I have to admit, being a rail fan is a bit of a mixed bag. On one hand, we get super excited about new trains. On the other, it’s really sad to see old ones retire. So, what do we really feel? Honestly… both. Today, I want to talk about the sad part.
On October 16, Tobu Railway announced that Set 8577 of the EMU Tobu 8000 series will retire soon. It’s going to be moved to Zao Ropeway, one of Tobu’s subsidiaries, and apparently it will be used as a waiting room for the ropeway line. I was really shocked when I heard this, especially since Set 8577 was just on display as an active train at the Railway Museum from April to May this year.
The 8000 series first came out in 1963 as Tobu’s commuter train for busy city routes. Over the next 21 years, a total of 712 cars were built by ALNA and others. But even trains can’t escape age. Their numbers have been slowly going down, and scrapping started back in the late 2000s. Now, only 167 cars are still running.
After reading the news, I went to Shinrinkoen Station on the Tobu-Tojo Line to catch a glimpse of the 8000 series. These days, all of them run in 4-car formations. The long 8000 series trains are gone, and they don’t even run into central Tokyo anymore.
The EMU Tobu 8000 series… I didn’t realize there were so few left. You really are an endangered species now.
