In a significant safety measure, workers will be prohibited from boarding the exterior of freight cars during railway operations involving the connection and disconnection of train cars. This decision follows three fatal accidents in the past decade, all of which occurred during the reverse movement of trains where visibility for the engineer was compromised and workers were on the outside of the freight cars.
According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, an average of approximately 1,370 railway operations occur daily across 115 stations nationwide. Of these operations, 41.4% involve workers boarding the vehicles. Over the past decade, three fatalities and seven injuries have been reported in related incidents.
Accidents have been reported at Gwangwoon University Station in 2017, Obong Station in 2022, and most recently in August at Uiwang Station, where a 50-year-old employee of Korail was killed after being run over during freight train operations.
In response, the Ministry has decided to ban workers from boarding the exterior of freight cars during reverse movements. In cases where boarding is unavoidable due to long-distance travel, workers will be required to remain inside the locomotive. Procedures will be strengthened to ensure that both the engineer and the worker confirm each other's boarding and disembarking before moving the train.
When simplified, operations involving worker boarding occur approximately 567 times daily. Stations operating dedicated freight locomotives, totaling 26, have an average of 41.7 operations per day, which is about 12.6 times more than the 3.3 operations at non-dedicated stations.
The method of reverse operations will also be modified using technology. Removable rear cameras will be installed at the back of the train to allow engineers to see the path and obstacles in real-time. The rear cameras will be piloted at Obong Station in November, with plans to expand based on feedback from the field.
Additionally, the practice of workers signaling to move the train will be replaced with remote control operations, allowing workers to directly control the locomotive from a distance. This will be piloted at ten locations across eight freight stations with dedicated locomotives by July next year. The Uiwang Station, where the recent accident occurred, is scheduled to have this system installed by the first half of 2028.
AI-based closed-circuit television (CCTV) will also be expanded starting in the first half of next year. This system will detect incidents such as workers collapsing, failure to wear protective gear, or entering hazardous areas, alerting the workers accordingly. Wireless microphones that convert speech to text and wearable vests that change color based on worker statements will also be introduced.
Manual track switches operated on-site will be gradually automated. The Ministry plans to automate 174 track switches across 19 stations by the end of next year. Separate operational manuals reflecting the track structure and risk factors at each station will also be developed.
Kim Tae-byeong, head of the Railway Bureau at the Ministry, stated, "This measure focuses on changing the practice of workers having to go to dangerous areas for direct confirmation. We will spread effective practices confirmed in the field to other workplaces and ensure that the measures function properly in actual operations, leading to tangible safety improvements on-site."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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