When I visited Kyoto City last September, I found an old preserved tramcar in a building of the city center. What was that?
It's an electric car, N28 of the Kyoto Municipal Transportation Bureau N1 series. The N1 series was commissioned in 1912 by Kyoto Electric Railway Company. 133 cars were built by Umehachi Tekko. All cars were taken over by Kyoto Municipal Transportation Bureau in 1918, and operated until 1961, when the Kitano line was abolished. The N1 series is an electric car for the 1,067 millimeters-wide track with a 600 V direct current electric system. It has two direct current electric motors (25 HP each) with a direct electric control system. The travelling truck is a single truck made by J.G. Brill and Company in the United States. The brake system is a horizontal one-handled hand brake. The electric current collectors for vehicles are trolley poles. Passenger doors are not equipped on the side body. This tiny tramcar is a precious historical memorial for Japanese railways.
Incidentally, Kyoto Municipal Transportation Bureau was established in 1912. Taking over Kyoto Electric Railway Company, they operated tramcars from 1918 to 1978. They had two kinds of tracks namely the 1,067 millimeters-wide narrow gauge track and the 1,435 millimeters-wide standard gauge track. The total operating length was 68.8 kilometers. Although the tram was a very useful transportation means for local people, it was unfortunately abolished in 1978 due to heavy traffic congestion in the city. It's quite regrettable, isn't it?
