Over 1,000 windows broken since 2021, with 51% of damage occurring in winter months

Each replacement averages 4.55 million won, with French-made glass alone costing 3 million won per pane

A KTX train [Yonhap]
A KTX train [Yonhap]

Windows on high-speed trains including KTX and SRT have been damaged more than 1,000 times since 2021, costing over 4.6 billion won ($3.41 million) in repairs and replacements. Flying ballast — gravel kicked up from the tracks — was responsible for nearly all of the incidents, with damage concentrated heavily in the winter months, raising growing concerns about recurring maintenance costs and safety management.

Data submitted to Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Hwang Hee of the National Assembly's Land and Transportation Committee by Korea Railroad Corporation, or Korail, showed that high-speed train window damage totaled 1,021 cases from 2021 through September this year. Repair and replacement costs over that period reached 4.65 billion won, averaging about 4.55 million won per incident.

Annual damage figures stood at 157 cases in 2021, 203 in 2022, 213 in 2023, 131 in 2024 and 244 last year — a surge of 86.3 percent from the prior year and the highest in the five-year period. This year, 73 cases were recorded through September. Last year alone, window repair and replacement costs came to 1.11 billion won.

High-speed train windows are not ordinary glass — they are built from multiple layers of glass and film. The windows themselves are expensive: a single pane imported from a French manufacturer costs about 3 million won, and when installation labor is factored in, the cost per incident climbs considerably.

Damage was heavily concentrated in winter. December recorded the most incidents at 227, accounting for 22.2 percent of the total, followed by January with 162 cases (15.9 percent) and February with 132 (12.9 percent). The three winter months combined accounted for 521 cases, or 51 percent of all damage.

Flying ballast caused 1,019 of the 1,021 total cases, or 99.8 percent. Korail said that during high-speed winter operations, snow and ice that accumulate on the underside of trains break loose and strike the track ballast, sending gravel flying into the windows.

Not every broken window is replaced on the spot. Only 67 cases, or 6.6 percent, resulted in immediate on-site replacement. The remaining 954 cases, or 93.4 percent, were handled with temporary measures before the train completed its run and the window was replaced afterward. Cumulative train delays caused by window damage totaled 139 hours, with the longest single delay recorded at one hour and 39 minutes.

Korail said it has implemented preventive measures including reduced speeds in winter, application of ballast stabilizers to keep track gravel in place, and removal of snow and ice from train undersides. The railroad said it is also considering longer-term steps such as upgrading to concrete track beds.

"Despite preventive measures including speed reductions, ballast stabilizer application and snow-and-ice removal, damage continues to recur," Hwang said. "We need to assess the effectiveness of existing measures and incorporate seasonal risk factors into track maintenance and vehicle inspection standards."


kacew@heraldcorp.com