The first train sets for Phase 1 of Gwangju Metro Line 2 — running between City Hall, World Cup Stadium, Baegun Square, Chosun University and Gwangju Station — arrived at the depot Wednesday, marking the start of full-scale preparations for service.
Starting with Wednesday's delivery, 17 train sets (34 cars) will be brought in sequentially through November in preparation for trial operations.
A train set is a complete, self-contained unit made up of multiple cars linked together to carry passengers in regular service.
The Line 2 trains are rubber-tired light rail vehicles, each two-car set carrying up to 153 passengers. The line is designed to transport 230,000 passengers a day, with trains running every five minutes during peak hours and every 10 minutes at other times.
The city plans to carry out main-line trial runs and comprehensive railway system tests in stages beginning next year, with a target of completing the Phase 1 opening in December 2028 on schedule.
The 17 Phase 1 train sets were manufactured at a factory in Ochang, North Chungcheong Province, with production beginning in April 2025 and finishing in August this year.
Performance and running tests that began in Gyeongsan, North Gyeongsang Province, in September will continue through November before the trains are delivered to the depot.
Once at the depot, the trains will undergo integration tests with electrical, signaling and communications systems to verify normal operation and compatibility across all subsystems.
The trains will then run on the depot's test track — 2,500 kilometers for the initial set and 1,000 kilometers for each mass-production set — to verify running performance and safety.
They will also travel the approximately 17-kilometer main line to conduct comprehensive checks on compatibility with railway infrastructure, including electrical, signaling, communications and track systems, as well as overall running safety.
The contract for manufacturing and purchasing the Line 2 train sets and maintenance equipment is valued at 91.77 billion won ($68.5 million), with Woojin Industrial Systems supplying 33 train sets and 88 types of maintenance equipment.
The train sets are being built in two batches — 17 for Phase 1 and 16 for Phase 2 — with Korea Railway Vehicle Engineering overseeing manufacturing and supervision.
Park Geum-hwa, head of the integrated city's urban railway construction division, said the depot delivery of the Phase 1 trains was "the starting gun for full-scale trial operations ahead of the Gwangju Metro Line 2 opening," adding that the city would "thoroughly verify the compatibility and safety of the vehicles and railway facilities, and transparently disclose the status of key construction milestones and opening preparations."
sij@heraldcorp.com
