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Korea Train Express

KTX train at Songjeong-ri Station
Korean name
Hangul 한국고속철도
Hanja 韓國高速鐵道
Revised Romanization Han-guk Gosok Cheoldo
McCune–Reischauer Han-guk Kosok Ch'ŏldo

The Korea Train eXpress (KTX) is South Korea's high-speed rail system, which connects the capital Seoul to Busan and Mokpo. Operated by Korail, the train's technology is largely based on the French TGV system, and has a top speed of 350 km/h, limited to 300 km/h during regular service for safety.[1]

Contents

[edit] History

After 12 years of construction, service on the Gyeongbu Line (connecting Seoul to Busan via Daejeon and Daegu) and the Honam Line (Yongsan to Gwangju and Mokpo) opened on April 1, 2004. Presently using high-speed track for only part of the distance (from Seoul to Daegu), the new service cuts travel time between Seoul and Busan from the Saemaul-ho's 4 hours and 10 minutes to 2 hours and 40 minutes, and between Yongsan and Mokpo from 4 hours and 42 minutes to 2 hours and 58 minutes.[2]

The initial KTX-I trainsets, also known as TGV-K,[3] are based on the TGV Atlantique.[4] In all, 46 trains were built - the initial twelve in France by Alstom, the remainder in South Korea by ROTEM.[5] The tracks were built with technical assistance from SNCF technicians.[6]

[edit] Ridership

Test Ticket for KTX trial run
Picture of the full length of the KTX
Geographical map of the South Korean High-speed rail network

When introduced in April 2004, KTX ridership was an average of 70,900 passengers per day, well short of initial expectations of 200,000. While earning an operational profit of about 2.1 billion won per day, this amount was insufficient to service the loans, as the construction cost grew from an initial estimate of 5 trillion to an actual 18 trillion Korean won (approx. 5 billion to 18 billion in 2004 US dollars). On January 14, 2005, Prime Minister Lee Hae Chan stated that KTX was a political failure.

However, ridership and market share increased continuously.[7] On January 9, 2006, Korail reported that average daily ridership in December 2005 had reached 104,600, an increase of almost 50%, with daily operating profit up to 2.8 billion won and financial breakeven expected by early 2007.[8] The 100-millionth rider was carried after 1116 days of operation on April 22, 2007, generating an income of 2.78 trillion won.[9] KTX finances moved into the black in 2007.[10]

In 2008, the average daily ridership was 104,000.[11] For comparison, the latest single-day ridership record is 183,000 passengers, achieved on 26 January 2009, the Korean New Year.[12]

The KTX celebrated five years of operation on April 22 2009.[13] In five years, KTX trains traveled 98.99 million kilometers, and carried 173,450,000 passengers.[13]

Year Passengers carried
2004[A] 19.88 million[9]
2005 32.37 million[9]
2006 36.49 million[9]
2007 37.286 million[14]
2008 38.02 million[11]

A  April-December (line opened 1 April 2004)

For comparison, the French TGV carried 13.77 million passengers in its fourth year of service, though the population of the urban areas served was less than the population of cities served by KTX. The KTX has also proved highly popular with tourists and visitors on business.[15]

As noted with the TGV[16] and Eurostar[17] high speed train services abroad, the KTX achieved a similar, significant modal shift in its favour at the expense of other transport modes.

2003/4[7] 2004/5[7] 2006[18] 2008[13][19]
KTX 0% 50.4% 60.2% 63%
Conventional rail 37.9% 10.5% 5.5% 4.6%
Total rail 37.9% 60.9% 65.7% 67.6%
Airlines 42.2% 25.0% 19.8% 17%
Express bus 7.8% 4.7% 5.5% 7.3%
Passenger car 12.1% 9.4% 8.9% 8.1%
Total road 19.9% 14.1% 14.4% 15.4%

By 2007, provincial airports suffered from deficits after a drop in the number of passengers attributed to the KTX.[20] With lower ticket prices, by 2008, KTX has swallowed up around half of the airlines' previous demand between Seoul and Busan. Though some low-cost carriers failed and withdrew from the route, others still planned to enter competition even at the end of 2008.[21]

[edit] Accidents and technical issues

  • On 3 June 2006, the foundation of the rail running in the underground terminal of Gajwa Station subsided 50 m, causing the two rails to twist and dangle 50 m in the air.[22]
  • According to an investigation by the Grand National Party in 2006, the KTX broke down 160 times in the span of three years,[23] an average of once per week.
  • On 13 June 2007, 2 people on the street were slightly injured[24] by ballast that was thrown up from the trackbed by a KTX train.
  • On 03 Nov 2007, 2 KTX trains collided inside Busan Station.[25]
  • On 18 Feb 2009, about 330 concrete railway sleepers on the 96.9 kilometer-long railway line linking Daegu and Ulsan were found to be cracked[26] the month before, according to an investigation by a committee of the National Assembly.
  • Korea Rail Network Authority chosen Pandrol clips for KTX Rail Devices in 2nd phase section(Daegu-Busan, German Rheda2000 Track system) without[27] field tests.

[edit] Future

[edit] Network Expansion

KTX network map     Shared track (KTX)        Gyeongbu Line (KTX)       Gyeongbu Line (normal)       Honam Line (normal)

Construction of the second phase of the Gyeongbu Line, linking Daegu to Busan, started in June 2002, and is expected to be completed by the end of 2010.[4] The new section follows a different, more easterly route, with new stations planned for Gyeongju and Ulsan. A further improvement of the travel time to 2 hour and 10 minutes between Seoul and Busan is expected.[28]

High-speed track for the Honam Line from Seoul via Osong to Gwangju and Mokpo is also planned, with construction to start in 2009 for tentative completion in 2014.[4]

KTX services running partly on ordinary track are planned for the Jeolla Line to Suncheon and Expo 2012 site Yeosu, branching from the main Honam Line at Iksan.[29] This line has a top speed of only 120 km/h, currently being increased to 180 km/h.[4] Operations may start as soon as 2009. The Samnangjin-Jinju line is also being doubled and electrified to allow KTX operations by 2014.[4]

[edit] New Rolling Stock

KTX-II

On December 16, 2004, the Korean-made HSR-350x (Hanvit 350) achieved an experimental top speed of 352.4 kilometers per hour.[30]

In 2006, Hyundai Rotem won an order for 10 KTX-II trainsets, later increased to 19, destined for the Seoul-Mokpo, Iksan-Yeosu and Milyang-Masan lines.[31] Design speed is 330 km/h, the targeted service speed is 300 km/h. The 10-car trains will consist of eight passenger cars and two power cars at both ends, and seat 363 passengers in two classes.[32] Hyundai Rotem has described the trains as the "commercial outcome" of the HSR-350x, not a TGV derivative[31], and says the trains are 87% Korean technology.[33] The non-Korean contributions include power electronics from IXYS,[34] design from MBD Design[35] and front ends from Voith.[36]

On November 25, 2008, the first KTX-II set was revealed to the public in a roll-out ceremony at the Hyundai Rotem factory in Changwon.[37] The first six trainsets are scheduled to be delivered in June 2009.[31]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ "Railroad Information". Korail Korean Railroad. http://info.korail.com/2007/eng/ein/ein01000/w_ein01100.jsp. Retrieved 2008-01-08. 
  2. ^ "KTX Overview" (in Korean). KTX website. http://ktx.korail.go.kr/overview2/index.html. Retrieved 2007-01-18. 
  3. ^ "Korea develops high-speed ambitions: a thorough programme of research and development will soon deliver results for Korea's rail industry in the form of the indigenous KTX II high-speed train. Dr Kihwan Kim of the Korea Railroad Research Institute explains the development of the new train". BNET (International Railway Journal). May 2008. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQQ/is_/ai_n25433622. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 
  4. ^ a b c d e "Korea's railways face a bright future". Simmons-Boardman Publishing Corporation. 2008-07-01. Archived from the original on 2008-07-02. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQQ/is_7_48/ai_n27948208?tag=untagged. Retrieved 2008-07-01. 
  5. ^ "A TGV for Korea; The parties involved". Alstom. 2004-03-29. http://www.webmag.transport.alstom.com/eMag/externe/international/korea/ktx/mar2004/1/221.asp. Retrieved 2007-03-08. 
  6. ^ "In South Korea, Leaflet No. 1". SNCF INTERNATIONAL. May 2008. http://www.sncf-international.net/upl/file/FP_Coree-du-Sud_GB.pdf. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 
  7. ^ a b c "High Speed Rail Construction of Korea and Its Impact". Korea Research Insitute for Human Settlements. 2008. http://168.126.177.50/pub/docu/en/AD/ZA/ADZA2008AAN/ADZA-2008-AAN.PDF. Retrieved 2009-04-30. 
  8. ^ "KTX Tops 100,000 Passengers Per Day". The Korea Times. 2006-01-09. http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/nation/200601/kt2006010917353911990.htm. Retrieved 2006-12-15. 
  9. ^ a b c d "KTX이용객 1억명 돌파(2)" (in Korean). KTX Korail. 2007-04-22. http://ktx.korail.go.kr/ROOT/ktx/notices2/notices_view.jsp?num=127&page=2&field=wtitle&field_value=. Retrieved 2007-07-13. 
  10. ^ "Korea's Bullet Trains Celebrates 4th Year". The Chosun Ilbo. 2008-04-02. http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200804/200804020006.html. Retrieved 2009-02-24. 
  11. ^ a b "새마을·무궁화호 이용객 7년 만에 늘어". The Railroad News. Korail. 2009-01-23. http://railnews.korail.go.kr/20090104/11696.html. Retrieved 2009-02-24. 
  12. ^ "기상악화에도 귀성길 ‘철도’가 최고" (in Korean). Korail News. 2009-01-28. http://news.korail.com/publish/php/articleview.php?diaryDate=2009-01-31&idx=10558&section=1. Retrieved 2009-02-24. 
  13. ^ a b c "KTX celebrates its 5 year anniversary in S. Korea". The Hankyoreh. 2009-04-02. http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_business/347598.html. Retrieved 2009-04-23. 
  14. ^ "지난해 KTX 이용객 늘었다" (in Korean). The Chosun Ilbo. 2008-01-22. http://www.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2008/01/22/2008012200389.html. Retrieved 2009-02-24. 
  15. ^ "Bullet trains are attracting foreigners". JoongAng Daily. http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2904083. Retrieved 2009-04-26. 
  16. ^ "The regional impact of the TGV". Springer Netherlands. http://www.springerlink.com/content/w647557875572604/. Retrieved 2009-05-01. 
  17. ^ "Eurostar passenger numbers surge". Financial Times. 2008-01-10. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/67ed5b0c-bf1e-11dc-8c61-0000779fd2ac.html?nclick_check=1. 
  18. ^ "Launch of Korean High-Speed Railway and Efforts to Innovate Future Korean Railway". 48. Japan Railway & Transport Review. August 2007. http://www.jrtr.net/jrtr48/pdf/f30_Lee.pdf. Retrieved 2009-04-30. 
  19. ^ "KTX passengers rise 47% over a five-year duration". JoongAng Daily. 2009-04-01. http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2902964. Retrieved 2009-04-30. 
  20. ^ "Muan International Airport Has Incomplete Opening". Korea Times. 2007-11-08. http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2007/11/117_13379.html. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 
  21. ^ "Budget Carriers Gear Up to Challenge KTX". Korea Times. 2008-12-25. https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2008/12/119_36749.html. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 
  22. ^ "Head-on Collision">"Playing Havoc With the Lives of Passengers". ChosunIlbo. 2006-06-05. http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200706/200706050028.html. Retrieved 2006-06-05. 
  23. ^ "KTX 고장나면 다른 차량 부품 떼어 "땜질"" (in Korean). Prime Business Journal. 2006-10-13. http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LPOD&mid=etc&oid=147&aid=0000014308. Retrieved 2006-12-15. 
  24. ^ "Head-on Collision">"KTX 선로서 ‘자갈’ 날벼락…2명 부상". KBS. 2007-06-13. http://news.kbs.co.kr/article/local/200706/20070614/1372511.html. Retrieved 2006-06-14. 
  25. ^ "Head-on Collision">"Head-on Collision". the Dong-A Ilbo. 2007-11-05. http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?biid=2007110532198&path_dir=20071105. Retrieved 2007-11-05. 
  26. ^ "Crippling Cracks Found in Ties on KTX Railway" (in English). Korea Times. 2009-02-19. http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2009/02/117_39885.html. 
  27. ^ "Report: KTX Rail Devices Chosen Without Field Tests "" (in English). Dong-A Ilbo. 2009-03-11. http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?bicode=020000&biid=2009031296398. Retrieved 2009-03-12. 
  28. ^ "호남고속철, 경부고속철 2단계 기본계획 확정" (in Korean). 동마. 2006-08-23. http://www.donga.com/fbin/output?n=200608230222. Retrieved 2008-10-25. 
  29. ^ "KTX takes the lead in Korea", David Briginshaw, International Railway Journal 1.1.2007
  30. ^ "HSR350x Tops 350km/h". KITECH. 2005-05-31. http://eng.kitech.re.kr/c6_info/index.php?mode=view&sub1=1&sub2=1&idx=14. Retrieved 2006-12-15. 
  31. ^ a b c Chris Jackson (2008-09-05). "'We are making steady efforts to become a global leader'". Railway Gazette. http://www.railwaygazette.com/news/single-view/view//we-are-making-steady-efforts-to-become-a-global-leader.html. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 
  32. ^ "KTX-II". Hyundai Rotem. http://www.rotem.co.kr/Eng/Common/data/high_speed.pdf. Retrieved 2009-01-19. 
  33. ^ "Hyundai Rotem Rolls-out World's 4th High Speed Train". Hyundai Rotem. 2008-11-25. http://www.rotem.co.kr/Eng/Cyber/News/newsList.asp. Retrieved 2009-01-19. 
  34. ^ "IXYS' High Power IGBTs Achieves Milestone for Performance in Fast Passenger Train...". AllBusiness. 2007-08-21. http://www.allbusiness.com/electronics/computer-electronics-manufacturing/5247601-1.html. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 
  35. ^ "Star of the Observeur 08". agence pour la promotion de la création industrielle. 2008. http://www.apci.asso.fr/l_observeur_uk/realisation.php?id=1673&laureats=2008&id_participant=1412. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 
  36. ^ "The first front ends of the new Korean High-speed train KTX II have already arrived in Korea.". Voith Turbo. 2008-06-26. http://www.voith.com/press/550404.htm. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 
  37. ^ "코레일, 25일 현대로템 창원공장서 출고행사…각계 인사 500여명 참석" (in Korean). Korail News. 2008-11-25. http://news.korail.com/main/php/search_view.php?idx=9923. Retrieved 2008-12-31. 

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