A-Train aka Jeongseon Arirang A-Train () is a South Korean
tourist train operated by
Korail
The Korea Railroad Corporation () is the national railway operator in South Korea. It is branded as KORAIL () and changed its official Korean name () in November 2019. Currently, KORAIL is a public corporation, managed by Ministry of Land, ...
. The train began operations in 2015 and transports tourists through
Jeongseon County in central
Gangwon-do.
Overview
The train opened on January 22, 2015, from
Cheongnyangni Station in northeastern
Seoul
Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...
and passes through several stations in Gangwon-do, including Mindungsan and
Jeongseon, which hosts the "Jeongseon Five-day Market", and arriving at Auraji Station.
The "A" in the train's name comes from "
Arirang" (a Korean folk song), and the words "amazement" and "adventure". The song has many variations, and the Jeongseon Arirang is a regional one.
The song is listed as an
Intangible Cultural Heritage
An intangible cultural heritage (ICH) is a practice, representation, expression, knowledge, or skill considered by UNESCO to be part of a place's cultural heritage. Buildings, historic places, monuments, and artifacts are cultural property. In ...
by
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
and sometimes regarded as an unofficial anthem of Korea.
The train has four themed cars with large windows and glass walls; one is a sky room, one a tea room, and two of the cars are decorated in regional colors of red, yellow, blue and purple
representing Jeongseon's geographical features such as the
Dong River and the mountain ridges.
The train's exterior includes a purple color for the
pulsatilla, Jeongseon's official flower,
and is decorated with curves that symbolize the Arirang melody.
Activities on the train include storytelling, music, magic shows and quiz games.
The new line to Jeongseon is the first train to be named after a Korean town, and generated additional local interest due to the proximity of the scheduled
2018 Winter Olympics
The 2018 Winter Olympics (), officially the XXIII Olympic Winter Games (; ) and also known as PyeongChang 2018 (), were an international winter multi-sport event held between 9 and 25 February 2018 in Pyeongchang County, South Ko ...
in
Pyeongchang, a nearby town.
On February 19, 2024, the track was damaged due to a rockfall between Mindungsan Mountain and Byeoleogok, and service between Mindungsan Mountain and Auraji was suspended indefinitely from the 22nd.
집채만한 바위가 철길 위로 '쿵'…정선역 가는 철로 휘어 정선아리랑열차 중단
강원도민일보 (February 19, 2024)
Operations
*Started running: January 22, 2015
*Stations: Cheongnyangni station - Mindungsan station - Byeoreogok station - Sonpyong station - Jeongseon station - Najeon station - Auraji station
References
External links
A-Train at Korail
{{Korail Tourist train Services
Passenger trains of the Korail
Tourist trains in South Korea