Let me pick up where I left off in my last post.
After spending some time observing DeHa 101, I continued wandering around the Ōgo Railyard during the tour hosted by the Japan Railfan Club. Before long, another vehicle caught my eye. You can see it in the photo above—Jomo’s charming yellow-colored car, DeHa 104 of the 100 series. For me, meeting DeHa 104 again felt almost nostalgic, as it had been nine years since my last visit, the same length of time as with DeHa 101.
Some readers may wonder why DeHa 101 is grape-colored while DeHa 104 wears yellow. The story behind it is quite interesting. DeHa 101 keeps its original livery, while DeHa 104 is painted in the color it carried in the 1960s. That leads to another question: why were Jomo’s trains yellow back then?
According to the engineers at Jomo Electric Railway, the reason was safety. In the 1960s, many railroad crossings still had no signals or gates. To help prevent accidents, the company repainted its trains in a vivid yellow so they would stand out clearly. Learning this made me realize that even something as simple as a body color can have a deep history behind it—not just a stylistic choice, but a thoughtful decision rooted in the daily lives of local people.
While DeHa 101 is still active today, DeHa 104 has already retired from service. So why hasn’t it been scrapped? The answer is surprisingly meaningful: DeHa 104 now serves as a donor car for DeHa 101. Since DeHa 101 was built in 1928, many of its parts have become extremely rare. Thanks to the dedication of the engineers who carefully preserve these historic vehicles, DeHa 101 continues to run with dignity even after nearly a century.
