Korea Train Express

KTX
KTX-Sancheon
Overview
Service type	Inter-city high-speed rail
Status	Operating
Locale	South Korea
First service	1 April 2004; 20 years ago (2004-04-01)
Current operator(s)	Korail
On-board services
Class(es)	First class Superior class Standard class
Disabled access	Fully accessible
Catering facilities	Yes
Entertainment facilities	Yes
Baggage facilities	Yes
Technical
Rolling stock	KTX-I KTX-Sancheon Class 110000 KTX-Sancheon Class 140000 KTX-Eum KTX-Cheongryong
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) Standard gauge
Electrification	25 kV/60 Hz overhead catenary
Operating speed	Up to 305 km/h (190 mph)
Korean name
Hangul	한국고속철도
Hanja	韓國高速鐵道
Revised Romanization	Hanguk Gosok Cheoldo
McCune–Reischauer	Han'guk Kosok Ch'ŏlto
Route map

Korea Train eXpress (Korean: 한국고속철도), often known as KTX (Korean: 케이티엑스; RR: Keitiekseu), is South Korea's high-speed rail system, operated by Korail. Construction began on the high-speed line from Seoul to Busan in 1992. KTX services were launched on April 1, 2004.

From Seoul Station the KTX lines radiate with stops at Seoul Station, Yongsan station towards Busan and Gwangju. A new line from Wonju to Gangneung was completed in December 2017 to serve the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.

The current maximum operating speed for trains in regular service is 305 km/h (190 mph), though the infrastructure is designed for 350 km/h (217 mph).

The initial rolling stock was based on Alstom's TGV Réseau, and was partly built in Korea. The domestically developed HSR-350x, which achieved 352.4 km/h (219.0 mph) in tests, resulted in a second type of high-speed trains now operated by Korail, the KTX-Sancheon, which entered into commercial service in 2010.

The next generation experimental electric multiple unit prototype, HEMU-430X, achieved 421.4 km/h (261.8 mph) in 2013, making South Korea the world's fourth country after Japan, France and China to develop a high-speed train running on conventional rail above 420 km/h (260 mph). It was further developed into commercialised variants, namely KTX-Eum and KTX-Cheongryong, with respective maximum service speeds of 260 km/h (160 mph) and 320 km/h (200 mph), which entered into KTX services in 2021 and 2024, respectively.

In June 2024, South Korea and Uzbekistan concluded a KRW 270 billion (approximately US$196 million) deal to apply KTX technology in Uzbekistan by supplying high-speed trains and Korail expertise.^[1][2]