Pohang, an economic and commercial metropolis, has served as one of Korea’s major cities for decades, contributing to the modernization of the nation. Despite its importance, Pohang has less-developed railway infrastructure than other cities.
In 2009, the government launched a project to construct the Shingyeongju-Pohang section of the Donaghae Nambu Line. The project is designed to reinvigorate the local economies of Gyeongsangbuk-do, on the East Coast, and Pohang City, promoting balanced national development.
The Donghae KTX line opened to the public on March 31, five years after the project was launched.
The Pohang KTX project involved the construction of the Shingyeongju-Pohang section of the Donghae Line. Ground was broken on a project to connect the Gyeongbu KTX Line and Donghae Nambu Line in 2011, and 1.21 trillion won has so far been poured.
The Shingyeongju-Pohang portion, now linked to the Gyeongbu KTX Line, has been upgraded with investments to enhance the speed of KTX trains from 150km/h to 200km/h.
Among some 800 people on hand at a ceremony to open the Seoul-Pohang KTX Line at the Shinpohang Station on March 31 were Prime Minister Lee Wan-koo, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Yoo Il-ho, Rep. Lee Byung-suk, chairman of the National Assembly Political Reform Committee, Gyeongsangbuk-do Gov. Kim Kwan-yong, Pohang Mayor Lee Kang-duk, and neighborhood residents.
“The opening of the KTX Line is hoped to usher in an era of communication with people,” Prime Minister Lee said. “Pohang, a symbol of Korea’s industrialization, is now evolving into a maritime hub of the Pan East Sea Sphere covering not only the steel industry but also logistics, and its linkage to KTX services starting from today will likely have a huge growth potential.”
Pohang’s connection with the Donghae Line will usher in a full-fledged era of the East Sea said Lee, adding that the opening of the Pohang-Yeongdeok-Samcheok section of the line by 2018 will be an opportunity to give a shot in the underdeveloped areas.
With the opening of the new KTX line, it takes three hours and five minutes for people to travel from Seoul to Pohang, two hours and 15 minutes shorter than five hours and 20 minutes for the conventional use of Saemaul trains. It dramatically improves transportation to the Gyeongsangbuk-do and East Sea area and will spur the development of the region.
Starting April 2, KTX trains will run on the Seoul-Pohang Line 16 times daily Monday-Thursday, 18 times on Friday, and 20 times on Saturday and Sunday. KTX trains on the line extend their operation into Incheon International Airports twice each day.
In particular, the KTX Pohang Station, a three-story structure with 6,232 sq. meters in floor space, has been newly built at a cost of 29.5 billion won at Iin-ri, Buk-gu, Pohang City. The building has a shape of a whale and waves, symbolizing Pohang City’s dynamic and “iron city” legacy.
The opening of the Seoul-Pohang KTX Line brings KTX services to the Pohang area 11 years after the Seoul-Busan high-speed railway made its debut, and it is expected to serve as an opportunity to raise Pohang as a hub of transportation and logistics in the Pan East Sea Sphere by establishing a railway network linking Gyeongsangbuk-do and the East Sea areas, MOLIT officials said.
The new section is part of the Donghae Line project connecting Busan, Yeodeok and Samcheok via Ulsan and Pohang, which will be a foundation for the government’s so-called Eurasia Transcontinental Railway Initiative to link South Korea, Wonsan, Najin (North Korea), Eurasia and even Europe, they said.
The Pohang-Samcheok section of the Donghae Line is still under construction. The 166.3-km-long portion will be made into a one-track railway at a cost of 3.382 trillion won by 2018.
The construction of the 110.2-km-long Gangneung-Jaejin section of the line, which will cost 2.767 trillion won, will be considered as a mid- and long-term project.
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