Korean State Railways
| Korean State Railways 조선 민주주의 인민 공화국 철도성 朝鮮民主主義人民共和國 鐵道 省 Chosŏn Minjujuŭi Inmin Konghwaguk Ch'ŏltosŏng
|
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| legal form | State company |
| founding | September 1948 |
| Seat |
 Pyongyang
|
| management | Jon Kil-su |
| Branch | Transport / logistics |
| As of September 22, 2016 | |
.jpg)
The Korean State Railways ( kor. 조선 민주주의 인민 공화국 철도성) is the state railway company in North Korea . Due to the low level of motorization , it is the country's most important means of transport. The headquarters are in Pyongyang Central Station . The Minister of Railways also heads the state-owned company; Jon Kil-su is currently in office.
history
The company was founded in September 1948. When it was founded, it was already possible to fall back on the route network from the time when Korea was a Japanese colony , including rolling stock , train stations , etc. In the Korean War , much of the equipment was destroyed.
Since December 11, 2007 there was again a railway connection to South Korea . After the death of a South Korean tourist in July 2008, this connection was discontinued.
In 2010, the Korean State Railways began building the first high-speed line from Pyongyang to Sinŭiju together with China Railways . Another high-speed line to Wonsan is being planned. At the end of August 2015, 51 train stations were damaged or destroyed by floods, some of which were severe, in the northeast of the country .
On the occasion of Kim Jong-uns' New Year's address on January 1, 2016, it was announced that the modernization of the railroad would be continued and accelerated.
From July 24, 2018, experts from the north and south will jointly evaluate which routes will be connected to the Korail network . This is seen as a further sign of the détente policy between North and South Korea. According to experts, modernizing the partially ailing route network would take decades and cost billions. The first trip was delayed on November 30, 2018. This was the first cross-border train journey in a good 10 years. On December 26, 2018, a symbolic groundbreaking ceremony took place not far from Kaesŏng , with 200 representatives from North and South Korea, the People's Republic of China and Mongolia as well as Russia and UNESCAP present.
Rolling stock
Since 2001, the Korean State Railways has been using former GI subway cars for suburban traffic in the provincial cities , which were previously used on the Pyongyang Metro . The Kim Chong-tae electric locomotive works, also located in Pyongyang, are an important supplier of rolling stock .
Facilities
The Korean State Railways also operates various facilities, including:
Route network
In 2009, the route network covered a length of 5242 kilometers, of which 3500 kilometers are electrified. The track width is 1435 millimeters, and the company also operates a number of narrow-gauge railways with a gauge of 762 millimeters. On the 54 kilometer long Chassan – Rajin railway line there is the Russian broad gauge (1520 mm).
Accidents
Ryongchon Railway Accident
On April 22, 2004, the worst accident in the company's history to date occurred in Ryongchŏn .
Train fire in Siniju
On July 9, 2020 around 11:00 a.m., a serious fire broke out in the border town of Sinŭiju at Sinŭiju train station . A freight train coming from Dandong was loaded with 10 wagons of cooking oil and 5 wagons of soybean oil . The local fire brigade could not start extinguishing work until an hour and a half later. All 15 wagons and a warehouse were destroyed. There is currently no information on personal injury or the cause of the fire.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ N.Korea's former Railways Minister Executed. In: http://english.chosun.com/ . The Chosun Ilbo, July 15, 2010, accessed September 22, 2016 .
- ↑ spiegel.de. After 50 years: North and South Korea resume rail traffic
- ^ NK Briefs. In: ifes.kyungnam.ac.kr. Retrieved December 16, 2015 .
- ↑ Jo Nam Il: We will accelerate the modernization of the railway system. Naenara, January 1, 2016, accessed January 2, 2016 .
- ^ Deutsche Welle (www.dw.com): South and North Korea want to reactivate rail connections | DW | 06/26/2018. KOREAN PENINSULA. In: https://www.dw.com . Deutsche Welle , June 26, 2018, accessed June 27, 2018 .
- ↑ Patrick Welter, Tokyo: Railway diplomacy: A train travels from South to North Korea . In: FAZ.NET . ISSN 0174-4909 ( faz.net [accessed December 16, 2018]).
- ↑ dpa: Approach: South and North Korea lay the foundation stone for rail and road connections. The two states are continuing on the path of rapprochement. With the joint project they want to expand their economic relations. In: handelsblatt.com. Handelsblatt GmbH, December 26, 2018, accessed on January 13, 2019 .
- ↑ Hayato Kokubu, 将軍 様 の 鉄 道 北 朝鮮 鉄 道 事情, 2007, Shinchosha, Tokyo, ISBN 978-4-10-303731-6
- ↑ Florian Schmidt: A Glimpse of North Korea's Railways. In: The International Steam Pages. February 2003, accessed September 29, 2015 .
- ↑ Joonho Kim, Leejin Jun (translation), Eugene Whong (English text): Fire Visible From China Destroys Train and Warehouse at North Korean Station. In: rfa.org. Radio Free Asia , July 10, 2020, accessed July 14, 2020 .
