ＡＴＣ解除６キロ、別の電車直前で停止…大阪地下鉄
１５日早朝、大阪市営地下鉄長堀鶴見緑地線で、自動列車制御装置（ＡＴＣ）の異常が発生した電車がＡＴＣを解除したまま約６・２キロ運行、ポイントを無理に通過して壊した上、本来進入してはいけない線路に進入、駅で停止中の別の電車の約７０メートル手前で緊急停止した。
乗客約２０人にけがはなかったが、国土交通省近畿運輸局は衝突や脱線事故につながる恐れがあったとして文書指導した。
大阪市交通局によると、ＡＴＣの故障は大正発門真南行き電車が京橋駅を出発した直後に発生し、ブレーキがかかったままになった。運転士からの連絡を受けた運転指令は、後続電車への影響を抑えようと、代替電車と交換する終点の門真南駅まで、ＡＴＣを解除しての運行再開を指示した。
しかし、走行中、運転士とほとんど連絡を取らなかったため、午前５時４５分頃、鶴見緑地駅手前で、ポイントが引き込み線を優先する状態だったのに運転士が気付かず、同電車は本線を直進してポイントを損壊。引き込み線から本線に代替電車を進入させた後、運転指令もポイントを切り替え忘れた。門真南駅でも切り替え忘れがあり、故障電車が本来進入する線路と別の線路に入って代替電車に近づいたため、運転指令が緊急停止させたという。
運転指令は「ポイントの切り替えを忘れ、途中の運転士への指示も失念していた」と話しているという。
市交通局の松尾義春・鉄道事業本部長らは同日夜、緊急記者会見し、「複数のミスが重なり、このような事態を引き起こしてしまった。脱線や衝突などの大事故につながりかねず、大変申し訳ない」と謝罪した。
（2010年3月16日01時21分 読売新聞）
Early morning on 15th March, on the Osaka Municipal Subway
Nagahori Tsurumi-ryokuchi Line (大阪市営地下鉄長堀鶴見緑地線), a train
encountered Automatic Train Control (ATC) fault, disabled the
system, continued journey for 6.2 kilometers, crossed a track
switch not-in-favour, damaged the switch, entered a different track
and stopped 70 meters before a stationary train.
The 20 passengers on the train were not injured. The Ministry of
Transport Kinki Bureau alerted the possibility of collision and
derailment from this accident.
Osaka Municipal Transport says the train is running from Taisho
to Kadoma-minami stations (though line all-stop). The fault came
after the train left Kyobashi station, the brakes applied and could
not be released. The driver contacted the Operations control, where
Operations decided not to hinder other trains behind, told the
driver to disable the ATC system and continue on to the terminal
(Kadoma-minami) station to change trains.
During the course of the journey, Operations did not hear from
the driver, and at around 545 am, before Tsurumi-Ryokuchi station,
the driver was shocked when he saw the track switch was
not-in-favor. The train went over the switch, damaging it.
Operations had forgotten to switch the track back to the main line
after the replacement train had used it to leave the depot. The
other switch before Kadoma-minami was also switched to route the
replacement train in, and Operations told the faulty train to make
an emergency stop.
Operations says 'Forgotten to switch the points, along the way
also forgotten to contact the driver'.
Municipal Transport, Railway department manager had a press
conference the same night, apologizing and says 'Multiple errors
caused this incident. This may have led to a larger accident such
as derailment and collision and there is no excuse for this'.
~
Sounds like the first time Osaka Municipal has gotten its knee
deep in such shit. Presently investigations are underway, but it
points out that the driver of the train was away on sick leave for
a year, back to the job not long ago and on that day there was a
tutor driver together with him in the cab. Operations was suspected
of handling revised Dia (train running diagram or schedule) and
could not contact the driver in time.
The Nagahori Tsurumi-ryokuchi Line opened in 1990 and uses
Linear Propulsion method. Cars do not carry bulky motors but only
voltage control units to form magnetic attraction with the rail
facilities. By changing the attraction magnitude and direction, the
cars can brake and accelerate with little power consumption. Cars
are also smaller and lighter. However cost of building and
maintenance is often higher than normal railways.
