The 40th Anniversary of the EMU Keio 7000 Series

Set 7702+7807 of the EMU Keio 7000 series displays a special plate

On May 9th this year, Keio Electric Railway celebrated the 40th anniversary of the EMU 7000 series operation. I recently found special anniversary plates displayed on the front of Set 7701+7805 and Set 7702+7807 trains. Congratulations on the 40th anniversary!

To start, let me review the Keio line. It's one of the main transportation arteries in the Tokyo metropolitan area. Connecting Shinjuku and several western suburban cities, the total operating length is 72 kilometers. One of the characteristics of this line is its unique track gauge size... 1,372 millimeters. It's because the Keio line was initially constructed as a tramline same as the Toei-Arakawa and Tokyu-Setagaya lines.

Let's head to the main topic. The 7000 series was commissioned in 1984 as the first train with stainless-steel bodies. 190 cars in total were built by Nippon Sharyo and Tokyu Sharyo. The early 110 cars have corrugations on the side bodies (see the photos). On the other hand, the later 80 units have bead-press stainless-steel bodies. 17 years after its debut, the renovation was started in 2001 due to the deterioration. For instance, the electric control system was changed from the field chopper to the state-of-the-art IGBT-VVVF (insulated gate bipolar transistor-variable frequency drive) inverter with induction motors. After 16 years more, scrapping was started in 2017. The 7000 series will be totally replaced by a new model, 2000 series, in the future. According to Keio, the 2000 series is planned to be commissioned in 2026. Time passes by so quickly.

Set 7701+7805 of the EMU Keio 7000 series displays a special plate

Official information of the Keio trains (in Japanese):

https://www.keio.co.jp/keiofan/museum/exist/

Official information of the EMU Keio 2000 series,which will debut in 2026 (in Japanese):

https://www.keio.co.jp/news/update/news_release/news_release2024/nr20240510_shingata.pdf

Official video of the EMU Keio 2000 series, which will bebut in 2026 (in Japanese):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=la34KsX2iIM

Ooyama Cable Line: Access to the Holy Mountain

Funicular Unit 2 of Ooyama Sightseeing Electric Railway

It’s very hot this summer in Japan. The maximum daytime temperature is still over 30 degrees Celsius every day in Tokyo. I evacuated from the city center, and visited Ooyama Mountain in Kanagawa Prefecture, about 60 kilometers southwest of Tokyo.

When I visited there in the middle of August, the Ooyama Lantern Festival was being held. It was one of the events during the “obon” period. “Obon” is a Buddhist festival to recognize ancestral spirits. The souls of the dead are believed to return to their families during the obon period in the middle of August. It’s an occasion for people to visit their ancestors’ graves, temples or shrines to pray. After sunset, Ooyama was decorated with many lanterns and illuminations to response the souls of the dead. The lanterns were very beautiful and mysterious, and reminded visitors of their ancestors.

To get to this holy mountain, a funicular line, Ooyama Sightseeing Electric Railway, is convenient. Connecting Ooyama Cable and Afuri Shrine stations, the route length is 800 meters. The height difference between the highest and lowest points of the route is 278 m. The maximum inclination of the route is 25.5 degrees. The track gauge size is 1,067 millimeters. There is one intermediate station, Ooyamadera, at the mid-point of the line. The present vehicles, named Unit 1 and Unit 2, were commissioned in 2015 to replace the old vehicles, named Tanzawa and Ooyama.

I enjoyed both the unique lantern festival and the funicular on that day on the holy Ooyama Mountain.

Ooyama Lantern Festival and the night view from Afuri Shrine

Official information about Ooyama Moountain and Ooyama Cable line:

https://www.odakyu.jp/english/feature/25891/

Mail Car Preserved in the Japan Post Training Center

Side view of the mail car, Unit 2555 of the Oyu 10 series

Do you have mail trains in your country? In Japan, yes, but that’s in the past. When I was a kid, I often saw a mail car coupled with passenger coaches on the Japanese National Railways. They were being pulled by locomotives. I still remember that many people were working inside the mail car, but I didn’t know what’s going on at that time. Now that I think about it, they were sorting letters. The mail trains unfortunately came to an end in 1986 due to spreading aircrafts and development of the expressway network.

What happened to the mail cars after that? Most of them had been scrapped, but there are some survivors. Please look at the top photo. That’s a mail car, Unit 2555 of the Oyu 10 series owned by Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications. It was built in 1971 by Kawasaki Sharyo as Unit 2058 of the Oyu 10 series. This mail car was then renovated in 1973, and renamed Unit 2555. The major modification was to install air-conditioners. As you can imagine, there were only small windows on the car, so, it was very hot inside in summer.

After operating for 13 years, Unit 2555 was retired from the track in 1986. It was luckily taken over by Central Training Center of Japan Post Company in Kunitachi City, Tokyo Metropolis. If you would like to observe this precious mail car, please visit the training center, and apply for a mail car tour. It’s free of charge.

Interior of Unit 2555 preserved in the Japan Post Training Center

Reunion with TOQi in 2024

TOQi (DeYa 7500 and the others) arrives at Todoroki station on the Oimachi line

I recently visited Todoroki on the Tokyu-Oimachi line due to a private family issue. After finishing our meeting, we walked on a road beside the railway track, and headed to Todoroki station. On the way, we came across TOQ i for the first time in one year and a half by chance.

Let me review TOQi to start. It's an inspection train of Tokyu Railways. Its formal name is the EMU 7500 series. TOQi can inspect all Tokyu lines except the Setagaya line. The targets of the inspection are overhead wires, signal safety facilities, train radio systems and railway tracks. TOQi is composed of 3 cars. The first and the last cars, namely DeYa 7500 and DeYa 7550, are motorcars. They were commissioned in 2012 to replace the old inspection train, EMU 7200 series. On the other hand, the intermediate car, namely SaYa 7590, is a trailer without motors. It was commissioned in 1998 as one of the EMU 7200 series. These cars were all built by Tokyu Sharyo.

Tokyu doesn't release timetables of the work train, so whether I can come across TOQi or not depends on my luck. I don’t know why TOQi was operated on the Oimachi line on that day. According to several rail-fans, it was not an inspection but a test run. Either way, as soon as TOQi came into sight, I took out my camera, and clicked the shutter intently. I could shoot TOQi, specifically the blue-colored DeYa 7500 side, from a public road beside the track in good condition. I barely made it!

Long time no see TOQi! I'm relieved you look fine.

TOQi (DeYa 7550 and the others) travels on the Tokyu-Oimachi line

Official information about TOQi by Tokyu Railways (in Japanese):

https://ii.tokyu.co.jp/safety/177

The 120th Anniversary of Kamata Station

Set 120 of the E233-1000 series and the 120th anniversary plate of Kamata station

On April 11th, JR East celebrated the 120th anniversary of Kamata station on the Keihin-Tohoku-Negishi line. In commemoration, several events were held by the company.

Let me quickly review JR East Kamata station to start. It’s a medium-sized station located about 10 kilometers away from the city center of Tokyo. Approximately 240,000 passengers get on and off every day. This station is also known as the transfer station for the Tokyu-Ikegami and Tamagawa lines.

Let's get down to the main topic. One of the events for the 120th anniversary is a memorial plate on the front of Set "120" of the EMU E233-1000 series. You can see the illustration of three generations of trains operated on the Keihin-Tohoku-Negishi lines. They are the 103, 209 and E233-1000 series. Additionally, the words, "Open mind, Keep together", were written in English at the bottom of the plate. I don’t know why in English, but it means that JR East will further strengthen their cooperation with passengers, and create the future.

Incidentally, there is a large camphor tree in front of the station. I don’t know how long it’s been there, but definitely my favorite. There are many giant camphor trees in Japan such as "Kamiyatsu-no-Ookusu (a large camphor tree in Kamiyatsu village)", but I seldom see them in front of railway stations in urban areas. It had withstood the development project of the areas around the station.

Congratulations on the 120th anniversary of Kamata station, and cherish the camphor tree!

A large camphor tree in front of JR East Kamata station

Preserved Steam Locomotive just along the Railway Track

Steam locootive C57 66 is preserved just along the JR East Keihin Tohoku line

Do you have any spot you want to check out? For example, you often pass by that spot by train, but you have never been there. Iriarai-nishi Park in Tokyo was one such spot to me. I often passed by there by the JR East's Keihin-Tohoku line train, but I didn't visit there until recently.

What is Iriarai-nishi Park like? It's a public park for children to learn about transportation. For that purpose, several vehicles are exhibited in the park. Unit 66 of the steam locomotive Class C57 (hereafter C57 66) is one such exhibit. It's preserved just along the Keihin-Tohoku line track in a "semi-dynamic state". It means that the driving wheels can be rotated by compressed air. In fact, this special "wheel rotating show" is held twice a day. Needless to say, it's a popular event among local children.

For your information, the Class C57 is a 4-6-2 (Whyte notation) type steam locomotive that has a tender attached. It was developed by the Ministry of Railways in 1937 for pulling passenger trains. It is 20.28 meters long, and weighs 67.5 tons. The driving wheel diameter is 1,750 millimeters. A total of 201 units were built by Kawasaki-sharyo and the other companies. The Class C57 is called "the lady" among rail-fans. I agree with it, because its design is beautiful. For example, the boiler is slender, in contrast, the driving wheels are large. Please check out my previous post on the Class C57 as well, if you have time.

Side view of C57 66 in Iriarai-nishi Park

Odakyu New Mocoron Train

Odakyu New Mocoron Train passes through Soshigaya-okura station

Odakyu updated their Mocoron (or Mokoron) poster train. 

What’s Mocoron? It is a mascot character of Odakyu Electric Railway. According to Odakyu, he (or she) is a blue-colored rabbit to assist in child-rearing around the Odakyu line. He (or she) likes riding trains, and always looks for something fun. On November 29th, 2023, Odakyu made Set 5055 of the EMU 5000 series debut as the first generation Mocoron Train. It was popular among local children, but it's lacking something to be honest. The problem was that Mocoron was illustrated only on the front of the train. We couldn’t see Mocoron on the side bodies.

The new Mocoron train debuted on June 4th, 2024. It was again modified from Set 5055 of the EMU 5000 series. We can see various poses of Mocoron on the side bodies and in the train. Furthermore, the large stuffed Mocoron is boarding on the driver's cab. That’s so cute. I'm also one of his (or her) fans.

For your information, Odakyu makes much of assisting in child-rearing. For instance, the train fare for elementary school student is flat… only 50 yen (0.32 US dollar). As I posted several times, Japan's population has entered into a decreasing phase. Railway companies can't keep their arms crossed in this situation. They are in competition to attract passengers, and have to refine the value of their lines. Otherwise, the residents will move to the popular areas on other companies' lines. The strategy of Odakyu is attracting child-rearing families.

Odakyu New Mocoron Train passes through Chitose-funabashi station

　

Official information about Odakyu New Mocoron Train (in Japanese):

https://www.odakyu.jp/news/b4fuqs0000002u0d-att/b4fuqs0000002u0k.pdf

Lily Garden in Fukaya City

South entrance of JR East Fukaya station on the Takasaki line

It’s mid-summer in the metropolitan area. On July 29th, the highest temperature of Japan was 41.0 degrees Celsius, which was recorded in the interior of the metropolitan area. I hesitated a bit, but decided to go out. My destination this time was a lily garden in Fukaya City.

Let me review Fukaya City to start. It’s an interior city in Saitama Prefecture, about 80 kilometers northwest of Tokyo. This city is famous for producing leeks… but, there’s more. Fukaya is also famous for floriculture of lilies. In this season, lily flowers are in full bloom here and there in the city. One of the spots for holidaymakers is the lily garden of Fukaya Green Park. When I visited the garden, I saw many lily lovers. The flowers were pink, red, white, orange and yellow-colored. I enjoyed the colorful flowers and forgot the heat.

To get to this gorgeous garden, the nearest railway station is Fukaya on the JR East Takasaki line. You may remember when I introduced you to this distinctive station before. Please look at the top photo. It’s the entire building of the Fukaya station. You can see the unique station building and the railway tracks under the building. This building looks like Tokyo station. Why? It's because Tokyo station is made of bricks, which were produced in Fukaya City. For your information, Fukaya City offers a free shuttle bus service from Fukaya station to Fukaya Green Park. Thank you!

The lily garden in Fukaya Green Park

The 11th Generation Sounyan Train

Set 11004 of the Sotetsu 11000 series, "the 11th generation Sounyan train"

As I posted several times, many Japanese railway companies have their own mascot characters. The purpose of these characters is to make people feel familiar with the local railways. The railway mascot character is a solution to enhance the value of the railway line as well.

Sagami Railway (hereafter Sotetsu) is keen on spreading their mascot character, named Sounyan. According to Sotetsu's website, Sounyan is a cat and an employee of Sotetsu. He is in charge of public relations. His hobby is taking photos and eating around. Umm... I think that Sounyan is not very original, just an ordinary employee... but wait a moment! There is more to Sounyan's profile. He has a serious problem that has been bothering him. People tend to assume that he is a raccoon dog in spite of being a cat. I was surprised that Sounyan has a mental problem. What a deep profile it is!

So, let me finally get to the main part. On March 21st, Sotetsu launched the 11th generation Sounyan poster train. That's Set 11004 of the EMU 11000 series. This time, we can see not only Sounyan, but also images of several sightseeing spots, on the bodies of the Sounyan train. The sightseeing spots are, for example, Shibuya on the Tokyu line and Shinjuku on the Tokyo Metro line. Why are they on the other companies' lines? It is because Sotetsu trains are directly operated onto the Tokyu and the Tokyo Metro lines. Thoughtfulness to the colleague companies is important, isn't it?

Sounyan-printed priority seat (courtesy seat), the 11th generation Sounyan train

Official information about the 11th generation Sounyan train by Sotetsu (in Japanese):

https://www.sotetsu.co.jp/pressrelease/train/r24-46/

Steep Monorail Line to the Old House

Monorail line to Kobayashi Family House

What comes to your mind when you hear Tokyo? Most of you probably think of it as a big city and the center of economics in Japan. That’s true, but there’s more. Please visit Hinohara Village in the western part of Tokyo Metropolis. You will find a different Tokyo there.

Please look at the top photo. It’s a monorail line constructed by Hinohara Village. There are a total of six lines in the village. They are important transportation means, as the road network is still not very developed. Most of the routes are only for local people, but holidaymakers are allowed to take the monorail line in the top photo, because it’s an access mean to a sightseeing spot, Kobayashi Family House. This monorail line is 450-meters-long. The maximum inclination of the track is 43 degrees. Passenger capacity of the vehicle is 8. The operating interval is 40 minutes. It takes 15 minutes for going up and 10 minutes for going down. You need to make a reservation in advance, but there is no charge... thank you!

After arriving at the summit station located at 750 meters above sea level, you will find an old house there. Please look at the photo below. That’s Kobayashi Family House. It’s a wooden house with a thatched roof, built in the early 18th centuries. Kobayashi Family House in Tokyo Metropolis… it’s not a famous sightseeing spot, but has a very relaxing atmosphere.

Please check out my previous post about the mini-slope car in the plum grove as well.

Kobayashi Family House

Official information about Kobayashi Family House by HInohara Village (in Japanese):

https://kobayashike.tokyo/

Official information about the monorail line to Kobayashi Family House by HInohara Village (in Japanese):

https://kobayashike.tokyo/access/