Kwak Yeon-soo is a digital editor at The Korea Times creating, editing and curating digital content for the newspaper’s website, mobile app and social media. She previously covered a diverse array of cultural, political and business topics.
KORAIL to inject $7.1 bil. to replace aging equipment
KORAIL CEO Son Byung-seok, center, speaks during a safety management workshop at the KORAIL Human Resources Development Institute in Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province, Aug. 31. / Courtesy of KORAIL
By Kwak Yeon-soo
By Kwak Yeon-soo
The Korea Railroad Corporation (KORAIL) will inject 8.7 trillion won ($7.1 billion) over the next five years to replace aging facilities as part of efforts to prevent accidents, the operator of the country's KTX bullet train service said Sunday.
The money allocated for promoting passenger safety will be supported by both KORAIL and the government.
KORAIL held a two-day “Safety Management” workshop in Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province on Aug. 30 and 31, to re-emphasize its commitment to passenger safety. About 40 high-ranking officials, including CEO Son Byung-seok, attended the event.
“Our top priority is to rebuild passengers' trust by building safe railroads,” said Son. “We will consolidate our organizational capability and safety management system to increase safety checks and prevent accidents.”
Most of KORAIL's operation malfunctions have been caused by production defects. The safety issue drew special attention when a KTX-Gangneung train derailed last Dec. 8 while traveling to Seoul from Gangneung.
The railway operator also vowed to develop passenger-centric safety guidelines and take pre-emptive measures to replace aging and possibly faulty components.
KORAIL officials shared ideas on ways to recover from long-term debt and operating losses. The company recorded an operating loss of more than 105 billion won ($86.7 million) last year.
The railway operator also shared some of the best practices regarding safety and the relationship between management and the labor union.
The company said it will combine all innovative ideas from the workshop and incorporate them into solving real-world problems in the latter half of this year.