Inter-Korean railway projects, its symbolic meaning and future prospects
- 6 years ago
After having jointly inspecting the Donghae Line last Friday, officials from Seoul and Pyongyang are conducting a joint inspection today on the North Korean side of the Gyeongui Line.
Our Kim Hyesung reports on the meaning of the move and the future prospects for inter-Korean transport projects.
On May 17th, 2007.
Two trains crossed the Military Demarcation Line that separates the two Koreas. They traveled along two railways, the Gyeongui Line in the west, and the Donghae Line in the east, in the first trial runs since the Korean War.
Jejin Station is the northeasternmost station in South Korea, about 6km from the DMZ and 10 km from the North's Kamho Station.
It's one of the stops on the Donghae Line that runs to North Korea's Mount Kumkang Station.
After being left empty for about a decade since train services stopped in 2008, Jejin Station could possibly see trains from North Korea coming in again.
Officials from Seoul and Pyeongyang have begun joint inspections into the Donghae Line and Gyeongui Line railway sections on the North Korean side as part of the Panmunjom Declaration.
Reconnecting inter-Korean transport links is also part of President Moon Jae-in's new economic roadmap, which aims to connect South Korea with the North via the Donghae Line and Gyeongui Line, and connect to Russia, China, and Europe through the Trans-Siberian Railway and Trans-China Railway.
If completed, the railways would enable free movement of people and resources between the two Koreas, and also cut transport times between South Korea and Europe by a third compared to sea routes.
For it to succeed, however, experts say a step by step approach and funding is key.
"It's not just the railways themselves, electricity and other infrastructure would need to be built in the North. North Korean trains are also mostly outdated, and run at a speed of about 30 kilometers an hour. All this improvement requires enormous funding and years of work. With North Korea under UN sanctions, direct global financing is impossible. So in order to find sources of funding, cooperation with the global community would also be needed."
Under current UN Sanctions, technology transfers or direct economic projects in the North are banned.
South Korea's transport ministry says it plans to start restoring the severed sections in the South first, like the section between Jejin and Gangneung on the Donghae Line starting later this year, as a first step towards reconnecting inter-Korean transport.
Kim Hyesung, Arirang News.
Our Kim Hyesung reports on the meaning of the move and the future prospects for inter-Korean transport projects.
On May 17th, 2007.
Two trains crossed the Military Demarcation Line that separates the two Koreas. They traveled along two railways, the Gyeongui Line in the west, and the Donghae Line in the east, in the first trial runs since the Korean War.
Jejin Station is the northeasternmost station in South Korea, about 6km from the DMZ and 10 km from the North's Kamho Station.
It's one of the stops on the Donghae Line that runs to North Korea's Mount Kumkang Station.
After being left empty for about a decade since train services stopped in 2008, Jejin Station could possibly see trains from North Korea coming in again.
Officials from Seoul and Pyeongyang have begun joint inspections into the Donghae Line and Gyeongui Line railway sections on the North Korean side as part of the Panmunjom Declaration.
Reconnecting inter-Korean transport links is also part of President Moon Jae-in's new economic roadmap, which aims to connect South Korea with the North via the Donghae Line and Gyeongui Line, and connect to Russia, China, and Europe through the Trans-Siberian Railway and Trans-China Railway.
If completed, the railways would enable free movement of people and resources between the two Koreas, and also cut transport times between South Korea and Europe by a third compared to sea routes.
For it to succeed, however, experts say a step by step approach and funding is key.
"It's not just the railways themselves, electricity and other infrastructure would need to be built in the North. North Korean trains are also mostly outdated, and run at a speed of about 30 kilometers an hour. All this improvement requires enormous funding and years of work. With North Korea under UN sanctions, direct global financing is impossible. So in order to find sources of funding, cooperation with the global community would also be needed."
Under current UN Sanctions, technology transfers or direct economic projects in the North are banned.
South Korea's transport ministry says it plans to start restoring the severed sections in the South first, like the section between Jejin and Gangneung on the Donghae Line starting later this year, as a first step towards reconnecting inter-Korean transport.
Kim Hyesung, Arirang News.