KUALA LUMPUR: Is a three to five minutes interval between Light Rail Transit trains enough to prevent collisions?

Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) public transport expert Assoc Prof Sabariah Jamali said the interval was not to blame for Wednesday's collision between two RapidKL LRT trains near the Sri Petaling LRT stations.

"There is nothing wrong with the interval. But, in this case, there must have been some human error in failing to follow the safety mechanism already in place."

She said there were even LRT trains around the world that operated on two-minute intervals.

"The operators would definitely ensure that the safety aspects are adhered to. "Obviously, there was a human error here like in most other collisions," she said.

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia public transport expert Prof Dr Abdul Rahim Mat Noor said intervals should be five minutes and above.

"I think five minutes is sufficient to avoid any collision, provided the driver follows other safety aspects as well." He said trains in London operated on five-minute intervals.

Rahim said the question to be asked was whether the company operating the line had adhered to safety measures.