The Ukrainian High-Speed Rail Company (UHRC) has denied the allegation that it operated defective Hyundai electric trains, thus endangering transport safety, the press service of the State Railway Administration (Ukrzaliznytsia) has announced.
"Every electric train manufactured by Hyundai Rotem underwent technical inspection before every trip based on a checklist signed by specialists from Hyundai Rotem and the UHRC. A locomotive crew cannot accept a train and depart on a trip without such a checklist and the appropriate stamp in the logbook," the press service said.
According to the press service, the UHRC and Ukrainian railways replaced rolling stock in some cases to ensure transport safety.
As reported, the Prosecutor-General’s Office earlier announced that it has opened criminal proceedings against the UHRC because it did not have a transport license. The UHRC said that it has a license, but the Prosecutor-General’s Office said that the license was valid only from April 2013 while transportation began in May 2012.
The Hyundai trains were temporarily withdrawn from service on February 12 after cracks that threatened the safety of the trains were uncovered. South Korean experts have arrived in Ukraine to perform technical diagnostic inspection of the trains. The trains that are declared safe after the inspection will return to operation. This is expected to happen at the end of March. The other trains will undergo repairs for 6-9 months.
The Korean trains have been replaced on the Kyiv-Kharkov route by dual-system Skoda trains and Ukraina-2 locomotive-hauled trains manufactured by the Kryukovka railcar plant. On the other routes, they have been replaced by locomotive-hauled trains consisting of sleeping and compartment cars.
