South Korea has started to move the needle on clean energy in the rail sector under “Green New Deal.” The government aims to reduce carbon emissions from rail industry by about 30 percent by phasing out its fleet of diesel trains by 2029.
Transport is the second largest source of emissions in the country.
South Korea’s diesel-only trains which generated 235,000 tons of emissions in 2019 alone are being replaced gradually with a new fleet of EMU-250 high-speed bullet trains.
KTX-Eum is a six-car train with 381 seats, and it can run at a maximum speed of 260 kilometers (162 miles), 40kph slower than the regular KTX. Manufactured by Hyundai Rotem, the train is emblematic of South Korea’s exemplary strides in rail industry.
The high-speed electrical multiple unit train “KTX-Eum” made its debut on 5th of January, 2021. The new train is unique in many ways: It is a low carbon eco-friendly train which was designed to offer riders with pleasant travel experience; KTX-Eum’s cozy seats feature legroom, USB ports, wider armrests, wireless charging pads and free internet connection; Its carbon emission is about 15 percent of passenger cars and 70 percent of diesel locomotives; and the train is also fitted with lithium-polymer batteries unlike the KTX trains in service with nickel-cadmium batteries.
Moreover, KTX-Eum uses domestic fourth-generation rail wireless communication network – the very first application of LTE-R technology to high-speed bullet trains like KTX-Eum in the world.
Most importantly, KTX-Eum boasts evenly distributed power system unlike the current KTX bullet trains whose power is concentrated on the locomotives at the back and front of the train. This offers higher capacity and improved acceleration-deceleration performance.
KTX-Eum Specifications
| Specification | Detail |
|---|---|
| Train type | EMU-250 |
| Cars | 6 |
| Total seats | 381 (46 first class, 335 standard) |
| Max speed | 260 km/h (162 mph) |
| Manufacturer | Hyundai Rotem |
| Battery | Lithium-polymer |
| Communication | LTE-R (4th generation) |
| Power system | Evenly distributed |
| Debut | January 5, 2021 |
The train has two compartments: first class compartment which consists of 46 seats and standard class compartments with 335 seats. In addition, it has 4 standard lavatories and an accessible lavatory. As for accessible seating, there are three priority seats and two wheelchair designated places.
KTX-Eum has already started its operations between Cheongnyangni and Shingyeongju stations on the central line, reducing travel time between Seoul and North Gyeongsang province from three hours and 54 minutes to only two hours.
A plan to build a 320kph KTX-Eum model by Hyundai Rotem is also in the offing.
While the ambitious goal of taking diesel locomotives off the track by 2029 puts South Korea on the path to carbon-neutrality by 2050, it is not a no-brainer in a country whose energy sector is characterized by the dominance of fossil fuel.