The Changyŏn Line is a non-electrified standard-gauge secondary line of the

Korean State Railway The Korean State Railway is the operating arm of the Ministry of Railways of North Korea (), commonly called the State Rail () and has its headquarters at Pyongyang, P'yŏngyang. The current Minister of Railways is Chang Jun-song. History 19 ...

running from Sugyo on the Ŭnnyul Line to Changyŏn, South Hwanghae Province, North Korea.Kokubu, Hayato (2007), , Shinchosha, Tokyo,

History

This line was originally opened on 21 January 1937 as part of the

Chosen Railway Chosen or The Chosen may refer to: Books * ''The Chosen'' (Potok novel), a 1967 novel by Chaim Potok * ''The Chosen'', a 1997 novel by L. J. Smith * ''The Chosen'' (Pinto novel), a 1999 novel by Ricardo Pinto * ''The Chosen'' (Karabel book), a b ...

's narrow gauge Hwanghae Line network, as an extension to the

Sariwŏn Sariwŏn (; ) is a city in North Korea. It is the capital and largest city of North Hwanghae Province. Population The city's population as of 2008 is 307,764. Administrative divisions Sariwŏn is divided into 31 ''tong'' (neighbourhoods) and ...

—Sanghae (renamed Samgang after nationalisation)— Sugyo line. The entirety of the Hwanghae Line network was nationalised on 1 April 1944 and absorbed by the

Chosen Government Railway Chosen or The Chosen may refer to: Books * ''The Chosen'' (Potok novel), a 1967 novel by Chaim Potok * ''The Chosen'', a 1997 novel by L. J. Smith * ''The Chosen'' (Pinto novel), a 1999 novel by Ricardo Pinto * ''The Chosen'' (Karabel book), a b ...

, which then split the Hwanghae Line network into separate lines, with the Sariwon—Sugyo—Changyŏn line becoming the Changyŏn Line. (The Public Journal of the Governor-General of Korea), Showa Nr. 5143, 29 March 1944 After the end of the

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War or the Pacific Theatre, was the Theater (warfare), theatre of World War II fought between the Empire of Japan and the Allies of World War II, Allies in East Asia, East and Southeast As ...

, the Changyŏn Line ended up in North Korea as a result of the subsequent

partition of Korea The division of Korea began at the end of World War II on 2 September 1945, with the establishment of a Soviet occupation zone and a US occupation zone. These zones developed into separate governments, named the Democratic People's Republic of ...

. After the end of the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

the Railway Ministry of the DPRK began to expand and improve its network, including in South Hwanghae, leading to the opening of a line from Sugyo to Ch'ŏlgwang in 1961.North Korea Geographic Information: Transportation Geography - Unnyul Line (in Korean)
/ref> With the opening of the new line, the Sariwŏn—Sugyo—Ch'ŏlgwang line was named Ŭnnyul Line, leaving the Changyŏn Line as just the short branch from Sugyo to Changyŏn. This line was converted to standard gauge in 1971.

Services

Semi-express passenger trains 138-139/140-141 operating between Manp'o and Changyŏn serve the entirety of this line from Sugyo to Changyŏn.

Route

A yellow background in the "Distance" box indicates that section of the line is not electrified.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Changyon Line Railway lines in North Korea Standard-gauge railways in North Korea