Wednesday 27 March 2024

EMU E8 Series: New Model for Yamagata Shinkansen

Set G2 of the EMU JR East E8 series travels on Yamagata Shinkansen

On March 16th, JR East changed their timetable for the first time in a year. What was new with Japan's largest railway?

The big news was the debut of a new model on Yamagata Shinkansen. Let me quickly review Yamagata Shinkansen to start. It's a branch line of Tohoku Shinkansen, and a kind of "mini-shinkansens". Connecting Fukushima station on Tohoku Shinkansen and Shinjo terminal in Yamagata Prefecture, its line length is 148.6 kilometers. This route was originally constructed as a conventional line with a narrow gauge (1,067 millimeters) track, but the gauge was changed to the shinkansen size (1,435 millimeters) later.

A new model, named the EMU E8 series, is the third generation Yamagata Shinkansen train following the 400 and the E3 series. Being coupled with the E5 series, the E8 series is operated from Tokyo to Fukushima station on Tohoku Shinkansen. The E8 series is then detached, and runs by itself to Shinjo terminal. What are the main differences between the old E3 and the new E8 series? Firstly, its maximum speed was raised from 275 to 300 kilometers per hour on the Tohoku Shinkansen section. Secondly, a full active suspension system is notable. It's a special device to minimize the lateral swinging movement of the train by artificially creating a reverse swinging movement. Different from the E3 series, the full active suspension system is applied to not only the head cars but also the middle cars. Please enjoy photos of the E8 series, which have just been shot.

EMU JR East E8 (left) + E5 (right) series arrives at Tokyo station

Official information about the EMU JR East E8 series (in Japanese):
Official information about Yamagata Shinkansen:

Saturday 23 March 2024

The Daiyuzan Line: Update

Set 5501 of the EMU Izu-Hakone 5000 series, "Tengu Train" (February, 2024)

Spring is here in the Tokyo metropolitan area. The maximum daytime temperature is nearly 20 degrees Celsius. I visited the Daiyuzan line of Izu-Hakone Railway to find the advent of spring.

I got off at Wadagawara station, and visited a cherry-tree-lined path, named Harukimichi for the first time in five years. It's famous for Harumeki-sakura, which were developed by the local people a quarter of a century ago. The blooming season of Harumeki-sakura is earlier than that of the standard cherry, so, many cherry lovers flock to this path to feel the herald of spring as soon as possible. I'm also one of those people. This time, I could luckily enjoy not only the cherry blossoms but also snow-capped Mt. Fuji far away.

I can't be written off here as this is a rail-fan's blog. Taking this opportunity, I'd like to show you what Set 5501 of the EMU Izu-Hakone Railway 5000 series is now. The 5000 series is basically a blue-colored train, but the body color of Set 5501 was changed to vermillion last year cerebrating the 100th anniversary of the Daiyuzan line. The vermillion is known as the color of Tengu, who is an imaginary goblin living deep in the mountains around the Daiyuzan line. It is said that he has a vermillion-colored face, a long nose and wings on his back. You can see his feather fan on the front of Set 5501. Incidentally, the Daiyuzan line is the 9.6 kilometers-long local line in the southwestern part of Kanagawa Prefecture.

Snow-capped Mt. Fuji and Harumeki-sakura blossoms (March, 2024)

Official information about "Tengu Train" (in Japanese):
Official website, the trains of Izu-Hakone Railway (in Japanese):

Wednesday 20 March 2024

A Small Topic on the Seibu Lines

The seat fabric of the EMU Seibu 20000 series is being temporarily repaired

Generally speaking, Japanese trains have comfortable seats. Fabrics for passenger seats are clean and strong; however, they are not perfect. I recently found that the seat fabric of the Seibu train was being temporarily repaired. Please look at the top photo. The bright blue-colored seat is very beautiful, but the seat surface is covered by a special cloth for temporal repair. The train illustration looks to be "crying"; however, there is a message on the cloth, saying "This seat can be used safely". Passengers will be relieved, but the train illustration is so lovely. Can you sit on the cloth without hesitation? No, I can't. Am I an overthinker?

Joking aside, the train under seat repair is the EMU Seibu 20000 series. It was commissioned in 2000 as a new-generation commuter train to replace the deteriorated 101 series. The design concept is simple and clean. One set is composed of 8 or 10 cars. The motorcars to trailers ratio is 1. The body is made of aluminum with a double skin structure, so, they're light and sturdy. The electric control system is an IGBT-VVVF (variable-frequency drive) with 135kW/h induction motors and regenerative brakes. Needless to say, the 20000 series promotes energy saving.

Let me tell you one last thing. Don't you think that the Seibu 20000 series is like the Tobu 50000 series? It's not surprising because both the Seibu 20000 and the Tobu 50000 series were designed by Hitachi based on the concept of the "Hitachi A-train".

The EMU Seibu 20000 series travels on the Ikebukuro line

Sunday 17 March 2024

Joetsu Shinkansen: New Shuttle’s Neighbor

The Joetsu Shinkansen train is seen from Hanuki station on the New Shuttle line

This is the sequel of my last post. After enjoying the 40th anniversary memorial trains on the New Shuttle line, I shifted my attention to the adjacent track. That's JR East's Joetsu Shinkansen. Let me quickly review the Joetsu Shinkansen to start. It's the main transportation artery between Tokyo Metropolis and Niigata Prefecture. Its operating length is 334 kilometers. The EMU E7 series is the representative model on the Joetsu Shinkansen. Its maximum operating speed is 275 kilometers per hour.

Hanuki station platform on the New Shuttle line is one of the best places to observe the Joetsu (and Hokuriku) Shinkansen trains, because the New Shuttle track and the Shinkansen track are the same height. We can easily shoot the Shinkansen trains, especially southbound ones running with high speed. Trains are operated every 15 minutes on average. For your information, a suitable sunlight condition for photographers is around noon. It's a fairly famous shooting spot among rail-fans.

Another recommended spot is the riverside of Haraichinuma River, 0.5 kilometer southwest of Maruyama station on the New Shuttle line. It's not a famous spot, but I like it. We can observe 3-story tracks there. They are, from top to bottom, the southbound Joetsu Shinkansen track, the northbound Joetsu Shinkansen track and the northbound New Shuttle track. Sitting on the riverside, I could fully enjoy the hurtling Shinkansen train, whose total length is 300.25 meters. Early spring scenery in the suburban area was also my favorite. Spring has sprung in the Tokyo metropolitan area!

Distant view of the EMU JR East E7 series traveling on the Joetsu Shinkansen

Official information about the Joetsu Shinkansen:
Official information about the JR East E7 series (in Japanese):

Thursday 14 March 2024

The 40th Anniversary of the New Shuttle

The New Shuttle track has 3 rigid wires for power supply and a guide rail (lower left)

I recently visited the New Shuttle for the first time in two years. What's new with this AGT (Automated Guideway Transit) line?

Let me review the New Shuttle. It's a rubber-tyred automated guideway transit (AGT) system in Saitama Prefecture, about 30 kilometers north of Tokyo. The formal name is the Ina line of Saitama New Urban Transit Company. Connecting Omiya and Uchijuku, its operating length is 12.7 kilometers. The route was opened in 1983 beside the JR East's Tohoku and Joetsu Shinkansen track. The track is mostly double, but partly single. The power supply is 600V three-phase alternate current. Instead of an overhead catenary, three rigid wires are installed along the track. Unlike the other AGT lines such as the Yurikamome, Nippori-Toneri Liner and Seaside Line, a driver operates each train. It's not a driver-less operation. For your information, the definition of the Automated Guideway Transit is a transportation system that runs on rubber tires by applying guide wheels to the guide rails in the center or side walls of the track. It doesn't necessarily mean driver-less operation. You can see three rigid wires for power supply and a guide rail in the top photo.

In commemoration of the 40th anniversary, all trains of the New Shuttle have been displaying 40th anniversary stickers since last August. We can see illustrations of both the retired model, EMU 1000 series (later modified to the 1010 series), and the latest model, EMU 2020 series, on the sticker. Time really flies. Congratulations on the 40th anniversary of the New Shuttle!

The 40the anniversary sticker of the New Shuttle train

Official website, the New Shuttle (in Japanese): https://www.new-shuttle.jp/