Korail, the state-run railroad operator, said Wednesday that its five KTX-Sancheon bullet trains have been in operation without accident for 100 consecutive days as of Dec. 2.

The KTX-Sancheon, the successor to the French-made KTX, is the nation’s first high-speed train developed and manufactured with Korea’s own technology.

Korail said it plans to present a certificate to the manufacturer, Hyundai Rotem, on Friday for the train’s accident-free record.

Korail started operating the first 19 KTX-Sancheon trains, each consisting of 10 individual coaches, in May 2010. An additional five trains were adopted in August this year.

After a series of breakdowns, however, safety concerns arose over the indigenous bullet trains, leading to a large-scale overhaul by Hyundai Rotem in recent months.

The company recently completed an inspection of the new trains, especially for technical errors and communication problems occurring when coaches were separated or connected.

Now that all 240 coaches have passed inspection, Korail said all its trains were operating problem-free, a milestone coming two years and six months after their first operation.

Korail officials said other countries such as Japan, France and Germany ― which have more than 40 years of experience in operating bullet trains ― take two to three years for stabilization.

“In order to better respond to seasonal changes, we will continue efforts to improve operational conditions for trains, railroads and traffic signs,” said Kang Yong-hoon, technical chief of Korail.

“By securing people’s trust in the Korea-made bullet trains, we will pave the way for us to enter overseas train markets such as Brazil and the U.S.”

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)