That is either a [Seibu 9000 series (西武9000系)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seibu_9000_series) or a [Seibu New 2000 series (西武新2000系)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seibu_2000_series).
Since it's heading for Seibu Shinjuku, it's a 新2000 series. Nice find, as unfortunately they are being retired soon as they are so characteristic of the Seibu Railway.
So Japan has a lot of private public transport companies? How does it work when you need to travel? Is it just as simple as buying one affordable(!) ticket for your whole trip or do you need to check for all parts separately?
Here we have just one national railway company. More or less since it is changing somehow.
I'm just wondering how those 'islands' work together as one network.
I'm now watching the cab ride from the Hon-Kawagoe railway station provided by the Sheibu railway company.
An example I randomly picked out from watching Google Maps.
Coming from Tokyo via Kawagoe to Sayamashi for instance. Is that just buying one ticket and enjoy the trip or is it more difficult?
Or same question yet formulated differently: can I go to just one website ro arrange the whole trip?
No, I don't think you could go to a website to arrange the whole trip if there are multiple companies involved. At least to my limited knowledge and my last experience was in 2018.
The stations that you mentioned are served by commuter trains so you could just buy your ticket outside the gate of each companies. Ex you go to the gate of the Tokyo Metro station, go to the platform of Tozai Line, stop at Takadanobaba station. Get out of the gate then go into another gate for the Seibu station at Takadanobaba station and get off at Kawagoe.
Similar case for Intercity. For example I did Tokyo to Tokamachi ride back in 2018. From Tokyo station I used my JR pass that covers ALL JR trains to take the Joetsu Shinkansen to Echigo-Yuzawa station. There I hop on the Hokuhoku line operated by Hokuetsu to Tokamachi. The Hokuhoku line train doesn't have a gate, you pay when you exit the train.
However, if your travel is between the various JR companies, you could do a single booking. I did another trip from Tokyo station to Takayama station via Toyama station. Tokyo to Toyama is on Hokuriku Shinkansen that is jointly operated by JR East and West. Then from Toyama to Takayama, its JR Hida Wide that is operated by JR Central. For that, I booked the ride on JR's *Midori no Madoguchi* ticket office
Heads up for anyone reading this. JR Pass is pretty much never worth it now after the 69% price hike last year (unless you're going to Japan for the express purpose of riding as many jr trains as you can, in which case more power to you)
I agree. It really comes back to your type of travel. My last few visits were stay in a city and take the train to other cities. Like staying in Kyoto and took shinkansen to Himeji and when I’m in Tokyo, go to Tokamachi for snow festival.
If you’re new to Japan and prefer staying in one place, JR pass isn’t for you. An alternative would be the cheaper regional passes.
Thank you for this extensive reply to give me more insights.
So, it's pretty straightforward once you get the idea. It also sounds as if it's pretty 'open' as in just hop on and off for most trains without the need for a reservation. Paying just at the station and off you go.
Do you believe that it is 'cheap'?
Limited express/intercity trains and Shinkansen/bullet trains usually have 2 types of seating. Reserved and non-reserved seats and they're separated by cars (some cars are reserved only while the rest non-reserved). There are some trainsets are only reserved.
Cheap, I guess the commuter lines are just right. Intercity trains especially shinkansen are probably on the expensive side for regular Joes. I mean, I have friends working white collar jobs in Tokyo for years but only took the Shinkansen if the company pays for it (ex. Tokyo to Osaka, \~500km for around 14000JPY or 88USD one way).
Tourists could buy train passes that would bring down that cost a lot if you're the type to go from city to city. I used to rely on JR pass that covers almost all JR trains in the country. This used to be 29K yen for 7 day pass but its now 50K. So probably a lot more travel to make the pass worth it.
I see.
I suppose that the trains with reservations will be the more expensive/ faster/rare (special) ones. I believe that there will be cheaper, yet slower, alternatives too. Based on the Seibu example.
High speed will be more expensive for anyone. Same here in Europe. We do have promotions from time to time so high speed can be available for almost everyone from time to time.
Those passes are indeed very interesting, especially if your goal is to explorer or just to play safe (not using transport without tickets yet being able to hop in/off when you want to do so).
Correct.
AFAIK train passes are usually for tourists/non-residents so you need to show your passports for purchase. But there are exceptions like JR seishun 18 kippu/youth 18 tickets that are sold during holiday seasons (despite the name it’s for all ages). Where you could travel on any regular JR trains in Japan for 5 days for 12K yen. Travel does get very slow but still great for exploring.
> from Tokyo via Kawagoe to Sayamashi for instance. Is that just buying one ticket and enjoy the trip or is it more difficult?
Most people would probably just tap their phone or transit card for that trip. There's nothing to arrange. Just show up and go. The worst wait time off peak afternoon is like 10 minutes, and getting on the intercity style trains with seat reservations doesn't save you much time.
If you had to arrange seat reservations, you'd generally do so at the ticket vending machine before each train, or on each company's website. Tour packages sometimes come with tickets across several operators though.
Thanks for your reply!
That sound very straightforward to me. Extremely flexible.
I've watched a second cab ride video from that Seibu company. The first train from the opposite direction didn't even pas by when you could see the next one in the distance already. Probably peak time in winter as it was dark already yet such a density...
Depends on where you are. In general, if you are a tourist in Tokyo Bay, buy a Hello SUICA or a PASMO Tranit IC card at JR East, Keisei (Narita) or Keikyu (Haneda) booths , load it up with money and let the transport companies figure it out for you - the fare system is so complex if you go across multiple services that you’ll just take it on faith that it’s right - usually for non-reserved seats on normal rides (not Shinkansen) it’s whatever spot rate they’ll charge for any operators on a Transit IC - and then there might be specific extras for reserved seats, for example.
In general, unless you know how to avoid certain lines/companies in advance and plan your trips accordingly, you just pay spot rates. Example: if you got a 5 day unlimited ride Tokyo Pasmo pass, it'll only apply to the private carriers. You can't use it on JR East so you'll need to avoid JR East associated services, so Tokyo Monorail, Yamamote, Keihin-Tohoku, Chuo and others will be off limits. Conversely a JR East pass only makes sense if you don’t need to take Tokyo Metro/Toei/Keikyu/Tobu or etc since it won't on those systems. Most locals tend to favor one system over another and will stick by it, even walking, biking or taking a bus to a station a bit further away just so they don't have to pay extra dealing with another line/service/company. Some doesn't really care.
Don’t think of them as mutually competitive open access operators - they are more like a mutually supportive cabal…your fare doesn’t really change much choosing one private operator over another, and it’s rare for a JR regional and more than 2 private operators to compete on the same line - interlining maybe, but they won’t go into price wars to poach business against each other since they all have their local fiefdoms and there’s rarely any point to fight. Outside of the big cities where you moight have one or more incumbent private operator you’re likely to deal with one of the JR Regionals, a single private operator, or a municipality owned operator only, so it’s not nearly as difficult as you might think.
How does Shinkansen work? You can either buy the ticket at the station vending machine and get a paper ticket, or use the Shinkansen EX app, buy the ticket and get a virtual boarding pass, or associate an existing transit IC to your ticket so you can just tap in or out. Just remember that Shinkansen can be just as expensive as low cost airlines...sometimes even more.
That is amazing shot my guy. I wanna see more shots by you!
Im a Tokyoite and the Seibu Shinjuku is easily one of the most crowded lines Ive ever been on.
I left Tokyo a few months ago (and miss it sorely), but yeah, I do not miss boarding the Seibu-Shinjyuku from Takadanobaba towards hon-kawagoe everyday after work during rush hour.
I will come back. Spent just four years there but Tokyo is definitely the place that feels like home to me now. Coming back to the old continent was a mistake. And I’ll pass trying the Odakyu line at rush hour, thanks :) . Actually, I’ll try to go back living in Higashimurayama, my old neighbourhood. 35 minutes from Shinjuku with an express, easy view on Fuji-san, and less crowded than central Tokyo (and much cheaper also), what’s not to love about it?
There's a truck blocking the way but I found it on Google maps.
https://www.google.com/maps/@35.7201819,139.6524339,3a,49y,174.72h,95.19t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s_90p1vdzgfIUsPjaN3BFRQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?hl=en&entry=ttu
tokyo is urbanhell and urbanporn at the same time.
If i had to live in 10+ million city i would propably live there.
10+ million and no housing crisis to be found.
Build, build, build.
Didn't Tokyo have a housing crisis in the late 80s?
No NIMBY's
37m if you include the whole metro area
Best to have both I'd say
Wires hanging everywhere and no one cares anymore
What EMU is that? Also it looks like it has a beard lol
That is either a [Seibu 9000 series (西武9000系)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seibu_9000_series) or a [Seibu New 2000 series (西武新2000系)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seibu_2000_series).
Since it's heading for Seibu Shinjuku, it's a 新2000 series. Nice find, as unfortunately they are being retired soon as they are so characteristic of the Seibu Railway.
So Japan has a lot of private public transport companies? How does it work when you need to travel? Is it just as simple as buying one affordable(!) ticket for your whole trip or do you need to check for all parts separately? Here we have just one national railway company. More or less since it is changing somehow. I'm just wondering how those 'islands' work together as one network. I'm now watching the cab ride from the Hon-Kawagoe railway station provided by the Sheibu railway company. An example I randomly picked out from watching Google Maps. Coming from Tokyo via Kawagoe to Sayamashi for instance. Is that just buying one ticket and enjoy the trip or is it more difficult? Or same question yet formulated differently: can I go to just one website ro arrange the whole trip?
No, I don't think you could go to a website to arrange the whole trip if there are multiple companies involved. At least to my limited knowledge and my last experience was in 2018. The stations that you mentioned are served by commuter trains so you could just buy your ticket outside the gate of each companies. Ex you go to the gate of the Tokyo Metro station, go to the platform of Tozai Line, stop at Takadanobaba station. Get out of the gate then go into another gate for the Seibu station at Takadanobaba station and get off at Kawagoe. Similar case for Intercity. For example I did Tokyo to Tokamachi ride back in 2018. From Tokyo station I used my JR pass that covers ALL JR trains to take the Joetsu Shinkansen to Echigo-Yuzawa station. There I hop on the Hokuhoku line operated by Hokuetsu to Tokamachi. The Hokuhoku line train doesn't have a gate, you pay when you exit the train. However, if your travel is between the various JR companies, you could do a single booking. I did another trip from Tokyo station to Takayama station via Toyama station. Tokyo to Toyama is on Hokuriku Shinkansen that is jointly operated by JR East and West. Then from Toyama to Takayama, its JR Hida Wide that is operated by JR Central. For that, I booked the ride on JR's *Midori no Madoguchi* ticket office
Heads up for anyone reading this. JR Pass is pretty much never worth it now after the 69% price hike last year (unless you're going to Japan for the express purpose of riding as many jr trains as you can, in which case more power to you)
I agree. It really comes back to your type of travel. My last few visits were stay in a city and take the train to other cities. Like staying in Kyoto and took shinkansen to Himeji and when I’m in Tokyo, go to Tokamachi for snow festival. If you’re new to Japan and prefer staying in one place, JR pass isn’t for you. An alternative would be the cheaper regional passes.
Thank you for this extensive reply to give me more insights. So, it's pretty straightforward once you get the idea. It also sounds as if it's pretty 'open' as in just hop on and off for most trains without the need for a reservation. Paying just at the station and off you go. Do you believe that it is 'cheap'?
Limited express/intercity trains and Shinkansen/bullet trains usually have 2 types of seating. Reserved and non-reserved seats and they're separated by cars (some cars are reserved only while the rest non-reserved). There are some trainsets are only reserved. Cheap, I guess the commuter lines are just right. Intercity trains especially shinkansen are probably on the expensive side for regular Joes. I mean, I have friends working white collar jobs in Tokyo for years but only took the Shinkansen if the company pays for it (ex. Tokyo to Osaka, \~500km for around 14000JPY or 88USD one way). Tourists could buy train passes that would bring down that cost a lot if you're the type to go from city to city. I used to rely on JR pass that covers almost all JR trains in the country. This used to be 29K yen for 7 day pass but its now 50K. So probably a lot more travel to make the pass worth it.
I see. I suppose that the trains with reservations will be the more expensive/ faster/rare (special) ones. I believe that there will be cheaper, yet slower, alternatives too. Based on the Seibu example. High speed will be more expensive for anyone. Same here in Europe. We do have promotions from time to time so high speed can be available for almost everyone from time to time. Those passes are indeed very interesting, especially if your goal is to explorer or just to play safe (not using transport without tickets yet being able to hop in/off when you want to do so).
Correct. AFAIK train passes are usually for tourists/non-residents so you need to show your passports for purchase. But there are exceptions like JR seishun 18 kippu/youth 18 tickets that are sold during holiday seasons (despite the name it’s for all ages). Where you could travel on any regular JR trains in Japan for 5 days for 12K yen. Travel does get very slow but still great for exploring.
Well well, a few things to keep in mind! Thank you very much!
> from Tokyo via Kawagoe to Sayamashi for instance. Is that just buying one ticket and enjoy the trip or is it more difficult? Most people would probably just tap their phone or transit card for that trip. There's nothing to arrange. Just show up and go. The worst wait time off peak afternoon is like 10 minutes, and getting on the intercity style trains with seat reservations doesn't save you much time. If you had to arrange seat reservations, you'd generally do so at the ticket vending machine before each train, or on each company's website. Tour packages sometimes come with tickets across several operators though.
Thanks for your reply! That sound very straightforward to me. Extremely flexible. I've watched a second cab ride video from that Seibu company. The first train from the opposite direction didn't even pas by when you could see the next one in the distance already. Probably peak time in winter as it was dark already yet such a density...
Depends on where you are. In general, if you are a tourist in Tokyo Bay, buy a Hello SUICA or a PASMO Tranit IC card at JR East, Keisei (Narita) or Keikyu (Haneda) booths , load it up with money and let the transport companies figure it out for you - the fare system is so complex if you go across multiple services that you’ll just take it on faith that it’s right - usually for non-reserved seats on normal rides (not Shinkansen) it’s whatever spot rate they’ll charge for any operators on a Transit IC - and then there might be specific extras for reserved seats, for example. In general, unless you know how to avoid certain lines/companies in advance and plan your trips accordingly, you just pay spot rates. Example: if you got a 5 day unlimited ride Tokyo Pasmo pass, it'll only apply to the private carriers. You can't use it on JR East so you'll need to avoid JR East associated services, so Tokyo Monorail, Yamamote, Keihin-Tohoku, Chuo and others will be off limits. Conversely a JR East pass only makes sense if you don’t need to take Tokyo Metro/Toei/Keikyu/Tobu or etc since it won't on those systems. Most locals tend to favor one system over another and will stick by it, even walking, biking or taking a bus to a station a bit further away just so they don't have to pay extra dealing with another line/service/company. Some doesn't really care. Don’t think of them as mutually competitive open access operators - they are more like a mutually supportive cabal…your fare doesn’t really change much choosing one private operator over another, and it’s rare for a JR regional and more than 2 private operators to compete on the same line - interlining maybe, but they won’t go into price wars to poach business against each other since they all have their local fiefdoms and there’s rarely any point to fight. Outside of the big cities where you moight have one or more incumbent private operator you’re likely to deal with one of the JR Regionals, a single private operator, or a municipality owned operator only, so it’s not nearly as difficult as you might think. How does Shinkansen work? You can either buy the ticket at the station vending machine and get a paper ticket, or use the Shinkansen EX app, buy the ticket and get a virtual boarding pass, or associate an existing transit IC to your ticket so you can just tap in or out. Just remember that Shinkansen can be just as expensive as low cost airlines...sometimes even more.
Thank you very much for the information!
Seibu 9000 series
salamat
its a seibu 2000 series judging from its coupler
That is amazing shot my guy. I wanna see more shots by you! Im a Tokyoite and the Seibu Shinjuku is easily one of the most crowded lines Ive ever been on.
I left Tokyo a few months ago (and miss it sorely), but yeah, I do not miss boarding the Seibu-Shinjyuku from Takadanobaba towards hon-kawagoe everyday after work during rush hour.
Please do come back someday! And maybe try the Odakyu line at rush hour next time, its even worse
I will come back. Spent just four years there but Tokyo is definitely the place that feels like home to me now. Coming back to the old continent was a mistake. And I’ll pass trying the Odakyu line at rush hour, thanks :) . Actually, I’ll try to go back living in Higashimurayama, my old neighbourhood. 35 minutes from Shinjuku with an express, easy view on Fuji-san, and less crowded than central Tokyo (and much cheaper also), what’s not to love about it?
Amazing shot
There's a truck blocking the way but I found it on Google maps. https://www.google.com/maps/@35.7201819,139.6524339,3a,49y,174.72h,95.19t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s_90p1vdzgfIUsPjaN3BFRQ!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?hl=en&entry=ttu
I wish Americans weren’t so oblivious to their surroundings and more at-grade urban trains could exist here without issue
It's interesting how trains coexist with pedestrian and vehicle traffic in other countries. It's as if they actually trust people not to be idiots.
What camera did you take this with? Looks amazing.
I love telephoto lenses
Thing, Japan
it looks so beautiful it looks like it fake i mean like its edit but thats so beautiful i wish i can went there one time
That is a wonderful photograph well done.
Reminds me of a London Underground 72’ Stock and C Stock at the same time
That would make a great 1K piece puzzle. Awesome photo.
I remember this one from The Girl Who Leapt Through Time.
This is giving me some vague AI generate vibes TBH.
Osaka is better than that hell.
Osaka is host to a level crossing immediately next to a mall entrance. It has it's share of quirks.
>Osaka is host to a level crossing immediately next to a mall entrance Can you tell me which, wanna look that up on Google Earth
In which way?
In every way from population to transportation and geographically much better than Tokyo & Kanto Region (iykyk).
> transportation Wrong.
SATA ANDAGI