Daegu Line

The 14 km (8.7 mi) section from Dongdaegu to Cheongcheon was replaced by a new alignment that takes the Daegu Line to meet the Gyeongbu Line at Gacheon, lengthening the Dongdaegu–Cheongcheon line distance to 16.5 km (10.3 mi).[1] The Dongdaegu to Cheongcheon rail distance changed to 38.4 km (23.9 mi),[1] line proper from Gacheon to Yeongcheon is 29.0 km (18.0 mi) long.[4] The project was launched in August 1997 with a planned completion in 2000, but economic difficulties and planning changes delayed completion, the line relocation was finally inaugurated on November 3, 2005.[1] Part of the project was the replacement of a 1.3 km (0.81 mi) branch to Daegu Airport from the old alignment with a 9.04 km (5.62 mi) spur line paralleling the highway west from Cheongcheon to the airport, finished a year later.[1]

The Daegu Line was considered for an upgrade to a double-tracked, electrified railway in a straighter, 34.9 km (21.7 mi) long alignment from 2000.[5] Detailed plans were prepared by 2009, the foreseen budget was 988.042 billion won, and the completion of the project was set for 2017.[5] On September 1, 2010, the South Korean government announced a strategic plan to reduce travel times from Seoul to 95% of the country to under 2 hours by 2020. As part of the plan, the Daegu Line is to be set out for 230 km/h and may see KTX service.[6]