AAHK Enhances Mechanism of Safety-Related Incident Reporting and Investigation for Automated People Mover System

(Hong Kong, 23 December 2024, 1700hrs) – Airport Authority Hong Kong (AAHK) has enhanced the reporting mechanism related to the Automated People Mover (APM) to ensure that incidents concerning passenger safety will be logged properly, while introducing new measures to ensure that incident investigation will be conducted thoroughly.

AAHK has launched an investigation into the handling of an APM incident, which occurred on 21 November 2023 (the Incident), and submitted its investigation report to the government and released a summary of the report today. In the Incident, a young passenger accidentally stepped into the gap between the APM train and the platform at SkyPier Terminal Line’s Air-to-Sea Platform in Terminal 1. Part of her body was in the gap. The young passenger was immediately pulled from the gap into the train cabin by other passengers before train doors closed (35 seconds after the train doors opened) for departure at the scheduled time. APM train service was not affected. As no obstruction was detected while the train doors closed, the door sensors that emit warning signals were not triggered. The passenger was not injured and did not lodge a complaint.

AAHK concluded that there were multiple reasons accounting for the Electrical and Mechanical Engineering Department (EMSD) not being notified of the Incident as required. The investigation found that the concerned staff were not alert enough in reporting and communication in relation to the Incident; and that the APM Operation and Emergency Procedure Manual (the Manual) should provide clearer guidance to frontline staff on incident reporting. AAHK did not find evidence suggesting a cover-up or motivation for any staff to do so.

The communication between EMSD and AAHK during the investigation did not indicate any systemic safety issues with the APM system. The APM system is installed with high-performance sensors and infrared devices at both the platform screen doors and train doors, ensuring that the doors will not close for train departure if obstruction is detected.

The report also mentioned that, as part of the ongoing efforts to enhance safety, AAHK initiated a project in July 2023 to design and install fillers to further narrow the gap at the curved shape section of the concerned platform, reducing the gap from 13.5-14.5cm to 7-10.1cm. The enhancement project was completed in June 2024.

AAHK is putting forward a series of improvement measures:

• AAHK has reminded frontline staff that all incidents concerning passenger safety, including incidents that are unconfirmed on the day, must be properly logged, so that relevant departments can report the incidents to EMSD in accordance with the logs.
• To ensure that incidents concerning passenger safety will be properly logged, AAHK has been updating and enhancing the relevant guidelines, and will arrange related briefings and training sessions for frontline staff.
• To adopt a more holistic approach in future investigations, AAHK’s safety department will be tasked to coordinate with concerned departments for investigations and follow-up actions on incidents related to passenger safety. In addition, all related AAHK departments have been reminded to act in a proactive manner during investigations.
• To facilitate the monitoring and investigation of APM incidents, AAHK will adjust and enhance the CCTV set-up to cover more viewing angles in monitoring the relevant platform in Terminal 1. The enhancement work is targeted to complete by March 2025.