I would prefer to keep going with the topic of Seibu Railway today.
I recently visited Tokorozawa Aviation Memorial Park in Tokorozawa City, Saitama Prefecture. I’m not an airplane enthusiast but enjoyed the birthplace of Japanese aviation as it is the site of Japan's first airfield. On the way home, I returned to be a trainspotter because I came across an unfamiliar train at Kokukoen (Aviation Park) station on the Seibu-Shinjuku line. What’s that train?
It immediately rang a bell, and I realized that I had been familiar with it before… ex-Odakyu 8000 series! As I posted before, Seibu Railway purchased 100 units of secondhand trains from Odakyu Electric Railway and Tokyu Railways in 2024. The EMU Odakyu 8000 and Tokyu 9000 series were sold to Seibu Railway. Eight months later, the ex-Odakyu 8000 series was modified to "the EMU Seibu 8000 series" and had started its test runs. According to Seibu Railway, the reborn 8000 series will debut in the end of this month. Can’t wait!
Just after the ex-Odakyu train leaving, a yellow-colored train with a special plate on the front came to the station. What’s that? It was the special train of "the 130th anniversary of Kawagoe Railway”. The Seibu-Shinjuku and Kokubunji lines were originally inaugurated by Kawagoe Railway in 1895. I found that the 130th anniversary plate was displayed on the front of trainset 2065 of the EMU Seibu 2000N series. The rounded plate was provided by Sayama City to the Seibu Railway. Congratulations on the 130th anniversary!
Seibu Railway is packed with interesting topics.
