Good morning! Let's take a look at streetcar systems in Japan today, starting with the Sapporo Streetcar
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No streetcars are operated in the Tohoku region--to find the next one, we have to go all the way south to Tokyo's Arakawa Line!pic.twitter.com/tNCt8sdc1z
This charming and old-fashioned route operates in north-central Tokyo, operated by the metropolitan governmentpic.twitter.com/dHTWgKc2yD
In western Tokyo, you will find the colorful Setagaya Line, operated by the Tokyu Corporationpic.twitter.com/O6nFkBzWlm
The neighborhoods along this route are lovely, but I must admit, I prefer the Arakawa Line's design...pic.twitter.com/lTmqwCEln0
Further south, in Fujisawa and Kamakura, you will find my favorite streetcar in the country, the Enodenpic.twitter.com/ztUB4nrEsn
The route is stunningly beautiful, and is the only line which serves Kotoku-in, home of the famous bronze Buddha statuepic.twitter.com/L0r8n7pNcK
On the opposite coast of Japan, in Toyama, you'll find two streetcar companies--first, the Toyama Chiho Railway, which operates three linespic.twitter.com/QMlwWXeOak
Toyama Chiho Railway, aka Chitetsu, also operates conventional rail lines--their full network is shown here (streetcars in the inset)pic.twitter.com/2IVUVBmqWE
The other streetcar is operated by Toyama Light Rail Co., the "Portram Line." This used to be a conventional line, but was converted in 2006pic.twitter.com/Wlj1E3ggb2
In nearby Takaoka, the Manyosen company operates two streetcar lines--since they connect end to end, it's more like one...pic.twitter.com/heDQEQn2Wa
A little further south, in Fukui, the Fukui Railway operates a streetcar line with through service onto the Echizen Railwaypic.twitter.com/IHR7cjxW5t
Back to Japan's Pacific coast, in the city of Toyohashi, the Toyohashi Railroad operates a streetcar line as wellpic.twitter.com/zKGTkRbTI5
As we continue into western Japan, our first stop is Kyoto, home of the Keifuku Electric Railroad aka "Randen"
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Randen operates two lines in northwestern Kyoto--their Kitano Line runs through the "Cherry Blossom Tunnel" (桜のトンネル)pic.twitter.com/CKocA9j4q0
Right next door in Osaka, you can find the Hankai Tramway, which runs two tram lines in the southern part of the citypic.twitter.com/1ucbbE7oka
Nankai (which runs conventional suburban rail from Osaka to Wakayama, Koya, and Kansai Airport) is Hankai's parent company.pic.twitter.com/LzRtZcWVe5
Continue west to Okayama for the Okayama Electric Tramway ("Okaden"), which inexplicably features Tama from the Wakayama Electric Railwaypic.twitter.com/gAPa4RLU1B
We'll make a quick detour to Shikoku to look at two companies: first, the Tosaden in Kochi. Love that logo on the front
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Next, the Iyo Railway--first railway in Shikoku!--which operates several tram lines in Matsuyama, as well as its suburban railpic.twitter.com/ZDqpbotI1i
Curiosities of Iyotetsu include their "Botchan Ressha," a diesel-powered replica of their first steam enginepic.twitter.com/EXad8RDdPx
Back to the mainland, we finally come to the undisputed champ of Japanese trams: the Hiroshima Electric Railway, or "Hiroden"pic.twitter.com/TaTs8Lnck6
Hiroden's massive network crisscrosses the city of Hiroshima, with one line extending out to Miyajima and its famous shrinepic.twitter.com/YX0MVvXxKe
Next in our tour is Kitakyushu, home of the Chikuho Electric Railway, a subsidiary of Nishitetsu.pic.twitter.com/638i4QA75D
Further west, Nagasaki is home to a tram network as well--I never got to ride this, but I visited the main downtown station in 2014pic.twitter.com/Wbnel3OUZk
A little further south, the Kumamoto City Transportation Bureau operates two tram linespic.twitter.com/dcFFc2QXUp
And last but certainly not least, we come to the southernmost tram lines in Japan, in Kagoshima. Much of the route is planted with grass
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The nostalgic 100 series tram is one of my favorites in the country--gorgeous!pic.twitter.com/l7zQoGv601
This concludes today's thread--thank you for riding with #TrainTwitter today! Please remember to collect your belongings before alighting.
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