High-speed KTX train forced to stop due to unspecified problem

CHEONAN, South Korea, Aug. 8 (Yonhap) -- A home-made high-speed train stopped abruptly on its way from Seoul to a southeastern town Monday due to unspecified technical problems, the train's operator said. A locally-built KTX-Sancheon train was forced to pull over near Cheonan-Asan Station, 92 kilometers south of Seoul, at 7:58 p.m. Korea Railroad Corp. (KORAIL) said. The train was bound for Masan, a coastal town about 388 kilometers southeast of Seoul. The train returned to Cheonan-Asan about 30 minutes later, and passengers were transferred to an alternative train around 9 p.m. to continue the trip, KORAIL officials said. The exact cause of the problem was unknown but KORAIL officials said the train appears to have stopped after experiencing "some tremors." KTX trains, its Sancheon model in particular, have recently faced numerous technical flaws.