South Korea
Country Details
Name: South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea; 대한민국; Daehan Minguk
Language: Korean
Currency: South Korean Won (KRW); (₩)
National railway system
National Railway Operator
Korean Railroad (Korail). Travel information and Booking is handled by Let's Korail.
Infrastructure Authority
KRNA Korea Rail Network Authority; 한국철도시설공단
UIC code
numeric 61; alpha KNR
Timetable
Information is available at the Man in Seat 61.
Journey Planner
The Letskorail journey planner.
Downloadable Timetable
The downloaded excel format timetables, both effective from 2 April 2015, are in Korean only but with station names in English as well.
Printed Timetable
None known.
Summary timetables are available in some editions of the European Rail Timetable.
Engineering Information
None.
Maps
Printed Maps
- Quail Map Company's Korea, North and South, Railway Map ISBN: 978 1898319 21 4 was published in 1996.
Web-based Maps
- Korail system map. Clicking on each tab under “Railroad Route Map” highlights each separate route.
- More recent map in Korean characters only
- South Korea Railroad Map; click on “image hosted on flickr” to enlarge the map.
Ticketing
Korea Rail Pass information is available on the Let's Korail website. Note that the Happy Rail Pass appears to be restricted to foreigners who live in Korea.
Infrastructure
Gauge
Standard.
Electrification
25kV 50Hz on all the Korail operated network except the Ilsan Line, AREX 1500V DC on all rapid transit networks including the Korail Ilsan Line
Rule of the road
Left; right on some of the Seoul metro lines not operated by Korail.
Other Railways
None.
Tourist Lines
Metro
Seoul, Busan, Daegu, Gwangju, Daejeon, Incheon.
Trams
None.
Recent and Future Changes
In July 2016, the government approved the following new lines:
- Chuncheon - Sokcho (94 km) in the northeastern province of Gangwon.
And south of Seoul
- A link from the Seoul – Busan high speed line to Eocheon station on the Su-In Line (3.5 km)
- A link at Soejeong-ri (4.7 km) to enable more high speed trains to serve Suwon.
Obscure or Sparse Passenger Services
Special Notes
None.
