Japan in 2013

JNR 103 Series were once among the most numerous trains in Japan. The remaining fleet are likely to see out their final years on commuter turns in the Osaka area. One such unit is pictured at Inari station with a service for Jöyö on the Nara line in Kyoto. 

A couple of conversations recently, both at work and at my model railway club have turned to discussing the railways of Japan. I had not quite realised that it will be 10 years this year since my visit on a family holiday back in August 2013.

A JR West series 381 unit arrives into Shin-Ōsaka. The rear of the unit features a high-level cab and is in the authors opinion much more interesting!

Railways are an essential backbone of Japan's transport system, and while this wasn't a trip specifically for the trains, there were plenty of opportunities to see them on our travels, and I also managed to spend a little of my free time away from the group exploring the railways at the expense of a few temples and the giant bamboo in Kyoto.

A series 185 approaches Urawa station in greater Tokyo, most likely with an Odoriko Limited Express. This series was retired form scheduled work in 2021. 

A 231 series Tokyo commuter EMU at Suidōbashi.

Aside from the famous 'Shinkansen' (Bullet Train) network which forms the fastest connections between most cities and is built to Standard Gauge, the remaining railways run on 3ft 6in (1,067mm) 'Cape Gauge'. I wrote about the Shinkansen shortly after I returned here, but aside from looking at some freight spots around Tokyo here, I never really published any of my pictures of Japans regular railways. 10 years on, it feels like now might be a good opportunity.

A JR West series 221 dating from 1989 calls at Nishiōji.

I knew that I did not have a lot of time to pursue trains on my visit, so I had done enough research before leaving the UK to at least have an idea of some of the trains I wanted to see, and where I might find them. As it turned out, I probably should have done a little more research into the tourist sights as well as to my surprise there was a lot more free, un-guided time on our trip than I had expected.

EF510 513 stands at Tokyo's Ueno station at the head of the
Hokutosai Limited Express Sleeper (or 'Blue Train') bound
for Sapporo. The train ran for two more years before being
withdrawn upon the opening of the Hokkaido Shinkansen.

At the time of my visit Japan's passenger operation was already an almost 100% unit operated railway. The only exception being a couple of loco hauled tourist trains and the very last of the overnight 'blue trains' which would finish just a few years later in 2016. The once large network of 'Blue Trains' had gradually been eroded over a large number of years by the expanding Shinkansen network, enabling journey times to be reduced and thus the need and demand for overnight travel also fell.

The stylised EMU's of the Narita Express,
one of the airport trains available in Tokyo,

The Tokyo area has a very dense rail network of commuter lines operated by modern air conditioned [much needed!] EMU's. Many of these are arguably not very exciting, away from the pure metro networks however more variety could be found with longer distance, and more interesting 'Limited Express' services which connect larger towns. These are generally the highest class of trains on the classic network with the Shinkansen now forming all high-speed intercity services. Away from Tokyo it is possible to find older EMU's on local services, these present much more character than some of the modern units and often carry much more traditional liveries.

Further afield still, away from core routes DMU's can be found working more rural services on the roughly 1/3 of the network which is not electrified. I did not encounter a huge number of these, but do recall seeing a few around Osaka and on a trip we made to Takayama. 

Takayama plays host to a KiHa 40 Series (left) and KiHa 85 Series DMU's. The former has been removed from service by JR central in 2016, but do retain limited work elsewhere. The 85 Series cling on to duties on the Takayama mainline, but are slated for replacement in 2023.

EF210 159 approaches Nishi-Kokobunji with a tank train. These locos were built from 1996 and have replaced many of the older types in the Tokyo area.

EF641011 at Omiya with a container train.

Locomotives, as already mentioned are almost exclusively used on freight services and can be found on many of the trunk routes away from the Shinkansen. Much of the traction at the time of my visit still dated from the 1960's with EF64, EF65 dominating traffic in the Tokyo area. Although numbers are reducing, these locomotives are still at working at the present time. One the locos which particularly interested me were the EF66's, featuring their distinctive sloped fronts. This class is split into two with the original locos (now all withdrawn) and a slightly more modern batch which featured a revised cab design. The original locos certainly look the most impressive, and while I managed to see two, neither produced especially good photographs.

Despite not being caught at the best angle EF66 36 shows off the features of the class as it passes with a Freight through Kyoto. This was the only example of the original EF66 series I would see working. 

Kawasaki built EF66 120 hauls a short tank train through
Nishi-Kokobunji on the Tokyo freight loop line.

The scarcest of traction to find are diesel locomotives. With almost all the main routes electrified these are scarcely seen outside of yards and indeed I do not recall seeing any working on my trip.

DE10 1592 is seen in the yard at Minami-Matsumoto. Note the unusual Bo-Co wheel arrangement.

With such a wide variety of EMU's on offer, and the Japanese trait for designing some rather quirky looking trains, it was almost inevitable that there would be some of particular interest. 

A 231 series Tokyo commuter EMU at Sendagaya.

A Series 111 EMU in 'Shonan' livery calls at Yamashina.
These units have now all been withdrawn, however similar
series 113 still retain some work.

Having developed a bit of a soft spot for the Dutch ICM 'Koplopper' [translates at 'Head Walker'] trains, when I discovered that similar looking units existed in Japan I certainly wanted to try to see some. This is one of the older designs of cab which have been used in Japan for Limited Express trains since the mid 1960's and at the time of my visit many of these original classes with their pointy above-gangway cab were still running, often in their original beige and red colour scheme. Even by 2014 however the use of these older trainsets was beginning to dwindle as replacement was well underway with sleek new trains, still with the distinctive overhead cab, replacing them on most of their routes.

10 years later, the original sets have now been almost entirely removed from service. The final tilting class 381 units which have a high cab at just one end are due to work their final duties during 2023.

My best attempt at capturing a high-cabbed series 189. This example working a Kounotori service from Ōsaka. 

The series 683 is an example of the more modern high-cabbed Limited Express units and is seen at Kyoto.

Extensive use of  'The Red List of Trains in Japan' was made in preparing this article. If you are interested in the railways or Japan, I certainly recommend giving it a look! 

The refurbished EF66 is still clinging on to life as of 2023. Here, EF66 129 is captured with a container train at Yamashina on the outskirts of Kyoto.