Rail Services to Operate at 80% Capacity After Seoul Overpass Collapse

SEOUL, May 27 (Yonhap) -- Rail services nationwide are expected to operate at about 80 percent of normal capacity on Wednesday, the state-run rail operator said, following the partial collapse of an overpass near Seoul Station earlier this week. On Tuesday, the Seosomun Overpass, undergoing demolition in Seoul's western ward of Seodaemun, partially collapsed, killing three people and injuring three others. The debris damaged the power supply for the railway between Seoul Station and Sinchon Station, leading to suspensions or route changes for more than 130 trains on Wednesday, according to the Korea Railroad Corp. (KORAIL). KORAIL said it will likely operate a total of 552 rail services on Wednesday, compared with the initially planned 683, forecasting the operation rate for the day at 80.8 percent. The number of high-speed rail services, including KTX trains, is expected to be cut from 331 to 245, which would bring the operation rate to 74 percent. In order to mitigate crowding at Seoul Station, KORAIL earlier said it would operate slower Mugunghwa trains on certain sections, such as between the central city of Daejeon and Busan. KORAIL said it will decide whether to resume normal operations after conducting rail and other inspections once city authorities complete recovery work at the site of the collapse. It also asked rail users to check their train schedules as they could change based on the progress of the recovery efforts.