Preserved Mini Electric Locomotive in Fuchu City

Unit 1 of the electric locomotive Class JNR EB10 preserved in Fuchu City

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.

Side view of Unit 1 of the Class JNR EB10

Official information about Fuchu City Traffic Park (machine translation):

https://honyaku.j-server.com/LUCFUCHU/ns/tl.cgi/https%3a//www.city.fuchu.tokyo.jp/shisetu/kankyo/koen/kotuyuen.html?SLANG=ja&TLANG=en&XMODE=0&XCHARSET=UTF-8&XJSID=0

Timetable Disruption on the Odakyu Line

Platform display at Chitose-Funabashi station on the Odakyu line

The other day, I headed to Shinjuku to take care of some personal business. When I arrived at my nearest station on the Odakyu Line, I immediately noticed something unusual. Many passengers were standing around the concourse, looking puzzled. Was something wrong?

When I looked up at the platform display, I finally understood the reason. Please take a look at the top photo. The trains were heavily delayed. It was already past 11 o’clock, yet the train scheduled to leave at 9:43 had not even arrived at the station. To make matters worse, the next train’s destination wasn’t Shinjuku but Kyodo — just one station away. Due to a signal system malfunction, train service between Kyodo Station and Shinjuku Terminal had been suspended.

But please don’t worry — railfans are always optimistic! I’m one of them, too. I quickly changed my mindset and decided to make the best of the situation. First, I took a photo of the platform display showing the rare destination “Kyodo.” Then I moved on to Kyodo Station, looking for more unusual scenes. Please take a look at the photo below. It might look ordinary at first glance — an Odakyu 3000 series EMU running on the track — but for me, it was a little treasure. The train was switching from the express track (on the left) to the local track (on the right), a sight I rarely see at this station.

I couldn’t finish my personal business as planned that day, but I was satisfied — after all, I got to witness some rare and fascinating railway scenes.

Odakyu 3000 series EMU changing tracks at Kyodo station

New Year Scene on the Haneda Airport Line

Tokyo Monorail EMU 10000 series trainset 10081 with a New Year plate

It’s already late January—time really flies. Before we say goodbye to the first month of 2025, I’d like to share one more scene from Tokyo’s railways during the New Year season.

Please take a look at the top photo. You can see a Tokyo Monorail train with a yellow plate on the front. This is trainset 10081 of the EMU Tokyo Monorail 10000 series, running along the Haneda Airport Line.

Let me briefly review the line. The Haneda Airport Line is a monorail route connecting downtown Tokyo with Tokyo International Airport (Haneda). It opened in 1964, making it the second-oldest monorail line in the Tokyo area. The 10000 series is the newest generation, consisting of six cars. Its body is made of aluminum and features bolsterless bogies. The trains are equipped with IGBT–VVVF (variable-frequency drive) control systems, and the green stripe above the windows adds a refreshing touch to their appearance.

The yellow front plate is especially eye-catching—it displays “2025” in a design inspired by snakes, as this year marks the Year of the Snake in the Chinese zodiac.

Meanwhile, the photo below shows trainset 10041 of the same series. Its body color has been restored to the original design used when the Haneda Airport Line first opened. On the front, it carries another type of plate celebrating the 2025 New Year.

In the background, you can spot the Tokyo Skytree, a 634-meter-tall broadcasting tower that stands about 14 kilometers northeast of the line. It’s well known as the tallest freestanding broadcasting tower in the world.

Trainset 10041 (foreground) and Tokyo Skytree (background)

Lake-Ocean View in Hakone

Gondora "Ashinoko" of the Komagatake Ropeway

You may remember my visit to Hakone, which I introduced to you last November. Today, I’d like to show you another precious view from the summit of Mt. Komagatake.

Please look at the photo below. You can see two different water surfaces. What are they? They are a lake and the ocean. The one in the foreground is Lake Ashinoko, while the one in the background is the Pacific Ocean. It’s quite a rare view, isn’t it?

As far as I know, there are several places in Japan where you can see both a lake and the sea at the same time. For example, you can view Lake Saroma and the Sea of Okhotsk together on Hokkaido Island—but those two are actually connected. In other words, the difference in elevation between their water surfaces is zero meters. In contrast, the elevation difference between Lake Ashinoko and the Pacific Ocean is about 723 meters. Doesn’t it seem as if the water from the lake could easily leak out? According to specialists, Lake Ashinoko is a caldera lake formed in the Hakone Mountains. This means that it is surrounded by hard, dense volcanic rock. I truly enjoyed this unique and dynamic view from Mt. Komagatake.

Well, I can’t finish here, since this is a transportation blog. Taking this opportunity, let me also introduce another gondola, Ashinoko (No. 1). Along with “Komagatake (Number 2)”, Ashinoko was built by CWA in 1986 and can accommodate up to 101 passengers. The Komagatake Ropeway has been operated by an automatic control system since 1990.

Lake Ashinoko (foreground) and the Pacific Ocean (background)

Hakone-Komagatake Ropeway (in Japanese):

https://www.princehotels.co.jp/amuse/hakone-en/ropeway/

The 55th Anniversary of the Seibu-Chichibu Line

The “55th Anniversary Train” of the Seibu-Chichibu Line

On October 14th, 2024, Seibu Railway celebrated the 55th anniversary of the Seibu-Chichibu Line. To commemorate this milestone, the company held several special events.

Let me start with a brief review of the Seibu-Chichibu Line. This mountain railway runs through the Chichibu Mountains, located in the northwestern part of the Tokyo metropolitan area. Connecting Agano and Seibu-Chichibu, the line is 19 kilometers long. It consists mostly of single track and is electrified at 1,500 V DC with a gauge of 1,067 millimeters.

The route was opened on October 14th, 1969, to serve both tourists and cement transportation. For your reference, Mt. Buko in the Chichibu area is well known for its limestone production, a key material used in cement. The limited express train “Laview (EMU 001 series)” and the local train (EMU 4000 series)” are the main rolling stock currently operated on the line.

Now, let’s move on to the main topic. On November 11th, 2024, Seibu began operating a special “55th Anniversary Train” on the Seibu-Chichibu Line. The train uses set 4017 of the EMU 4000 series, painted in an eye-catching red and beige livery. According to Seibu, this color scheme was inspired by the Class E851 electric locomotive, which once operated on the Seibu-Chichibu Line until its retirement in 1996.

The E851 was a Bo+Bo+Bo-type DC electric locomotive equipped with six 425 kW motors. In its prime, it could haul 1,000-ton cement trains in double-heading operation. You can get an idea of its powerful appearance from the replica displayed at Seibu-Chichibu Station (see the photo below). The E851 is on the left.

Congratulations to the Seibu-Chichibu Line on its 55th anniversary!

Replica of Seibu’s Class E851 electric locomotive (left)

Official information about the 55th anniversary Train (in Japanese):

https://www.seiburailway.jp/file.jsp?newsroom/news/file/20241108_4000e851.pdf