page_title: Kumgangsan Electric Railway
section_title: Opening of the Railway and its Heyday (1924 to 1942)
hierarchical_section_title: Kumgangsan Electric Railway / History / Opening of the Railway and its Heyday (1924 to 1942)
caption_attribution_description: English: Map of the Kumgangsan Electric Railway by Yoshida Hatsusabu, issued by Kumgangsan Electric Railway during the Korea Great Exposition held in Gyeongseong in 1929.
context_page_description: The Kŭmgangsan Electric Railway, later known as the Kŭmgangsan Line, was a railway line that formerly ran between Ch'ŏrwŏn to Naegŭmgang, on the inner side of Mount Kŭmgang. At Ch'ŏrwŏn, the line connected to the Kyŏngwŏn Line of the Chosen Government Railway the Kyŏngwŏn Line was split between Korail's Gyeongwon Line in South Korea and the Kangwŏn Line of the Korean State Railway.
  Similar in many respects to the Alishan Forest Railway in Taiwan, the railway was built with the aim of turning the Mount Kŭmgang area into a major tourist destination. Mount Kŭmgang had already been one of the Korean Peninsula's most famous tourist destinations, but the terrain and location made access very difficult; the opening of the Kŭmgangsan Electric Railway overcame this, and turned the area into a booming tourist spot.
  Originally opened in 1924 by the Kŭmgangsan Electric Railway Co., Ltd., the 116.6 km line held the distinction of being the first as well as the longest electrified mainline railway in Korea, Hydroelectric power from dams constructed along the line was used to supply power to the railway, which made use of Japan's latest technological capabilities of the time.
context_section_description: The Government-General of Korea had a system of subsidies that it offered to promote the establishment of privately owned railways in order to improve the transportation system of the Korean peninsula; naturally, the Kŭmgangsan Electric Railway also received these subsidies. These were originally supposed to be for a period of ten years from the start of construction, but in 1921 this was extended to 15 years, and then in 1939, for certain railways this was extended to 25 years. Thus the Kŭmgangsan Electric Railway, which began construction in 1921, received subsidies from the Government-General all the way until the end of Japanese rule. For the Kŭmgangsan Electric Railway, whose operating profits were initially not as high as had been expected, these subsidies proved to be of great significance.
  Although the construction of the hydroelectric power stations and the railway itself proceeded smoothly despite the severe winter climate and the difficult terrain, two significant difficulties surfaced to present challenges to the Kŭmgangsan Electric Railway. The worldwide economic depression affected Japan and Korea along with the rest of the world, and though the company's shares were quickly bought up, the financial troubles of the investors led to about 7,000 shares being bought back by the company's president and executives; the directors went to great lengths to ensure the survival of the company, to the extent that president Taminosuke Kume sold his estate in Yoyogi for 2 million yen.
  After the opening of the initial section from Ch'ŏrwŏn to Kimhwa, construction of the line proceeded in stages. 
  Construction of the Tanpallyŏng Tunnel began on 15 June 1928 and was completed on 15 September 1929.
  The Kŭmgangsan Electric Railway's 116.6 km (72.5 mi) line finally reached Naegŭmgang on 1 July 1931, with trains over the entire length of the route beginning on that day. However, president Kume failed to see the realisation of his dream, having died on 24 May 1931. He was succeeded as president by Kyōhei Magoshi. A station was opened at South Changdo on 1 May 1936.
  In addition to 140,000 additional shares being issued in November 1926, a further 240,000 shares of 50 yen per share value were issued in 1932. Besides the railway, the company was also engaged in business as an electric utility, supplying electricity from its power plants to the area. Total income for the first half of 1931 was ¥843,168.2 sen, of which ¥248,760.30 was profit, ¥125,116.19 was carryover, and ¥477,175.12 was government subsidies - and ¥160,000 of the profits went straight to repaying interest on bonds and loans. The depression affected all the private railways in Korea. A number of them ended up being nationalised by the Railway Bureau and absorbed into Sentetsu, and for a time the nationalisation of the Kŭmgangsan Electric Railway was considered, too.
  By the mid 1930s, however, the economy turned around, and both passenger and freight transport along the line was booming. Tourists flocked to the railway, taking advantage of the available single and group tours, and in 1936 the line carried approximately 154,000 passengers. The development of industries in the region also played a large part in the company's turnaround, as several quarries were opened along the line, along with iron sulphide (chalcopyrite) mines around Changdo. By 1939, profits just from railway income exceeded expenditures, and Taminosuke Kume's vision seemed to have finally come to fruition.
  Flooding was a major problem faced by the railway. Flood damage occurred in 1925, 1929, 1930, 1933, and 1936, and power generation facilities, power transmission facilities, and the railway were damaged on numerous occasions. In 1936, leakage occurred at the main power plant, Chungdae-ri Power Station which hindered the ability to generate power. Senior Managing Director Keijirō Okamoto ordered large-scale renovation work to be done. This was completed in 1937, restoring the power generation capabilities completely.
  Plans were drawn up to build a new line from Malhwiri on the mainline to Oegŭmgan
caption: A map of the line by Hatsusabu Yoshida, issued by the Kŭmgangsan Electric Railway during the Korea Great Exposition held in Kyŏngsŏng in 1929
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