic Train Protection, or ATP, is shut down. However, in Taiwan Railways Administration's supervisory report, no such related equipment was listed, suggesting a clear oversight in the supervision and quality check process of these trains.


On October 25, 2012, the Puyuma Express trains, procured by the Taiwan Railways Administration (TRA), arrived at the Keelung harbor under much anticipation. The new trains however were stuck at the platform at Keelung station, and the staff members had to trim off part of the platform to allow the train to depart from the station. In the latest derailing accident, the ATP (Automatic Train Protection) system shut down for no clear reason, and the remote control system also failed to take over, leaving the train to speed out of control. A legislator found the procurement documents of the Puyuma trains, which state that the TRA had clearly demanded the train to be equipped with back-up systems to keep the train safe if the ATP is shut down.

(The staff member in charge of quality control) had sent telegram saying the train should not be released from factory or shipped out. Why is that? Because the staff said that there were over 100 items on the review report that have not reached their standard. The TRA insisted that to have the staff sign the document to let the train to be loaded onto the ship.

Following TRA's purchase, on the supervisory report for its production, there were no mention of any back-up or remote control system. This raises the question of whether the TRA had relaxed their standards when receiving the trains from Japan and approving their quality. Fan Chih-Ku, who back then served as the head of TRA, did not return any phone calls or messages from reporters. Another legislator also said it's possible that the remote control system on the train was installed, but it was never used.

The wiring system was in place, and the system was installed. That means the Puyuma trains were shipped to Taiwan, according to the contract, but the TRA never installed the remote control system.

The procurement of the Puyuma trains costs over NT$ 10 billion, and the latest accident revealed a number of suspicious oversight in its quality check process. The Taipei District Prosecutor's Office has begun investigating the case, which is currently categorized as one without clear criminal fact or clear suspect.