North Korea was left devastated after the war, with damage being even more extensive than in the south.
Factories, houses, bridges, roads, and railways were destroyed in heavy US Air Force bombing raids; Pyongyang's tram system had been completely destroyed, to the extent that salvaging it was deemed uneconomical and was abandoned.
Reconstruction, however, started already before the end of the war and, with the aid of the Chinese People's Volunteer Corps, by the time the ceasefire was signed 1,382 km (859 mi) of railway lines had been restored.
The north's transportation network was so severely damaged that in many places, the horse was the only viable means of transport; consequently, much of the initial reconstruction efforts were focussed on rebuilding the railways - especially the lines connecting the DPRK to China and Russia, in order to ease the shipment of goods from those two countries.
However, some new construction did take place, mostly to complete projects interrupted either by the end of Japanese rule or by the Korean War, such as the Tŏkp'al Line, which had been started by the privately owned West Chosen Central Railway in the early 1940s, to run from Tŏkch'ŏn to P'arwŏn, but of which only 12.3 km (7.6 mi) to Changsangri had been completed by war's end; the project was revived after the Korean War and finished to P'arwŏn in 1954.
Within three months of the armistice, 308 bridges with a total length of 15,000 m (49,000 ft) were either repaired or newly built by railway corps volunteers, and 37 stations were rebuilt as the railway network was gradually restored to its pre-war status.

Although the USSR did not militarily intervene in the Korean War due to fear of criticism from the United Nations, it played a major and active role in post-war reconstruction.
Within the context of an economic and technical assistance agreement worth 1 billion rubles signed between the two countries a railway co-operation agreement was signed, which included a promise to deliver VL19 class electric locomotives to North Korea.
China provided 800 million RMB worth of assistance, along with considerable aid from socialist countries in Eastern Europe, especially Poland: between 1954 and 1956, Polish Railway engineers and mechanics assisted in North Korea with the repair of damaged steam locomotives and rolling stock.
With extensive Soviet and Chinese assistance, the railways were rebuilt and further expanded.
A replacement railway bridge was opened over the Taedong River in P'yŏngyang on 17 June 1954, and three months later, on 25 September 1954 the Kangwŏn Line was reopened between Kosan and P'yŏnggang.
The Yalu River Bridge between Sinŭiju and Dandong, China, which had been severely damaged during the war, was rebuilt before war's end.

On 5 February 1954, an agreement signed between China and the DPRK on cross-border train service, and a Beijing-Pyongyang through-train service began on 3 June of that year, using China Railways rolling stock.
The connection with the USSR across the Tumen River was first established during the Korean War in the form of a wooden railway bridge opened in 1952; by the mid 1950s this bridge had become insufficient for the traffic on the line, and the Korean-Russian Friendship Bridge between Tumangang and Khasan, USSR was opened on 9 August 1959.

North Korea had inherited a fairly extensive network of 762 mm (30.0 in) narrow-gauge rail lines from both Sentetsu and formerly privately owned railways.
One of these was the Hwanghae Line running from Hasŏng to Haeju.
After nationalising the Chosen Railway's narrow-gauge lines in the Hwanghae region in April 1944, Sentetsu had decided that traffic levels between Sariwŏn and Hasŏng were sufficient to merit construction of a shorter standard gauge line to replace the existing narrow gauge line; the work was completed quickly, and by September of that year the new, 41.7 km (25.9 mi) "Hwanghae Main Line" was opened.
However, the rest of the line from Hasŏng to Haeju remained narrow gauge.
The Hwanghae Main Line was, like most other lines, extensively damaged in th
North Korea was left devastated after the war, with damage being even more extensive than in the south. Factories, houses, bridges, roads, and railways were destroyed in heavy US Air Force bombing raids; Pyongyang's tram system had been completely destroyed, to the extent that salvaging it was deemed uneconomical and was abandoned. Reconstruction, however, started already before the end of the war and, with the aid of the Chinese People's Volunteer Corps, by the time the ceasefire was signed 1,382 km (859 mi) of railway lines had been restored. The north's transportation network was so severely damaged that in many places, the horse was the only viable means of transport; consequently, much of the initial reconstruction efforts were focussed on rebuilding the railways - especially the lines connecting the DPRK to China and Russia, in order to ease the shipment of goods from those two countries. However, some new construction did take place, mostly to complete projects interrupted either by the end of Japanese rule or by the Korean War, such as the Tŏkp'al Line, which had been started by the privately owned West Chosen Central Railway in the early 1940s, to run from Tŏkch'ŏn to P'arwŏn, but of which only 12.3 km (7.6 mi) to Changsangri had been completed by war's end; the project was revived after the Korean War and finished to P'arwŏn in 1954. Within three months of the armistice, 308 bridges with a total length of 15,000 m (49,000 ft) were either repaired or newly built by railway corps volunteers, and 37 stations were rebuilt as the railway network was gradually restored to its pre-war status.
Although the USSR did not militarily intervene in the Korean War due to fear of criticism from the United Nations, it played a major and active role in post-war reconstruction. Within the context of an economic and technical assistance agreement worth 1 billion rubles signed between the two countries a railway co-operation agreement was signed, which included a promise to deliver VL19 class electric locomotives to North Korea. China provided 800 million RMB worth of assistance, along with considerable aid from socialist countries in Eastern Europe, especially Poland: between 1954 and 1956, Polish Railway engineers and mechanics assisted in North Korea with the repair of damaged steam locomotives and rolling stock. With extensive Soviet and Chinese assistance, the railways were rebuilt and further expanded. A replacement railway bridge was opened over the Taedong River in P'yŏngyang on 17 June 1954, and three months later, on 25 September 1954 the Kangwŏn Line was reopened between Kosan and P'yŏnggang. The Yalu River Bridge between Sinŭiju and Dandong, China, which had been severely damaged during the war, was rebuilt before war's end.
On 5 February 1954, an agreement signed between China and the DPRK on cross-border train service, and a Beijing-Pyongyang through-train service began on 3 June of that year, using China Railways rolling stock. The connection with the USSR across the Tumen River was first established during the Korean War in the form of a wooden railway bridge opened in 1952; by the mid 1950s this bridge had become insufficient for the traffic on the line, and the Korean-Russian Friendship Bridge between Tumangang and Khasan, USSR was opened on 9 August 1959.
North Korea had inherited a fairly extensive network of 762 mm (30.0 in) narrow-gauge rail lines from both Sentetsu and formerly privately owned railways. One of these was the Hwanghae Line running from Hasŏng to Haeju. After nationalising the Chosen Railway's narrow-gauge lines in the Hwanghae region in April 1944, Sentetsu had decided that traffic levels between Sariwŏn and Hasŏng were sufficient to merit construction of a shorter standard gauge line to replace the existing narrow gauge line; the work was completed quickly, and by September of that year the new, 41.7 km (25.9 mi) "Hwanghae Main Line" was opened. However, the rest of the line from Hasŏng to Haeju remained narrow gauge. The Hwanghae Main Line was, like most other lines, extensively damaged in th
Korean State Railway