Computer glitch disrupts rail services in Europe, Asia: Alstom

PARIS: A computer glitch in a railway signalling system caused train traffic disruptions in Poland, Italy and Asia, French rail giant Alstom said on Thursday.
The problem has been detected and is in the process of being fixed, a spokesman for the company said, adding that it was not a cyberattack.
A spokesman said the problem stemmed from a “time formatting error” in a signalling system originally supplied by Bombardier Transports — which Alstom bought early last year.
The problem forced serious delays and a raft of cancelations in Poland, a key exit route for the current flood of refugees fleeing war-torn Ukraine.
Around 1.8 million of the roughly three million people to leave Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion last month have sought Polish refuge.
State Polish operator PKP said the glitch had affected 19 of the country’s 33 national railway control centers and more than 800 kilometers (500 miles) of track.
The operator recommended passengers postpone their journeys.
“Passenger security is not threatened,” an Alstom spokesperson told AFP.
“Alstom teams have put in place pro-actively a correction plan designed to minimize possible disturbances caused by the signalling problem.”
“We know where the problem is and how to repair it,” another spokesperson said.
Alstom said “commercial service has resumed for a number of clients initially affected by the problem,” including some lines in India and Thailand which “were rapidly brought back on stream.”
In Europe, Italian railways said traffic was “progressively resuming” on the Rome to Florence line.