Eco-friendly high-speed train cuts carbon emissions and boosts energy efficiency; Korail earns honor for 15th consecutive year
The Donghae KTX-Eum has been named the 2026 Korea Green Product of the Year, it was announced Tuesday.
With the recognition, Korail has extended its Green Product award streak to 15 consecutive years. The Korea Green Product of the Year is selected annually by the Korea Green Purchasing Network, a nonprofit, through evaluations by experts and consumers assessing the environmental performance of products.
In this year's assessment, the Donghae KTX-Eum underwent an on-site evaluation with a test ride and consumer voting — both online and in person — receiving positive marks across four criteria: eco-friendliness, safety, energy efficiency, and customer communication and service.
Particularly well received was the train's 37 percent reduction in interior noise compared with the existing KTX-Eum — from 70 decibels to 68 decibels — along with the addition of air purification and odor-reduction systems, which together deliver a quieter and more comfortable ride.
The KTX-Eum is a domestically developed distributed-power high-speed train designed to improve acceleration and braking efficiency and reduce energy loss through regenerative braking. The Donghae KTX-Eum, which launched in December last year, runs six times daily between Gangneung Station and Bujeon Station and has carried a cumulative total of about 870,000 passengers as of this month.
Meanwhile, Korail has won the Green Product of the Year award every year since 2012, when the Gyeongbu KTX first received the designation, cementing its reputation for environmentally responsible rail service.
"Winning for 15 consecutive years is a testament to our efforts to enhance the environmental value of rail," said Park Yong-jeong, head of Korail's Carbon Neutrality Promotion Team. "We will continue to actively apply eco-friendly technologies — such as regenerative braking — to improve energy efficiency and contribute to carbon neutrality."
kwonhl@heraldcorp.com
