POSTED: December 30th 2010

NewsUpdate

PyeongChang 2018: New high speed rail cuts travel times

Gangwon Gov. Kwang Jae Lee (L) speaks with Former Prime Minister Han Seung-soo, Korean President Lee Myung-bak (center), and Gyeonggi Province Gov. Kim Moon-soo at the train inauguration / lake images

(L to R) Korean actor Ji-sub So and Governor Lee inaugurated the Korean Wave Tourist Train / Gangwon Province

NIKKI WICKS / Sports Features Communications

LONDON, SEOUL, Dec 30: PyeongChang’s 2018 Winter Olympic bid has been boosted by the launch of a new high-speed rail service linking Seoul to the Gangwon Province.

The Gyeongchun Line officially opened its new double-track train service last week, cutting travel time between Seoul’s Sangbong Station and Chuncheon to 79 minutes – a 30 minute reduction on the previous Mugungwha service.

An express train cuts an additional 10 minutes off the journey, allowing tourists to reach the popular winter sports destination in just 63 minutes,

The above-ground subway will run 137 times a day at an interval of 20 minutes and 12 minutes during rush hours.

Chuncheon is the capital of South Korea’s Gangwon Province, which is home to PyeongChang’s 2018 Winter Olympic bid and is South Korea’s most popular winter sports destination.

To celebrate the new service, Korail Tourism Development has launched a special Korean Wave Tour Train that will host various events allowing tourists to experience traditional Korean culture. 

The service, which began on 25 December, will run on Saturdays and Sundays until 25 September 2011.

Meanwhile, South Korea has also opened a direct railway connecting downtown Seoul with the country’s main airport, a further move to improve the convenience of travelers.

The service connects Seoul Station in the central part of the capital city with Gimpo Airport, and will reduce travel time and cost for passengers bound for Incheon International Airport (IIA) station, located at the country’s largest airport. Passengers can go from downtown Seoul to IIA in about 28 minutes.

PyeongChang is competing against Munich and Annecy to host the 2018 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. The decision will be voted at the IOC session in Durban, South Africa next July.

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