SOUTH KOREA | Railways

[ruready1000]

Korail under fire for frequent KTX breakdowns

Malfunctioning feared to derail Korea's bullet train export

By Lee Hyo-sik

Korail, the state-run railroad operator, is drawing fire for a series of malfunctioning glitches dogging Korea’s bullet train KTX in recent months.

It has raised safety concerns as a growing number of Koreans take the high-speed train to travel across the country.

Additionally, frequent breakdowns of the latest “KTX-Sancheon” is feared to negatively affect Korea’s efforts to win multi-billion dollar projects in Brazil, the United States and other countries to construct a bullet-train system.

A KTX-Sancheon, which departed from Seoul Station at 7:30 a.m. on Wednesday for Busan, arrived at the Cheonan-Asan Station at 8:04 a.m. The bullet train is manufactured by Hyundai Rotem.

There it developed mechanical trouble and left the station six minutes behind schedule. Later the troubled train ran into the same problem again near Daejeon Station and barely made it to Daegu Station.

Fearing further failures, Korail, headed by CEO Huh Joon-young, decided to ask the nearly 300 passengers onboard the malfunctioning KTX to transfer to an incoming train.

On Oct. 13, a KTX also abruptly stopped inside a 20.3-kilometers-long tunnel on the newly constructed Daegu-Busan line during a test-run. Since the new model of the KTX was put into operation in March, there have been 12 operational failures, raising concerns of its capability and passenger safety.

Korail has not been able to pinpoint the exact cause and has no plan to suspend the operation of the KTX-Sancheon, meaning that the same delays may continue to occur at any time.

“Given the fact that the KTX-Sancheon has been in operation for only eight months, there could be many minor operational glitches. The problems we are dealing with do not threaten passenger safety. In cooperation with Hyundai Rotem, our engineers are doing their best to fix the malfunctions as quickly as possible,” said Lim Seok-gyu, director of Korail’s public relations office.

Yet scores of operational breakdowns are feared to have a negative impact on Korea’s efforts to export its high-speed trains, railroad construction, and operational management skills.

Korail has been teaming up with the Korea Rail Network Authority, Hyundai Rotem and many local construction companies to build a bullet-train system overseas.

They are currently competing with rivals from Japan, China, France and other high-speed train operating countries to win a contract in Brazil to undertake a $20 billion rail project. The Korean consortium is also trying to win a bid to build a bullet-train system in the U.S. state of California and in developing countries around the world.

In response Lim has said the ongoing KTX problem will not affect Korea’s efforts to export its high-speed train system.

“For instance, Chinese companies are trying to hide their defects and do not disclose any negative information. But we are making all the information public. Our transparent and open management stance will be highly regarded and allow us to be deemed a trustworthy business partner by foreign countries.”

Meanwhile, there have been growing concerns over the newly-built Daegu-Busan line, scheduled to open on Nov. 1, as there are many bridges and tunnels.

The 128.6 kilometer-long high-speed railroad has 54 bridges and 38 tunnels. Poor construction of the rail tracks and other structures built by the Korea Rail Network Authority under a tight schedule to complete the line is thought to have made it fraught with risks.

source

[ruready1000]

Gyeongbu HSR 2nd Phase Openning Ceremony News Clips


source : mbc news


source : kbs news

[ruready1000]

TV Program about Gyeongbu HSR

[Nozumi 300]

Originally Posted by ruready1000

Korail under fire for frequent KTX breakdowns

Sounds like someone is trying to put the blame on others for their own problems

[ruready1000]

Seoul - Busan Train Schedule From November 1.

[ruready1000]

Originally Posted by Nozumi 300

Sounds like someone is trying to put the blame on others for their own problems

Yes, Mr.Lim is, in vain, trying to.

[pi_malejana]

Originally Posted by ruready1000

Tv Drama Clips Set In Small Station

this maybe a bit off topic but what is the title?? (looks good)

[ruready1000]

Originally Posted by pi_malejana

this maybe a bit off topic but what is the title?? (looks good)

It's a single drama '도시락(Dosirak, meaning box lunch)'. This is official site.

[maldini]

Originally Posted by ruready1000

Korail under fire for frequent KTX breakdowns

What are the problems with KTX malfunctioning?

[nouveau.ukiyo]

Originally Posted by maldini

What are the problems with KTX malfunctioning?

One of the videos above mentioned 340 cracked ties last year and several breakdowns during trial tests, including a problem in a 20.4km long tunnel.

[pi_malejana]

Originally Posted by ruready1000

It's a single drama '도시락(Dosirak, meaning box lunch)'. This is official site.

okay, thank you very much!

[ruready1000]

Airline battles KTX threat on Busan route

Lee Seong-hwa, a 31-year-old who works at a telecommunications firm in Seoul, had two transportation options to choose from ahead of a recent business trip to Busan: a budget airline or the bullet train.

“In the past, I used to take an airplane when going on a domestic business trip because it saved time,” Lee said. “It just was much shorter. But with KTX offering more trains and faster rides to various parts of the country, I now prefer the bullet train.”

KTX could lure more travelers like Lee going forward with the launch yesterday of faster train travel between Seoul and Busan. The travel time between the two cities via KTX has shrunk by 22 minutes to two hours and 18 minutes - with stopovers in Daejeon, Daegu, Gyeongju and Ulsan - after the completion of a new high-speed rail between Daegu and Busan.

With the upgrade in KTX services, however, local budget carriers are deeply concerned about losing passengers.

As a result, they are offering new promotion packages and improved services to keep customers.

Air Busan, the budget carrier of Asiana Airlines, the nation’s second-largest carrier, said recently that it “will compete with KTX directly by offering flights from Seoul to Busan once every 30 minutes and from Busan to Seoul once every 60 minutes.”

“In addition, we are planning to offer discounts to passengers in contrast to KTX, which has raised its prices by 4,000 won ($3.58),” said an official from Air Busan last week during the airline’s second-anniversary celebrations.

Air Busan and Korean Air are the major carriers offering flights to Busan.

To help keep business customers, Air Busan is extending discount rates to company officials who fly domestic routes.

The carrier is also offering a 20 percent discount on flights between Busan and Gimpo.

An average one-way flight from Seoul to Busan on Air Busan costs 74,600 won, including the air tax fee, while a KTX ticket on the route costs 55,500 won on the weekend. With the 20 percent discount, a one-way flight to Busan would cost 52,400 won.

Meanwhile, Air Busan is also trying to increase profits by offering more international flights. The carrier said it is planning service between Busan and Cebu in the Philippines and the Busan-Taipei route by next January.

source

First Day of Gyeongbu HSR 2nd Phase Commercial Operation (November. 1)

[ruready1000]

New Rail Section to Cut Travel Time to Incheon Airport

Travel between Seoul Station and Incheon International Airport will get faster and more convenient, with express trains traveling the distance in 43 minutes and regular trains in 53 minutes.

Travelers can also conveniently check in their luggage at Seoul Station before heading to the airport.

The Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs Ministry said Wednesday, “The Phase 2 section (20.4-kilometer section linking Seoul Station and the airport) of the Korail Airport Railroad will be opened on Dec. 29 following the Phase 1 section (37.6-kilometer section linking Gimpo and Incheon airports) that opened earlier.”

The entire section of the airport railroad is thus nearing completion 10 years after the project began in April 2001. A traveler can ride a KTX bullet train from Daejeon and arrive at Seoul Station (53-58 minutes), then reach the Incheon airport via the airport rail in 43 minutes.

This means a combined travel time from Daejeon to Incheon airport of one hour, 35 minutes.

A city airport terminal will be installed on the second floor of Seoul Station to handle the issuance of boarding passes and luggage check-in. The boarding process and luggage check-in can be done directly at the station, allowing air passengers to comfortably travel to the airport.

Checked luggage will be loaded onto freight cars of express trains and taken to the airport before being loaded on airplanes, thus creating a de facto airport terminal in the city center. Travelers, however, must undergo departure processing at the airport, including body screening to check for explosives and passport inspection.

The travel time of regular trains stopping at all stations between Seoul Station and the Incheon airport will be 53 minutes for a fare of 5,300 won (4.79 U.S. dollars). That of express trains will be 43 minutes for a fare of 13,300 won (12 dollars).

A ministry official said, “The reason for the price being more than double just for a 10-minute difference in travel time is that normal trains consist primarily of cars designed for standing, while express trains come with designated seats.”

Normal trains run at an interval of six minutes between Seoul Station and Geomam Station in Incheon, while they will run at a 12-minute interval between Geomam and Incheon airport. The express trains will run at a 30-minute interval.

The ministry is consulting with the Seoul Metropolitan Government and Gyeonggi Province on discounts for transfers in the Seoul metropolitan region to the Seoul-Geomam Station section.

Started in 2001, the Korail Airport Railroad project opened the Phase 1 section in March 2007. The number of travelers using the rail, however, is just an average of 28,000 per day. With the launch of the Phase 2 section, the number is expected to skyrocket to around 100,000 per day.

The ministry also plans to enable travelers to use the airport railway at Yongsan Station.

source

[Alexriga]

With such price difference I will take regular one

[kominam]

A South Korean consortium, comprised of 15 companies including Korea Rail Network Authority (KRNA), KORAIL, Hyundai Rotem, Hyundai Heavy Industries and Samsung C&T, is spurring its efforts to win a $20 billion contract to participate in a high-speed railway project in Brazil. The Korean consortium is focusing particularly on addressing its financing problem. Selection of preferred bidders is 50 days ahead from now.

The members of the consortium are very careful in filling out the bid proposal form for the project, which is scheduled to be completed and submitted by next month, since current conditions have been favorable for the Korean consortium, for example bidding qualifications and business content.

According to Korea’s Railway Project Team for the High-Speed Rail project in Brazil, the Korean consortium is having much contact with Brazilian local financial and construction companies to receive financing. When the financing planning is completed, the consortium will be able to submit its bid proposal by November 29.

Overseen by the Brazilian federal government, the high-speed railway project is expected to be completed by 2016 before the Rio de Janeiro Olympics. The railway will travel across an approximate 520km with a maximum speed of 300km/h. It will connect Rio de Janeiro and Sao Palou and Campinas.

Competitive bidders are from Korea, China, Japan, France and Germany.

The Brazilian press views the Korean consortium a highly likely candidate for winning the project, because it was Korea Railroad Research Institute (KRRI) that played a decisive role in making adjustments to the initial plan for the railway project in 2006 when the country was struggling through the undertaking. The current project team in Brazil was actually split from the KRRI.

The local project team made best efforts during the past four years in altering bidding requirements and other business details more favorable for the Korean consortium.

Some point out that generous contract terms offered by Korea have been very attractive to Brazil, which Korea promised to provide every document from know-how on operation to trail-and-errors.

“When Italy and Germany led the project in 2006, it failed. But Brazil accepted Korea’s proposals and announced them as a confirmed business. Unlike the advanced countries which refused to transfer their railway technology and intended to sell only some parts of the railway system, Korea promised a complete transfer of technology leaving other competitors behind,” President of the KRRI Choi Sung-gyu said.

http://news.mk.co.kr/english/newsRea...wonNo=&sID=308

What's the contract terms about this? after the tech transfer Brazil will be able to compete with Korea in the future or prohibits it from doing this?

[k.k.jetcar]

The Brazilian press views the Korean consortium a highly likely candidate for winning the project, because it was Korea Railroad Research Institute (KRRI) that played a decisive role in making adjustments to the initial plan for the railway project in 2006 when the country was struggling through the undertaking. The current project team in Brazil was actually split from the KRRI.

The local project team made best efforts during the past four years in altering bidding requirements and other business details more favorable for the Korean consortium.

I don't know the regulations for bidding in a country like Brazil (or perhaps it is bad reporting on the part of this publication) but doesn't this raise red flags in terms of conflict of interest? Shouldn't the bidding requirements be set (or changed) by the government of Brazil, not by a foreign project team?

[ruready1000]

Originally Posted by k.k.jetcar

I don't know the regulations for bidding in a country like Brazil (or perhaps it is bad reporting on the part of this publication) but doesn't this raise red flags in terms of conflict of interest? Shouldn't the bidding requirements be set (or changed) by the government of Brazil, not by a foreign project team?

The Brazilian press views the Korean consortium a highly likely candidate for winning the project, because it was Korea Railroad Research Institute (KRRI) that played a decisive role in making adjustments to the initial plan for the railway project in 2006 when the country was struggling through the undertaking. The current project team in Brazil was actually split from the KRRI.

The local project team made best efforts during the past four years in altering bidding requirements and other business details more favorable for the Korean consortium.

It's just two things about :

KRRI's claim : they played some roles(if true) when the project was on its early stage, so it's favorable for them, so not much meaning in this claim.

The local project team(=Korean Consortium For Bazil HSR Project) is lobbying to alter bidding requirements and other business details more favorable for the Korean consortium.

[ruready1000]

Originally Posted by kominam

What's the contract terms about this? after the tech transfer Brazil will be able to compete with Korea in the future or prohibits it from doing this?

I think we can know it only after the bidding or constract is confirmed, and judging from the previous cases, there are little chances that we can know the details of the contract.

[ruready1000]

Railway Photos in Yeosu on Geolla Line









source : yellowsupe at dcinside.com

[ruready1000]

Improvement of Gyeongjeon Line and Construction of Busan Newport Railway


Local Tv Program about Gyeongjeon Line Improvement Project for KTX service and Construction of Busan Newport Railway