The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs of the Republic of Korea (Minister: H.E. Mr. Kwon, Do-Youp) announced that the next generation high speed train (HEMU-430X) with its maximum speed 430km/h, currently under development and being pilot operated as a national R & D project of Korea, has recorded 354.64km per hour, rewriting the maximum speed record of Korea's high speed railway history.

The previous record was 352.4km/h recorded by a Korean style high speed train at the 350km/h then under development on December 16, 2004.

The pilot operation, designed to break the 350km/h mark of the HEMU-430X, took place from the night of Saturday, September 8 to the dawn next day on Sunday on the 9th.

In the presence of the press, MLTM officials, and 50 researchers of the Korea Railroad Research Institute who had been conducting their technology development research for the past five years, the train departed the Busan station at 11:30am, and ratcheted up its speed to reach the 354.64km/h mark at 12:03am at the dawn of Sunday on the 9th, arriving at the East Daegu station 41 minutes after its departure.

The HEMU-430X has been going through a stabilization process of its operation through functional tests of its systems by increasing operation speeds at night, a time period during which KTX trains don't operate in the Busan-Gomo 120km section on the Gyeongbu Line, twice a week from June this year.

As of September 9, the train's accumulated operation distance reached approximately 10,000km, having completed and showing great results in all its tests in such areas as driving safety, electric contact functions that are necessary to be supplied with power, traffic signal systems, track safety, and bridge safety.

The HEMU-430X is being planned to continue its march of breaking new grounds in Korea's high speed railway history in the years ahead, so that by the end of this year, its final goal of reaching a maximum speed of 430km will be realized, and till the year 2015, through an operation test of 100,000km, its commercialization will start to be pursued.

The MLTM stated, "The HEMU-430X is excellent in its acceleration, deceleration functions as its power is dispersed throughout each of the cars in a train unlike the existing KTX trains that have their powers concentrated on the engine locomotives at both ends of the trains.  In addition, the HEMU-430X will solve such problems as delayed departures derived from chronic malfunctions, and it also will bring about increased operational efficiency and reduced operation duration, as it is possible to be assigned flexibly," adding, "The MLTM will be continue its efforts to make Korea become one of the leading countries in the world when it comes to the high speed train technology, through which Korea's competitiveness in the global market will be strengthened.  This will contribute to increasing of the benefits brought to the citizens of Korea, boosting the national economy as a new engine of growth.  Thus, the high speed train technology of Korea will continue to be developed with those goals in mind by the Korean government."