Sotetsu 8000 series

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

The Sotetsu 8000 series is a DC electric train used by Sagami Railway (Sotetsu) in Kanagawa, Japan. Built by Hitachi from 1990, 130 cars were made as 13 ten-car sets, and about 70 cars (7 sets) are in service today while 60 cars (6 sets) have been scrapped.

What they are like
- Body and size: Lightweight aluminum cars, about 20 meters long and 2.93 meters wide, with four doors on each side. Some cars have transverse (cross) seating.
- Power and drive: Powered by 1,500 V DC overhead lines. Early sets (8701–8707) use GTO-based VVVF controls; later sets (8708–8713) use IGBT-based VVVF controls. Each car has four 150 kW motors.
- Formation and numbers: Each set has 10 cars. The fleet numbers range from 8701 to 8713, operated from Kashiwadai Depot.
- Performance and systems: Max speed is 110 km/h. Braking is brake-by-wire with regenerative braking. Safety includes ATS-P and a dead-man’s switch.
- Track and wheels: They run on Cape gauge tracks (1,067 mm). Bogies are based on the New 7000 series design.

Notable history
- The 8000 series began service in 1990 to replace older trains.
- Set 8707 collided with a maintenance vehicle at Shonandai in 2004 and was scrapped in 2006, replaced by newer Sotetsu trains.
- Set 8702 was withdrawn on March 13, 2020 due to aging and the arrival of newer sets (like 12106); it was scrapped in April 2020.

Overall, the 8000 series was a key part of Sotetsu’s fleet, built to modernize service with lightweight bodies, upgraded propulsion, and safer, more efficient operations.