Last month Korail announced that commuter trains from Shintan-ri(신탄리) to Dongducheon(동두천) would begin operating again from the 21st of March after restoring the Choseong Bridge in Yeoncheon. The bridge was washed away by 637㎜ of torrential rain in July last year, cutting off several northern stations on the Gyeongwon Line (경원선) from the rail network including Shintan-ri, Yeoncheon(연천) and Hantangang(한탄강). Shintan-ri Station is South Korea’s most northern rail terminus in use and lies just several kilometres south of the DMZ.
Originally services were scheduled to resume on March 1st but an error in the production of parts caused delays in construction. In the same article from Yonhap, one member of the military commented that construction needed to be finished quickly as the economy of the area is also suffering. A timetable for resumed services can be viewed here. (Korean)
The Gyeongwon Line officially starts at Yongsan Station and over the years more northern stations have been gradually integrated into the Line 1 network. Look out for an upcoming post about an extension which will open up the possibility of reconnecting the line with North Korea’s rail system.
