SOUTH KOREA SET TO OPEN HIGH-SPEED RAIL SERVICE IN APRIL.

SEOUL, Oct 1 Asia Pulse - South Korea is putting the final touches on its first bullet train project that will go into service six months later, promising to bring "revolutionary" changes to the daily lives of its people.

The French-built train will link Seoul, the capital, with two major cities on the nation's southeastern and southwestern coastal regions -- Busan and Mokpo. They will pass through about two dozen cities before reaching their final destinations.

"Holiday and travel cultures will undergo sweeping changes, due to the sharply shortened travel time, helping promote a balanced land development and revitalization of local economy," said Oh Pyeong-soo, a spokesman for the Korea High Speed Rail Construction Authority (KTX).

The two train lines will be completed at the same time in April. One line will cover the 409-kilometer distance between Seoul and Busan in two hours and 40 minutes, about half the present travel time.

The travel time between the two cities will be further cut to one hour and 56 minutes when its second-phase improvement project is completed by 2010, officials said.

The other line connecting Seoul with Mokpo will also cover roughly the same distance in two hours and 49 minutes, about half the present travel time.

South Korea is the size of the U.S. state of Indiana with a population of 48 million. Every corner of the country is within a half day's travel but the bullet train will make the country smaller.