I recently looked up the preserved railway cars database published by Japan Railfan Club, and found that 3,780 units of precious railway cars in total are preserved in Japan. They are locomotives, electric cars, diesel railcars, passenger cars, freight cars and so on. These railway cars are preserved by mainly railway companies and local governments, but in rare cases individuals and private organizations as well.
Last November, I visited an eye clinic in Saitama City. Did I have an eye disease? No. The purpose of my visit was to observe a preserved diesel railcar, Unit 3 of the Haboro Coal Mine Railway KiHa 22 series (hereafter KiHa 223). Please look at the top photo. You can see a maroon-colored body with a white-colored stripe. Beautiful! KiHa 223 is a 20-meter-long hydraulic diesel railcar equipped with a 132kW diesel engine. It was built in 1966 by Fuji Heavy Industries. After the discontinuation of Haboro Coal Mine Railway in 1970, KiHa 223 was transferred to Ibaraki Kotsu (present Hitachinaka Kaihin Railway), and had been operated there for 39 years. After the retirement, KiHa 223 was taken over by Hoshiai Eye Clinic in 2010. It’s restored to the original condition in the age of Haboro Coal Mine Railway in Hokkaido Island.
The rounded clear view screen on the front caught my eyes. As you know, it’s a glass disk mounted in a window that rotates to disperse snow for a driver (see the photo below). I would like to thank Hoshiai Eye Clinic preserving this precious railcar.
