Toden Tram Depot Open Day

[bill937ca]

 

 

[Densha]

That last one is interesting, just two cabs and just air between them.

[bill937ca]

That last one is interesting, just two cabs and just air between them.

 

I`m not sure what that is.Its a former 7500 passenger cars.  It looks like a hearse to me. I've heard white is the color of death in Asia.

 

But it might be a flower car.  Some systems like Nagasaki and Hiroshima have flower cars that can be sponsored during festivals or holidays like Obon.

[ToniBabelony]

But it might be a flower car.  Some systems like Nagasaki and Hiroshima have flower cars that can be sponsored during festivals or holidays like Obon.

 

Pretty sure it's a flower car, as it says "花" on the front plate.

[Densha]

It looks like a hearse to me. I've heard white is the color of death in Asia.

Err... a tram?

 

But it might be a flower car.  Some systems like Nagasaki and Hiroshima have flower cars that can be sponsored during festivals or holidays like Obon.

Hmmm... could be, I know I've seen something like that in some pictures.

 

Pretty sure it's a flower car, as it says "花" on the front plate.

I noticed the kanji for flower too, but didn't really think about it further than that.

[bill937ca]

It looks like a hearse to me. I've heard white is the color of death in Asia.

Err... a tram?

 

It was very common before cars were so common.  This is a funeral car from the Los Angeles Railway. Nothing unusual about it other than it survived.

[bikkuri bahn]

The flower tram was built for the 100th anniversary of the Tokyo Bureau of Transport.

 

 

Japanese tram systems have a long tradition of dolling up their trams for special events and having special tram "floats"- though it was much more common in the past (before the culling of the late 60's and 70's), going as far as having "tram parades". The flower tram concept above was apparently revived after a 36 year absence.

[bill937ca]

[Ken Ford]

Heck of a carbarn on the layout in that last video starting at 2:12!

[bill937ca]

I like the rail bender demo at 4:01. Some interesting demonstrations and displays. 

[marknewton]

It looks like a hearse to me. I've heard white is the color of death in Asia.

Err... a tram?

 

As Bill says, very common in the days before the motor car. Here in NSW we had cemeteries served by the tramways and railways, dedicated hearse cars, the full monty as it were.

 

All the best,

 

Mark.

[bill937ca]

A better look at the rail bender.

 

[Densha]

It looks like a hearse to me. I've heard white is the color of death in Asia.

Err... a tram?

 

As Bill says, very common in the days before the motor car. Here in NSW we had cemeteries served by the tramways and railways, dedicated hearse cars, the full monty as it were.

 

All the best,

 

Mark.

I think it was more US practice though, I've never seen or read anything on it in Europe, but who knows...

[bill937ca]

I think it was more US practice though, I've never seen or read anything on it in Europe, but who knows...

 

Milan and Turin Italy had funeral trams.  Milan had a quite elaborate terminal near Porta Romana which still exists as a spa, Terme di Milano.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tram#Hearse-tram

[marknewton]

If my schoolboy French can be trusted, so did Nice.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[marknewton]

I think it was more US practice though, I've never seen or read anything on it in Europe...

 

See comments above. A few UK systems also had funeral/hearse cars.

 

Cheers,

 

Mark.

[Sacto1985]

Got to love the people pushing that tram. 

 

And to think we almost lost the Toden Arakawa line in the 1960's as the Tokyo Toden system was phased out when more and more subway lines opened in Tokyo. I believe this line's trams tend to attract a lot of Japanese railfans because the trams on this line tend to get a lot of special advertising paint schemes through the year.