The commercial launch of the Pink Line monorail service, originally scheduled for January 3, may be postponed if the replacement parts for the detached conductor rail are not delivered in time, said Transport Minister Suriya Juangroongruangkit yesterday.

A 5km stretch of the conductor rail separated from its supporting beam on Sunday, forcing the closure of seven stations, from Nonthaburi Civic Centre station to Pak Kret bypass station. Three cars were damaged and one utility pole was broken, but no one was injured.

The free trial service, which was suspended yesterday, resumed on Monday at 23 of the line’s 30 stations, from Chaeng Wattana station to Min Buri station from 6am until midnight.

To prevent such an incident from recurring, Deputy Transport Minister Surapong Piyachote said that safety measures at the construction site must be tightened up, including a requirement for the subcontractor to notify authorities in advance if it wants to get into the construction area to remove construction equipment.

In this particular case, it is suspected that a crane was removing construction materials from the ground, under the rail line, when it accidentally hit the conductor rail and pulled it down.

Surapong Laoha-Unya, CEO of Northern Bangkok Monorail, the operator of the Pink Line, said that the company had contacted the overseas supplier for about 1,700 spare parts needed to repair the damaged conductor rail, but the supplier has only about 100 parts available.

He said that, if all the spare parts can be acquired, it will not take long for the repairs to be completed. He also offered an assurance that the electrical system of the train project is safe.