Trackside Classic: Japan’s Railway Heritage – Part 2: Tokyo Trams

We’re back in Asukayama Park in North Tokyo, and just a few meters away from the D51 steam engine we saw in the previous instalment is this streetcar. For most of the 20^th Century, the Tokyo Toden network provided reliable and cheap mass transit for the Japanese capital. Many older folks remember it fondly and several surviving vehicles are on display throughout the metropolis.

The very first tram line opened in Tokyo in 1882. Early trams were horse-drawn, but this did not last long: electrified lines started to appear in the first years of the 20^th Century; by 1905, when the above picture was taken, the Tokyo toden was almost 100% electric. Other Japanese cities had similar systems, of course: Hiroshima, Kyoto, Sapporo or Nagasaki had major networks, many are still in operation (Hiroshima’s network is particularly extensive, for instance). By contrast, Tokyo’s tram lines were sacrificed to make way for cars and buses.

At its high point in the late ‘50s, there were 41 tram lines (in red) and 213km of tracks across the city and beyond. Between 1967 and 1972, 95% of the network was dismantled in favour of increased car and bus transport. The local government also implemented a massive metro line scheme, which took decades to build and currently stands at 195km of tunnels under the city – there are also several surface train lines, as well as elevated ones. However, one legacy tram line was salvaged in north Tokyo (highlighted in yellow above). Actually made up of two old lines, it survived thanks to a strong local campaign to keep the tram and the fact that substantial parts of the line had its own right-of-way zigzagging through a dense neighbourhood parallel to a busy street. It is now called the Sakura line, it’s just over 12km long and features 30 stops.

Present-day Tokyo trams are usually pretty unremarkable machines. Here are two of the more modern types at the Arakawa depot – a Toei 8900 Series on the left (operating since 2015) and a 8800 Series (built circa 2009) on the right. Some older series trams are also in use, but all look fairly inconspicuous, with one exception which we will see shortly. These are operated by a single staff member, whereas back in the day, the driver and conductor jobs required two people. Isn’t progress great?

A couple of units, known as the 9000 Series, have been given a more classic look, with a cyclops headlight and smaller windows, but they’re all 21^st Century underneath. What makes all Tokyo trams particularly antiquated is how short they have to be, compared to current European-style multiple-car trams.

The main workhorse of the Tokyo Toden system was the Type 3000, first seen in wooden form in 1923, right after the Great Kanto Earthquake. Many were destroyed in the fire-bombing of Tokyo in 1944-45, so the Type 6000 was created in 1947 to succeed it. This one, known as Ikkyu-san (after its original number, 193), was the last one to be in service, staying on the Sakura Tram line as an emergency back-up vehicle until December 2000.

There were many other tram types used in the Toyko network after the war, but they all shared the steel-bodied Type 6000’s general appearance. Ikkyu-san here was restored to its original early-‘50s livery.

However, most classic Tokyo trams were preserved in their later iconic yellow and red colours, such as this one sitting in Asukayama Park, next to the D51 steam locomotive we saw earlier this month.

This unit has had a bit of work done. The window panes are gone, the headlight and front end glass are now acrylic. Inside, the original seats have been replaced by these wooden benches.

There is a control pod at either end, obviously. It is interesting that although these were made in Japan and strictly for Japanese domestic use, some English still made its way into the mix here.

This survivor, one of about ten left in existence (from a production of 290 units), was given another lick of paint recently, so it looks better now than on these photos.

These machines could haul about 100 passengers (22 of whom could be seated), which is better than a bus, but nowhere near as good as the metro system, which is what the scale of the city called for. Smaller cities like Hiroshima or Sapporo have been able to keep a far more extensive tram network, but the Tokyo Toden was just not able to keep up with the pace of the city’s development.

It’s wonderful to see how Japan reveres its own rail history, from steam locos to bullet trains and everything else in between. If you ever want to see it in person, do make your way to one of Tokyo’s oldest public parks, Asukayama. It’s easy to get to – just hop on a tram.

 

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Trackside Classic: Japan’s Railway Heritage – Part 1: Steam Engines