The unsuccessful "new" trains on Nambu Line

Nambu Line is one of the most overcrowded railways in the Greater Tokyo Area, but its branch lines are not well known. So-called Hama-Kawasaki branch line is a commuter rail line between Shitte and Hama-Kawasaki, which is just 4.1 km (2.5 miles) long with five stations in total. The line is in an industrial area so that there are many passengers during rush hours but very few at off-peak times.

The branch line has been served by two-carriage trains, which look like a rural railway. In 2023, JR East introduced "new trains" called E127 series, which were in fact reallocated from Niigata Prefecture. However, they were mostly inactive in 2024 due to "unreliablity" that the company refuses to explain in detail, and thus 35-year-old 205 series trains were reinstated.

At the end of 2024, a trade union referred to the reason why the E127 series trains were temporarily removed from service. The document suggests that train drivers filed a complaint about insufficient air-conditioning especially in a cab. It might have been less of an issue when the E127 series trains were running in Niigata Prefecture where people have to care more about heavy snow than scorching temperature, but it seems to have become a nightmare in Kawasaki and Yokohama cities.

The 205 series trains have remained longer than planned as stopgaps, though two out of three units were sent for scrap in mid-December 2024. This means that there is no choice but to use the E127 series in summer no matter how hot the trains are.

According to the trade union, there is currently no plan of introducing E131 series or any other newer trains to the line. Thus, the only possible solution is installing more powerful air-conditioner or fans on the E127 series trains. Otherwise, the immense heatwave will make drivers ill and thus it would end up with service reduction caused by a shortage of train crew.

JR East: platform edge doors in Tokyo

On Monday 3 March, JR East published the latest plan to install platform edge doors in Tokyo. JR East endeavors to introduce the doors to most stations of major railways in Tokyo area by around March 2032, but somehow a few major stations seem to have been omitted from the list.

The company has been installing the platform edge doors to stations of commuter railways in the Greater Tokyo Area since 2010, resulted in fewer "a person being hit by a train" cases than before. The doors cannot prevent people from committing suicide, but given that most of the cases are caused by blind people (mostly not their fault), intoxicated people (mostly their fault) or those who have concentrated too much on their phone (clearly their fault), the project have paid off.

The document published by JR East contains tables of stations where the platform edge doors will be installed by March 2029. There are two lines that most people are not familiar with, Yamanote Freight Line and Tohoku Freight Line, both of which are now commonly known as Shonan-Shinjuku Line.

It is worth noting that not just commuter railways but also suburban railways are on the list, namely Utsunomiya, Takasaki, Sobu Rapid and Yokosuka Lines as well as Shonan-Shinjuku Line. Since number of doors and their positions are different in some cases (especially when it comes to limited express services), it is not easy to install the platform edge doors to suburban railway stations, but JR East has decided to carry out the work.

Many stations of Chuo Rapid Line are also on the list, as no station on the line has platform edge doors so far. Since all commuter train units will be rearranged from 10 to 12 coaches with two Green Cars (first class coaches) by next week, there will be no obstacle to introduce the platform edge doors. Chuo Rapid Line has been notorious for having too many train disruptions caused by "a person being hit by a train" for more than 50 years, but the number of cases is expected to dramatically decline within a few years.

However, the list does not cover all busy stations in Tokyo. For example, there is no plan so far on Keiyo and Musashino Lines. Given that not even a single station thereof is on the list by 2029, it is hard to believe that the company will do so by 2032.

It might also have affected other lines, especially some Chuo Rapid Line. Kunitachi, Tachikawa, Hino, Toyoda and Hachioji stations are not on the list probably because there are up to four Musashino a day, direct services connecting Hachioji and Omiya via Chuo Rapid and Musashino Lines. Tachikawa is the third busiest station on Chuo Rapid Line so that leaving it without the platform edge doors will certainly be a setback for JR East's commitment to safety. No clarification of the issue has not been explained by the company so far.

Soya Russell

Japan is said to have subtropical climate, but northern part of the country has subarctic climate. Hokkaido has been known for the coldest and the snowiest region in Japan. Global warming has caused significantly high temperature across the country in summer, but the heavy snow is still observed in the northern part in winter. Hence, railway companies have special trains to remove snow on tracks. Soya Main Line, a rural railway connecting Asahikawa and Wakkanai, is well known for having them.

There had been several types of such trains, but most of them used today are classified as Russell trains in Japanese. This is the most common and the simplest, which have a large snow plough that clears snow between and by the tracks. The term Russell derives from Russell Car & Snow Plow Company in Pennsylvania, which exported the very first rolling stock for removing snow to Japan in 1911.

There had been many diesel locomotives for dealing with heavy snow until the 2000s, but most of them retired as the amount of snowfall declined in many areas due to the global warming, and snow blowers that are smaller, cheaper and easier to use were developed. Today, Class DE15 is the only active one on the entire JR network.

The Class DE15 was developed by Japanese National Railways. 85 locomotives in total were built in 1967-81 and allocated mostly to the northern region. The Class DE15 can also haul other trains in spring, summer and autumn so that some of them are used as a shunter or for rail tours.

However, its appearance changes in winter. When snowplough units are attached to the locomotive, the Class DE15 looks completely different to its original style. In fact, the snowplough unit consists not only of a plough itself but also a cab and spare lights. The length of the locomotive is 14.15 metres (46 ft 5 in), but it will be up to 30.86 metres (101 ft 3 in) with snowplough units, describing how large the units are.

Drivers can adjust ploughs depending on the amount of snow. The photo above shows how it looks like when there is little snow between tracks. A small side plough is deployed and it scoops up some snow, but spare headlights are not turned on, indicating that just a small amount of snow is expected.

When there is more snow, both side ploughs are deployed and all headlights are turned on. This is Otoineppu village, where annual snowfall is approximately 10 metres (33 ft) and there is often 30 cm (a foot) of snowfall every single day. This is why special locomotives like the Class DE15 is still necessary.

It is hard for railway enthusiasts to catch the Class DE15. First, it mostly runs remote areas where just a handful of train services a day are available. Second, the deep snow makes it extremely difficult to access. Third, it may not run if there is little snow but cannot run if there is too much snow.

To those of you who wish to see the DE15 should be well prepared, as the minimum temperature could go well below -20 degrees Celsius (-4 degrees Fahrenheit) at night with high winds. Unlike snow-clearing trains on other lines, those on Soya Main Line run frequently (almost daily) at the daytime, but note that all of them are still marked as "runs as required", and thus their operation is not 100% guaranteed.

Little Dancer

Little Dancer is a brand of low-floor tram developed by Alna, a manufacturer whose parent company is Hankyu. Trams in Japan are generally known for being old simply because tram business is not profitable, but Little Dancer trams are new, as they have been manufactured since 2001. The brand is popular across the country, as 11 out of 19 tram and light rail operators in Japan have used at least one.

The first Little Dancer, also the very first low-floor tram made in Japan, is Kagoshima Tram 1000 series. People in Kagoshima heavily use the tram network when they go to the city centre, but older trams are small and have a large gap between a tram stop and train floor, which is hard for elderly passengers. The introduction of Little Dancer made them easier to use the tram services, and even wheelchair users are now able to get on and off (except five out of 37 stops due to extremely narrow platforms). Other tram operators in the country followed Kagoshima city.

Some Little Dancer trams in the early days were not always successful because there were still steps inside a tram and thus not fully accessible, and capacity was small so that fewer passengers than older trams could be transported. For example, Iyotetsu 2100 series has been notorious for having very small standing space. As the technology advances, newer types introduced after the late-2000s have been dramatically improved.

Little Dancer is also known for its unique name. The Japanese word "dansa", which is pronounced very similarly to "dancer", means "step". The brand stemmed from a dad joke, as Litttle Dancer also means "little step(s)". It is not surprising given that the manufacturer locates near Osaka, where people thereof have been known for having a great sense of humour.

Nakano Depot Disease

Chuo and Sobu Lines (Local) in Tokyo have been frequently disrupted by sudden drivers' illnesses for nearly four years. Several investigations have been conducted, but the cause remains unknown. In spite of safety prayers by a Shinto clergy, there is no sign of improvement. The so-called "Nakano depot disease" has had negative impacts both on passengers and train crews.

The Chuo and Sobu Lines (Local) is a commuter railway in Tokyo that consists of two lines, Chuo Main Line and Sobu Main Line. They connect Chiba and Mitaka stations, calling at all stations including small ones. They are 60.2 km (37.4 miles) long, and trains formed of ten coaches run every two minutes at peak times.

Tokyo Shimbunreported in 2024 that there have been 40 train disruptions in the past three years as drivers suddenly feeling unwell. Drivers in their 20s to 40s suffered from dizziness, anaemia, drowsiness and stomach aches, resulting in overshooting platforms or partial service suspension lasting 20 to 30 minutes. All of them had no trouble during a daily health check before getting onto a train. There are less than three such cases a year on other lines, but the Chuo and Sobu Lines (Local) apparently have had far more troubles than others.

According to Nippon Cultural Broadcasting, trade unions insisted that the issue were triggered by overworking, but JR East dismissed the claim as no such troubles had been observed on other busy lines such as Yamanote Line. The train operator conducted various investigations including air and water testing at Nakano depot, where drivers and crews gather every day, but no abnormality has been observed. The company even relied on religion, asking a Shinto clergy (kannushi) to pray for safety as well as health, but the situation remains unchanged, as Asahi Shimbun reported.

The government acknowledged the "Nakano depot disease" in response to an enquiry submitted last month by an MP. However, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has refused to intervene in the cases at the moment, insisting that JR East should take responsibilities for its employees.

The unreliability of the Chuo and Sobu Lines (Local) is certainly a matter of concern. Trade unions have urged JR East to significantly improve the tight work shifts and replace old facilities with new ones, and the company has accepted some of their demands, but the problem is yet to be solved. Unless the troubles subside, there might be calls for the government to take action. However, it is hard to imagine what measures could the authorities adopt in addition to what the train operator has already done.