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View all search resultsTeen’s death on commuter train track stirs calls for transit safety
Calls grow for installations of train platform barriers to prevent passengers from falling onto the tracks, following the recent death of a teenager who was struck by a commuter train in South Tangerang, Banten.
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Commuter train passengers wait for the wagons to stop during the morning rush hour on November 8, 2024, at Manggarai Station in Jakarta. (AFP/Bay Ismoyo)
T
ransport experts have called for stronger safety measures at railway platforms, including by installing barriers to prevent passengers from falling onto the tracks, following the recent death of a teenager who was struck by a commuter train in South Tangerang, Banten.
Experts said physical barriers could improve safety at railway platforms, arguing that the absence of barriers separating passengers from the tracks posed a major safety risk, particularly at stations with narrow platforms or when the platform is crowded.
“Barriers in the form of platform screen doors need to be considered for safety,” Indonesian Transportation Society (MTI) chair Deddy Herlambang said on Wednesday. “At the very least, they can prevent passengers from falling or make it more difficult for people intending to jump or throw themselves onto the tracks in suicide attempts.”
On Monday, a teenage girl was found dead on the tracks at Jurangmangu Station in South Tangerang after being struck by an approaching commuter train operated by the PT Kereta Commuter Indonesia (KAI Commuter). Clips circulating on social media show that the girl, still wearing her school uniform, was lying on the tracks beneath the platform as the train approached. The station personnel evacuated her body after the train stopped.
“KAI Commuter personnel have handled the incident according to procedures and coordinated with the police, medical services and the victim’s family,” KAI Commuter spokesperson Leza Arlan said on Monday.
Police investigating the case have not yet reached a conclusion about the cause of her death, but speculation that the girl may have died by suicide emerged after people on the internet found posts on her social media accounts expressing despair and apologizing “if the train got delayed”.
The case adds to a number of recurring incidents of people falling from railway platforms. While some were rescued, others have died after being struck, including an elderly man who fell from the same Jurangmangu Station platform earlier this month.
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