Fuchu City is located in the western part of Tokyo Metropolis, about 30 kilometers west of central Tokyo. It has a population of around 260,000, making it the third largest among the 25 cities in the metropolis. The city is known for several famous spots such as Tokyo Racecourse, but my favorite place is Traffic Park, where visitors can see many valuable historical vehicles.
Among them, my favorite exhibit is Unit 1 of the Class EB10 (hereafter EB10 1). The EB10 was developed in 1927 by the Ministry of Railways (later Japanese National Railways) as Japan’s first accumulator (rechargeable battery) locomotive, originally named the Class AB10. It was operated on the Suka Line in Tokyo. Two units were built by Kisha Seizo and Shibaura Denki, and the accumulator was manufactured by Yuasa.
Why was an accumulator locomotive needed in the first place? Good question! There was a gunpowder factory along the Suka Line at that time, and using steam locomotives was considered dangerous due to the risk of fire.
Although it was state-of-the-art when built, the AB10 was later converted in 1931 into a standard direct-current electric locomotive, reclassified as the Class EB10, when the Suka Line was electrified. The EB10 operated on 1,500 volts DC and had an axle arrangement of Ao-Ao. It measured 8.2 meters in length and weighed 22,640 kilograms, with a maximum speed of 40 kilometers per hour.
EB10 1 was retired from regular service in 1971 and brought to Fuchu City for preservation. Since then, this small but charming electric locomotive has been carefully maintained in good condition.
