LA Metro’s First HR5000 Trainset Set for 3,000-Mile Testing

SOUTH KOREA: The first LA Metro HR5000 trainset is set to undergo 3,000 miles of running and performance verification at Osong, where a new 5-kilometer section now supports speeds up to 120 km/h.

Osong extension removes an 80 km/h test constraint

Korea National Railway has built and opened the 5-kilometer extension at the Osong comprehensive railway test track to keep domestic performance verification of the first trainset on schedule. The section previously available for this work was largely curved and limited to 80 km/h; the new infrastructure permits running tests at up to 120 km/h.

The trainset is due to complete its 3,000 miles of running and performance verification by November 2026 and is then expected to be transported to the United States before the end of the year. The schedule is intended to avoid disruption to preparations for the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics.

Hyundai Rotem had previously said its LA Metro cars would be verified at Osong. The manufacturer describes the vehicles as two-car trainsets capable of operating in formations of up to six cars, with a maximum capacity of 245 passengers per car and a maximum operating speed of 113 km/h. They are intended for LA Metro’s B and D heavy rail lines.

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The HR5000 order covers 182 new heavy rail cars

LA Metro’s current HR5000 contract record covers a base order of 182 new heavy rail vehicles from Hyundai Rotem valued at $663,688,303, with an option for another 50 cars. Metro says Hyundai Rotem is obligated to deliver 42 new HRVs by April 2028.

The same Metro record treats Woojin IS America’s A650 refurbishment as a separate contract covering 70 base vehicles and an option for four more. That distinction clarifies the broader upgrade program cited in the Korean report: the new vehicles destined for Osong verification are Hyundai Rotem’s HR5000 cars, while Woojin’s work concerns the existing A650 fleet.

What the 3,000-mile program confirms?

Public project material does not list the individual pass/fail criteria for the LA-specific 3,000-mile program, so it should not be described as a single speed test or as completed acceptance. The Korea Railroad Research Institute, which operates the Osong test track, says the wider facility is equipped for 198 types of field-verification tests covering rolling stock and railway infrastructure.

For the first HR5000 trainset, the confirmed scope remains 3,000 miles of running tests and performance verification. The new 120 km/h section removes the speed restriction that had constrained that work, while shipment to the United States remains the next stated milestone after testing is completed.