Together with the opening of the Honam High Speed Railway on 2 April, the new high speed Donghae (East Sea) Line opens up from Moryang (모량) to a new Pohang Station (포항) on 2 April. This will mean that Pohang residents finally have access to the KTX connections that many other cities in the Gyeongsang Provinces have had for quite a while now. Tickets went on sale last week along with tickets for the Honam Railway.
Stations on the new 35.1km line are Moryang which connects with the standard railway, Naweon (나원), Angang (안강), Bujo (부조) and Pohang. The line to the current Hyoja (효자) and Pohang Stations will be closed. Another station 간천 (Geoncheon) will also open up as part of the “Geoncheon connection line” which is needed to effectively control new and future rail traffic travelling between the surrounding areas. (If you’re a real geek and want to know more about this then let me know and maybe I’ll write some more about it later.)
Now if you live in Pohang then the bad news is how far the station is from the centre of town. As was the case with other new KTX stations in the Gyeongsang province, since high speed rail needs to be as straight as possible the new Pohang Station isn’t exactly in the middle of town. Use the map below which is centred in on the location of the new station, to view the distance from the station to the city. No doubt there will be bus routes created or changed to feed in to the station such as the 210 bus which will only stop at certain bus stops to reduce delays.
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Of course the media is already talking about the lack of public transport to the station which is always the case when a new station opens in a different area. I’m sure that with time the number of buses passing through the station will increase. Local and provincial authorities, Korail and intercity bus companies have already been meeting together with some companies saying that they can’t stop at the new station as they are worried about a lack of passengers on such services. On the other hand Korail says that they need good public transport in place otherwise it will make it difficult for users to access the station and for the station itself to carry out its role of a direct high speed line to the rest of the country.
Let us know if you use the new KTX line to Pohang. I’ll update this page with any other related information in the near future.
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Thanks, as usual, Andy. I'm always happy to know the latest, even though since I live in Seoul, this line won't be something I use very often.
For those who live in Daegu, however, it could be of use since Pohang (not much of an attraction in and of itself) is the gateway to Ulleung Island for those living in that part of the country. The island is certainly worth a visit for those living in Korea.
Also, about 30 min by bus from Pohang is the pretty nice Bogyoung Temple (Bogyeongsa, 보경사), which is nice in the spring time with plenty of azaleas to complement the temple itself. It's near Naeyeon Mountain (Naeyeonsan, 내연산), which is famous in Korea for its waterfalls (which are nice; but if you've been to Iguazu, Victoria, or Niagara, don't get your hopes up). Might be worth a weekend trip from Daegu.
Websites with info on Ulleung Island and Bogyeoung Temple:
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/south-korea/gyeongsangbuk-do/ulleungdo
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_6.jsp?cid=1905614
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/south-korea/gyeongsangbuk-do/pohang/sights/religious/bogyeong-sa
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=806303
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=806276
Thanks again, Andy, and I'll report back if I take the train or talk to anyone who does.
Thanks James. This one was written in a bit of a rush but wanted to get it out. Thanks for the links - could definitely be handy for someone looking for things to do there. :)
"If you’re a real geek and want to know more about this then let me know and maybe I’ll write some more about it later."
Did you have to ask? ;)
Haha, well it's good to know there are some people interested. Maybe I'll add a little to the post this weekend. :) Thanks for reading.
You might have seen it already but I finally added a bit more info. https://kojects.com/2015/04/19/some-extra-info-geoncheon-connection/ :)
You know, considering how little the Korean government has shown itself to care about evicting people from their lands and exercising strong eminent domain claims, I don't know why they can't put KTX stations in city centers. Worse come to worse, they could build extensive under-city rail tunnels to avoid all that. Korean companies love construction projects, so why not use that often-damaging drive to utilize high-speed rail in the most efficient manner possible?
@Luke
Eminent domain is a big issue for sure.
One of the worst eminent domain abuses by the Korean government is chronicled in the Korean documentary, "Two Doors" (두 개의 문) about people being evicted from their homes in the Yongsan area of Seoul to make way for the “Dream Hub” project that failed and was ultimately abandoned in the beginning of 2013. http://www.sidof.org/548
Collusion with the United States also evicted farmers from badly needed productive farmland around Pyeongtaek to make way for the (yet to be realized) army base there that is supposed to take the place of the one at Yongsan.
With the KTX lines, the use of eminent domain can at least be argued to have some social and economic justification, though the government's conduct is certainly suspect.
Why is there no service at Moryang? It seems like a useful connection point. and can you please tell us more about the Geoncheon connection?
I believe normal trains stop there but not the KTX as SinGyeongju Station is just around the corner. Will have a tiny bit more info on the Geoncheon connection soon. Thanks for your comment!
You might have seen it already but I finally added a bit more info in my latest post. https://kojects.com/2015/04/19/some-extra-info-geoncheon-connection/ :)