Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai wants a thorough investigation to identify the cause of the cargo train derailment between the Bank Negara and Kuala Lumpur railway stations early yesterday morning.

He said the incident, which involved 12 wagons of the cargo train, was a blow to the country’s rail transportation.

“The Land Public Transport Commission (Spad) and Keretapi Tanah Melayu Bhd (KTMB) have been instructed to submit the investigation report as soon as possible. We want to know what happened, whether the speed, load, capacity or other factors.

“Once the results are out, we will let the public know,” Liow (photo) told reporters after launching Asia’s first marine cargo and container insurance coverage, iCargo+, for Malaysian shippers and importers in Putrajaya today.

Yesterday, the 12-wagon cargo train travelling south derailed between the Bank Negara and Kuala Lumpur stations at 2.58am.

The incident disrupted train services on the line connecting the Segambut, Putra, Bank Negara and Kuala Lumpur stations.

KTMB in a statement yesterday said the repair works were going on to clear the tracks and would take three days to complete.

Liow said the ministry took the matter seriously as it had disrupted the commuter and electric train services.

On the incident of a disabled person (OKU) who was injured while using the rail service recently, Liow advised the rail service operators to upgrade facilities in stations to be friendly to visually impaired people.

- Bernama