E531 series
The E531 series is an electric multiple unit train type operated by East Japan Railway Company in Japan. It was introduced by JR East on 9 July 2005 to replace the aging 403 and 415 series EMUs running on the Jōban Line from Ueno Station in Tokyo. The stock is a dual-voltage development of the DC-only E231 series suburban EMU design, and can run at speeds of up to in service.
Operations
Trains are formed in 10-car and 5-car sets. 15-car formations are generally run between and. 10- and 5-car sets operate singly north of Tsuchiura, and 5-car sets are used on the Mito Line. 5-car cold weather sets are used on the Tōhoku Main Line between and, to handle the change of electrification from DC to AC just north of Kuroiso.Formations
10-car sets
As of 1 October 2018, 26 ten-car sets are based at Katsuta Depot and formed with four motored cars and six non-powered trailer cars.- Cars 3 and 8 each have one single-arm pantograph.
- Cars 1 and 10 have a wheelchair space.
- Cars 1, 5, and 10 each have a toilet.
- Car 8 is designated as a mildly air-conditioned car.
- Cars 4 and 5 are bilevel Green Cars.
- Car 9 in sets K412–K422 are numbered in the -2000 series and have longitudinal seating ; in all other sets, they are numbered in the -0 series and have some transverse seating bays.
- Cars 1, 2, and 10 have some transverse seating bays.
Standard 5-car sets
As of 3 March 2020, 33 five-car sets are based at Katsuta Depot and formed with two motored cars and three non-powered trailer cars.- Car 13 has one single-arm pantograph.
- Cars 11 and 15 have a wheelchair space.
- Car 11 has a universal design toilet.
- Car 14 is designated as a mildly air-conditioned car.
- Cars 13, 14, and 15 have some transverse seating bays.
Cold-weather 5-car sets
As of 1 October 2018, seven five-car sets are based at Katsuta Depot and formed with two motored cars and three non-powered trailer cars.- Car 13 has one single-arm pantograph.
- Cars 11 and 15 have a wheelchair space.
- Car 11 has a universal design toilet.
- Car 14 is designated as a mildly air-conditioned car.
- Cars 13, 14, and 15 have some transverse seating bays.
Original 10-car sets (July 2005 – March 2007)
The original ten-car sets delivered without bilevel Green cars were formed as follows.Sets K401–K406
Sets K407–K411
- Cars 3 and 8 each had one single-arm pantograph.
- Cars 1 and 10 had a wheelchair space.
- Cars 1, 5, and 10 each had a toilet.
- Car 8 was designated as a mildly air-conditioned car.
- Cars 1, 2, 9, and 10 had some transverse seating bays.
History
The first E531 series trains entered service on 9 July 2005.Pairs of double-deck "Green" cars were added to the ten-car sets from 6 January 2007, and all ten-car sets included Green cars by the start of the revised timetable on 18 March 2007. Two trailer cars from sets K401–K411 were repurposed as cars 6 and 9 in sets K412–K422. As there were 12 SaHa E531-2000 cars and 10 SaHa E530-2000 cars being repurposed, the SaHa E531-2012 car was modified to become SaHa E530-2022.
In September 2014, an additional ten-car set, K423, was delivered from the J-TREC factory in Yokohama, four years after construction of the original fleet had ceased. This was followed by seven new five-car sets also delivered from J-TREC in Yokohama from December 2014 to March 2015. Seven cold-weather E531-3000 series sets were built between October 2015 and March 2017. Later in 2017, three more 10-car sets and two more five-car sets were built. Then, between 2019 and 2020, six more five-car sets were built.
On 26 March 2021, set K417 was involved in a collision between and. It collided with a passenger vehicle which caught fire and caused damage to the KuHa E531-17 car. The damaged car was replaced with car 10 from set K409, which later received a new-build end car, also numbered KuHa E531-17.