On May 1st, 2024, Tobu Railway celebrated the 110th anniversary of their Tojo line. In commemoration, the company holds several events.
Let me review the Tojo line to start. The Tobu-Tojo line is one of the main transportation arteries in the northwestern part of the metropolitan area. Connecting Ikebukuro in Tokyo Metropolis and Kawagoe City in Saitama Prefecture, it was opened on May 1st in 1914. The route was, then, fully opened in 1925 between Ikebukuro and Yorii. The total line length is, currently, 75 kilometers. It carries about one million passengers per day.
One of the 110th anniversary events is displaying a special plate on the front of set 9107 of the EMU 9000 series. It will be exhibited until October 10th. The words "110th ANNIVERSARY TOBU TOJO LINE" were written in English on the plate. I don’t know why in English… never mind. For your information, the 9000 series was commissioned in 1981 as Tobu’s first stainless-steel train. 100 units in total were built by Tokyu-sharyo, Alna-koki and Fuji Heavy Industries. The 9000 series is directly operated onto the Tokyo Metro and Tokyu lines, so, I could shoot it on the Tokyu-Toyoko line, which is closer to my house. Thank you so much, the 9000 series.
Incidentally, I still remember the 100th anniversary events on the Tojo line in 2014. I saw the grand ceremony in the Ikebukuro station yard and the operation of memorial train. Ten years have passed since then. The time really flies.
