Sagami Railway (Sotetsu) has its centenary anniversary in December next year. In commemoration of the anniversary, Sotetsu has recently launched several projects. The main purpose is to enhance Sotetsu's brand power toward the next century.
As a first step, Sotetsu started from changing the train coloring with a new corporate color. On April 10th, Sotetsu launched the first new colored train, Set 9703F of the EMU 9000 series. Set 9703F is a 10-car train, which was built by Tokyu Sharyo in 1995. The original body color was white with red stripes. It was then changed to light gray with blue and orange-colored stripes in 2008. Eventually, it was recently changed to the new Sotetsu's corporate color, Yokohama Navy Blue.
The new coloring design is definitely my favorite; however, it is very difficult to take pictures. The train body mirrors its surrounding scenery, as it is glossy. I came across the same situation on the Hankyu Railway in the past. The common problem is that the dark colored shining bodies are extremely difficult to shoot.
The interior of Set 9703F has also been changed. The special feature is the leather-covered seats. The leather was made in Scotland. Although these leather-covered seats are only applied for the cross seats in car numbers 5 and 8, it gives passengers a feeling of high quality. This new seat is the symbol of Sotetsu's new brand power.
Sotetsu's renovated 9703F... it is luxury, but a bit of an annoying train for rail photo lovers.
As a first step, Sotetsu started from changing the train coloring with a new corporate color. On April 10th, Sotetsu launched the first new colored train, Set 9703F of the EMU 9000 series. Set 9703F is a 10-car train, which was built by Tokyu Sharyo in 1995. The original body color was white with red stripes. It was then changed to light gray with blue and orange-colored stripes in 2008. Eventually, it was recently changed to the new Sotetsu's corporate color, Yokohama Navy Blue.
The new coloring design is definitely my favorite; however, it is very difficult to take pictures. The train body mirrors its surrounding scenery, as it is glossy. I came across the same situation on the Hankyu Railway in the past. The common problem is that the dark colored shining bodies are extremely difficult to shoot.
The interior of Set 9703F has also been changed. The special feature is the leather-covered seats. The leather was made in Scotland. Although these leather-covered seats are only applied for the cross seats in car numbers 5 and 8, it gives passengers a feeling of high quality. This new seat is the symbol of Sotetsu's new brand power.
Sotetsu's renovated 9703F... it is luxury, but a bit of an annoying train for rail photo lovers.
Official information about the Yokohama Navy Blue Color train (in Japanese):