Wolmido Galaxy Rail
Encyclopedia
Wolmi Galaxy Rail is a partly completed monorail
but currently non-operational monorail on the island of Wolmido in Incheon
, South Korea
. The line was scheduled to open on March 2010, but opening has been repeatedly postponed. In 2011, Joongang Daily reported that construction has been indefinitely suspended due to "colossal corruption", and that what has been built is set to be demolished due to "safety issues".
The monorail line was to have 4 stations and cover 5.1 km connecting Wolmido Island to Incheon Station
, the west terminus of Seoul Subway Line 1
. 1.15 km is double-tracked, but the loop around Wolmido (3.94 km) is single-track. Phase 2, if built, would have added 2 km single track connecting to Dong-Incheon station, also on Metro Line 1, with a potential Phase 3 looping back to Incheon station.
If opened, the system would be the first in the world to use Urbanaut technology, whose selling point is an inverse T-shaped track: large wheels run on the horizontal part of the track, while small wheels press against the rail and keep it in place. Trains will have a capacity of only 70 passengers.
The cost of the entire system, originally estimated at US$60 million, had risen to 110 billion Korean won
(approx. US$
100 million) before construction was suspended.
Monorail
A monorail is a rail-based transportation system based on a single rail, which acts as its sole support and its guideway. The term is also used variously to describe the beam of the system, or the vehicles traveling on such a beam or track...
but currently non-operational monorail on the island of Wolmido in Incheon
Incheon
The Incheon Metropolitan City is located in northwestern South Korea. The city was home to just 4,700 people when Jemulpo port was built in 1883. Today 2.76 million people live in the city, making it Korea’s third most populous city after Seoul and Busan Metropolitan City...
, South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
. The line was scheduled to open on March 2010, but opening has been repeatedly postponed. In 2011, Joongang Daily reported that construction has been indefinitely suspended due to "colossal corruption", and that what has been built is set to be demolished due to "safety issues".
The monorail line was to have 4 stations and cover 5.1 km connecting Wolmido Island to Incheon Station
Incheon Station
Incheon Station is a metro station on line 1 of the Seoul Subway in Bokseong Dong, Jung Gu, Incheon, South Korea. Travel time from Incheon Station to Seoul Station on Line 1 is 68 minutes, and travelling to Suwon Station in Gyeonggi-do, on the other branch of Line 1 takes 91 minutes, transferring...
, the west terminus of Seoul Subway Line 1
Seoul Subway Line 1
Seoul Subway Line 1 of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway, formerly known as the Korea National Railroad of Seoul, is an operation channel which links central Seoul, South Korea to Soyosan Station in the northeast, Incheon in the southwest, and Asan via Suwon in the south. This line covers a large part...
. 1.15 km is double-tracked, but the loop around Wolmido (3.94 km) is single-track. Phase 2, if built, would have added 2 km single track connecting to Dong-Incheon station, also on Metro Line 1, with a potential Phase 3 looping back to Incheon station.
If opened, the system would be the first in the world to use Urbanaut technology, whose selling point is an inverse T-shaped track: large wheels run on the horizontal part of the track, while small wheels press against the rail and keep it in place. Trains will have a capacity of only 70 passengers.
The cost of the entire system, originally estimated at US$60 million, had risen to 110 billion Korean won
Korean won
The won was the currency of Korea between 1902 and 1910. It was subdivided into 100 chon .-Etymology:Won is a cognate of the Chinese yuan and Japanese yen.-History:...
(approx. US$
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
100 million) before construction was suspended.
See also
- Subways in South KoreaSubways in South KoreaRapid transit subways operate in all of South Korea's seven major cities, except for Ulsan.* Seoul - Seoul Metropolitan Subway * Busan - Busan Metro...
- Seoul Metropolitan SubwaySeoul Metropolitan SubwayThe Seoul Metropolitan Subway or Metropolitan Subway in Seoul, in Seoul, South Korea, is one of the most heavily used rapid transit systems in the world, with well over 8 million trips daily on the system's thirteen lines...