The is a DC

electric multiple unit An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number o ...

(EMU) commuter train type operated by the

private railway A private railway is a railroad run by a private business entity (usually a corporation but not need be), as opposed to a railroad run by a public sector. Japan In Japan, , commonly simply ''private railway'', refers to a public transit railway o ...

operator

Tobu Railway is a Japanese commuter railway and ''keiretsu'' holding company in the Greater Tokyo Area as well as an intercity and regional operator in the Kantō region. Excluding the Japan Railways Group companies, Tobu's rail system is the second longes ...

in Japan since 1997. Initially formed as six-car and four-car sets, sets are mostly formed as permanently coupled ten-car formations since 2011.

Formations

, the fleet consists of one six-car and one four-car set based at Minami-Kurihashi and Kasukabe depots for

Tobu Skytree Line The is a section of the Tobu Isesaki Line operated by the private railway company Tobu Railway, extending from Asakusa Station in Tokyo to Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen Station in Saitama Prefecture. Some trains from the line continue to the Tokyo Me ...

and

Tobu Nikko Line is a Japanese commuter railway and ''keiretsu'' holding company in the Greater Tokyo Area as well as an intercity and regional operator in the Kantō region. Excluding the Japan Railways Group companies, Tobu's rail system is the second longes ...

services, and 14 permanently coupled 6+4-car sets based at Shinrinkoen Depot for

Tobu Tojo Line is a Japanese commuter railway and ''keiretsu'' holding company in the Greater Tokyo Area as well as an intercity and regional operator in the Kantō region. Excluding the Japan Railways Group companies, Tobu's rail system is the second longes ...

services.

10-car Tobu Tojo Line sets

* The M1 and M1A cars are each fitted with two single-arm pantographs, and the M3 cars are fitted with one. * Cars 2, 3, 6, and 9 have wheelchair spaces.

6-car sets

The M1 cars are fitted with two single-arm pantographs, and the M3 cars are fitted with one.

4-car sets

The M1A cars are fitted with two single-arm pantographs.

Bogies

File:Tobu-30000-SS038-Truck.jpg, SS038 trailer bogie File:Tobu-30000-SS138-Truck.jpg, SS138 motored bogie

Interior

Passenger accommodation consists of longitudinal seating throughout. The first three sets delivered, sets 31601, 31401, and 31402, had flat panels on the seat ends and no centre stanchions. Set 31403 was fitted with contoured seats, and these were fitted on all subsequent sets delivered. Sets 31607 and 31407 onward had higher light blue panels on the seat ends. File:Tobu-30000-interior.jpg, Interior view showing seating style in early sets (car 33405) File:Tobu 30000 series car 32612 interior 20151112.JPG, Interior view showing seating style in later sets (car 32612), November 2015 File:Tobu 30000 series car 32612 priority seat 20151112.JPG, Priority seating in car 32612, November 2015 File:Tobu 30000 series car 32612 wheelchair space 20151112.JPG, A wheelchair space in car 32612, November 2015

History

The first set, 31601, was delivered in November 1996, with the first trains entering service on 25 March 1997. Initially used primarily on

Tobu Isesaki Line The is a Japanese railway line operated by the private railway company Tobu Railway, extending from Tōbu-Dōbutsu-Kōen Station in Saitama to Isesaki Station in Gunma Prefecture. The Isesaki Line can refer to the entire section between Asak ...

services, they were introduced on through-running services to and from the

Tokyu Den-en-toshi Line The is a major commuter line operated by the private railway operator Tokyu Corporation and connecting south-western suburbs of Tokyo and neighbouring Kanagawa Prefecture, with its western terminus of , to a major railway junction of western dow ...

via the

Tokyo Metro Hanzomon Line Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital and most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is one of the most populous urban areas in the world. The Greater Tokyo Area, whic ...

from March 2003, operating in 6+4-car formations. However, as the driving cabs between the two sets led to reduced capacity, which hampered the fleet's ability to cope with the congestion rates of the Hanzomon and Den-en-toshi lines, the 30000 series' usage on these services was reduced in late 2005. They were largely superseded by new 50050 series fixed 10-car sets from 18 March 2006. Sets withdrawn from Hanzomon Line through services were reallocated to services on the Isesaki, Nikko, and

Utsunomiya is the capital and largest city of Tochigi Prefecture in the northern Kantō region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 513,584, and a population density of . The total area of the city is . Utsunomiya is famous for its ''gyoza'' ...

lines.

Transfer to Tojo Line

From January 2011, pairs of four- and six-car sets were transferred to the

, commencing with sets 31601 and 31401. These sets entered revenue service from 13 June 2011 following modifications at Shinrinkōen Depot to form a permanently coupled 10-car set with control equipment and skirts removed from the two intermediate driving cabs. In addition, the electrical couplers from the end cars were removed. File:31401 + 31601 Wakaba 20110430.JPG, Permanently coupled sets 31401 and 31601 undergoing driver training on the Tojo Line, April 2011 File:Tobu-Series30000 join.jpg, Permanently coupled intermediate driving cabs of cars 36610 and 31410, November 2021

Fixed 10-car set conversion dates

Notes

References

External links

Tobu 30000 series
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tobu 30000 Series Electric multiple units of Japan 30000 series Train-related introductions in 1997 Alna Koki rolling stock Fuji rolling stock Tokyu Car multiple units 1500 V DC multiple units of Japan