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Last week, South Korea opened the 256-mile Korea Train eXpress (KTX) — the country’s first high-speed rail line.

High-speed service will reduce travel times between Seoul and Pusan from four hours, 10 minutes to two hours, 40 minutes. Officials at the Korean National Railroad (KORAL) expect daily ridership between the two cities to increase from 223,000 to 314,000.

Incorporating French high-speed technology, the system will use 46 trainsets featuring TGV technology developed by ALSTOM Transport and French National Railway Société Nationale des Chamins de Fer. ALSTOM manufactured the system’s rolling stock, and provided technical training and support to KORAL engineers.

French engineers provided technical assistance to Korean companies for plant planning, production facilities, welding, manufacturing, assembly and testing.

SNCF and KORAL officials have been working together to develop the high-speed line since 1994.