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Some of the more famous trains operated by Meitetsu include the Panorama Car and the Panorama Car Super, both of which offer views through their wide front windows. While the Panorama Super train is used extensively for the railroad's limited express service, the older and more energy-consuming Panorama Car train has been retired, the last run being on 27 December 2008.
As of March 2023, Meitetsu operated 444.2 kilometres (276.0 mi) of track, 275 stations, and 1,076 train cars, being one of the largest private railway company in Japan.[4]
History
Meitetsu was founded on 25 June 1894 as the Aichi Horsecar Company.[5]
Over time, Meitetsu has acquired many small railway and interurban companies in the Nagoya area, many of whom were constructed and operated before and during World War II. For example, Meitetsu acquired its Kōwa Line on the Chita Peninsula from its merger with Chita Railroad on February 1, 1943, and it acquired its Mikawa Line from its merger with Mikawa Railroad.[6][7]
Meitetsu is famous for its red trains, including its famous 7000 series "Panorama Car" which was retired in 2009 after a career lasting nearly half a century.[8] The most recent cars, however, are not solid red but rather brushed steel as in the case of the 4000 series and 5000 series, or white as in the case of the 1700 series and 2000 series.[9]
While the company used to engage in the freight business and still possesses some freight locomotives, it no longer carries freight on a regular basis.[10]
Meitetsu 1000 series "Panorama Super" (left) and 2000 series "Airport Limited Express [μSky]" (right)
Nippon Sharyo has produced nearly every car that Meitetsu operates or has operated, a notable exception being its Class EL120, an electric locomotive, which was produced by Toshiba, but very few units were produced for Meitetsu. The Class EL120 is one of the few locomotives that Meitetsu possesses.
The following are the train types that Meitetsu operates today, as well as selected types that Meitetsu has retired.
Tamatsu-ura Station, one of the stations that were closed due to low passengers
As Meitetsu formed out of multiple mergers, it owned many deficit lines previously owned by other companies. The railway lines were also seeing competition from cars, due to the fact that Aichi prefecture has a notable automobile industry in cities such as Toyota. Meitetsu has abolished over 15 lines over the past 70 years, while also closing sections with low ridership.[11] Additionally, with the collapse of Bubble economy in the 1990s, and the privatization of JNR, formation of Central Japan Railway Company, the company also cut the number of companies in its corporate group from 250 to 139.[12]
References
^鷲田, 鉄也 (September 2010), "名古屋鉄道 1", 週刊朝日百科, 週刊歴史でめぐる鉄道全路線 (in Japanese), no. 8, Japan: Asahi Shimbun Publications, Inc., p. 21, ISBN978-4-02-340138-9
‡ indicates rapid transit operators § indicates semi-major rail operators *Not a member of Associations of Private Japanese Railways, therefore excluded under the formal Japanese definition, although its comparable size is undisputed
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