Daejeon, South Korea Signs First Contracts for Hydrogen Tram Line

The 1.5 trillion Won Daejeon Urban Railway Line 2 project will involve constructing a 38.8 km light rail line served by South Korea’s first domestically built hydrogen trams from Hyundai Rotem.

Daejeon’s local authority announced that it will issue the first construction orders for five of the project’s 14 sections this month, with an additional order set to follow in October. The remaining nine sections will involve installing light rail tracks on existing roadways, with construction scheduled to begin sequentially from January 2025, and services expected to commence in 2028.

Mayor Lee Jang-woo stated that the city decided to break the project into different sections to enhance local contractor participation while still allowing larger companies to tackle the more challenging sections.

He noted, “When establishing the tram construction order plan, we subdivided the construction sites and significantly lowered the bidding participation requirements to expand opportunities for local companies.”

The project encompasses the construction of a 38.8 km circular line with 45 tram stops, including 41 relative stops with separate stops for inner and outer lines, three island-type integrated stops, and one underground stop at Seodaejeon station.

Hyundai Rotem’s hydrogen tram design has been in development since 2021 and was publicly revealed for the first time in August 2023. The model operates on hydrogen fuel cells and can travel 150 km on a single charge.