Not only this, but there are examples in many places where some cars are repainted or specially painted. However, it is a little more difficult than one might think to take pictures or ride on them. This is because it is not always clear which train the car will be used on.
JR Hokkaido will launch a campaign in the spring of 2022 to promote the “Shine Now! Kiha 183 Series in the North” campaign starting in the spring of 2022. As part of this campaign, two cars painted in the “new express color” that appeared at the end of the Japanese National Railways (JNR) era have been prepared and are running on the “Okhotsk” and “Daisetsu” limited express trains on the Ishihoku Main Line.
Why can’t the two-car set last?
The repainted cars prepared by JR Hokkaido are Kiha 183-8565, the Enkei-bound lead car, and Kilo 182-504, the green car that enters the middle of the train. When the cars were first repainted, they were run in pairs during the second half of the Golden Week holidays in May 2022, with advance notice of the train to which they would be assigned. After that, however, the pair was broken up and most of the trains are running separately.
On Twitter, I often see posts asking for a two-car set to be run, but this is actually not as easy as it seems. Why?
Just as cars are subject to vehicle inspections, railcars are also subject to a prescribed inspection. The details of these inspections are beyond the scope of this article, but they are due by either the distance traveled since the last inspection or the time elapsed. If the vehicle is not returned to the garage for inspection before either of these deadlines is reached, it will no longer be available for commercial operation.
On December 19, 2022, after Nozomi No. 12 departed on the Sanyo Shinkansen, it was discovered that the train in question had exceeded its inspection deadline. At that time, the service was terminated at Shin-Kobe Station and passengers were transferred to the following train. The expiration of the inspection deadline was such a “serious” matter that the train had to go that far.
Diesel and passenger cars, not limited to Series 183, are generally managed on a “per car” basis. This usually results in a situation where the timing of inspections differs for multiple cars that are part of the same train. Therefore, the cars must be returned to the depot (in the case of Series 183 cars, to Naebo, which is located next to Sapporo) in accordance with the earliest inspection deadline. The corresponding car is then removed from the train and replaced with a different car.
So, even with the same four-car formation for the “Okhotsk” and “Taisetsu” trains, only some of the cars will be replaced repeatedly during the course of daily operation. As a result, even the reprinted painted cars, which initially ran with two cars together, were unpaired.
Another circumstance is the equalization of mileage. If only certain vehicles are used for commercial operations, the mileage of those vehicles will increase rapidly and they will have to be inspected earlier. Ideally, all vehicles should increase their mileage at about the same rate and enter inspections at about the same intervals. It is not possible to run only repainted cars just because they are popular.
Also, running the two cars separately would increase the absolute number of chances to encounter them. That is one way to look at it.
© Source travel watch