*Including 33 carriages converted from 113 series by JR West.
**Excluding some of those owned by JR West and Kyushu, which have been stored at depots or sidings and awaiting disposal.
History
The 415 series is a type of dual-voltage suburban train developed by Japanese National Railways. Dual-voltage electric multiple units in Japan date back to JNR 401 and 421 series (in service: 1960-1996), but they were only compatible with DC 1.5 kV and AC 20 kV 50Hz (401 series) or that of 60 Hz (421 series). The 415 series trains are compatible with all three types of electricity that JNR (and JR group) used.
This article classifies the series into three groups: steel-body group, stainless-steel group (variant 1500) and ex-113 series group (variant 800).
This is effectively the original style of the 415 series, which is often referred to as "the white train". They could be further classified into several subclasses (variants 0, 100, 500, and 700) depending on seat design (transverse or longitudinal). Each unit consisted of four or seven coaches, and could be formed of up to 15 coaches (4+4+7). They were initially painted brown but repainted white with blue bands in 1983-85. Both steel-body trains and stainless-steel-body trains were compatible with each other, and some services were formed of both groups.
They were introduced to Joban Line in the east and Kyushu in the west. JR East and JR Kyushu took them over when JNR was privatised in 1987, but JR East replaced all of its trainsets with E531 series by 2007. JR Kyushu purchased a few units from JR East in the following year.
When Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen high-speed rail was opened in September 2022, all units were taken out of regular service and have been stored at depots and sidings since then.
In 1986, JNR developed a new variant with stainless-steel body, which looks like 211 series. Since JNR intended to use this group together with the older white trains, traction and braking systems were unchanged. All units have longitudinal seating, and most variant-1500 trains are formed of four coaches except a few carriages inserted to "white train" trainsets.
All carriages were taken over by JR East and JR Kyushu following the privatisation of JNR in 1987, and JR East introduced more carriages to Joban Line. In addition, JR East made a double-decker prototype carriage in 1991, and results of the experiment were later reflected to 215 series.
JR East had used the variant-1500 trains on Joban and Mito Lines until 2016, while JR Kyushu still uses considerable number of them.
JR East's trainsets had dark-blue bands (the original livery).
When Nanao Line in Ishikawa Prefecture was electrified in 1991, JR West was looking for a dual-voltage train. Such trains were so expensive that the company had been reluctant to introduce brand new ones. Meanwhile, the company was about to convert dual-voltage train 485 series to be compatible only with DC 1.5 kV, renumbering them 183 series. They finally decided to convert redundant 113 series trains with some devices from the 485 series, and renamed them 415 series.
JR West rebuilt 11 three-carriage units in total. Some of them were initially used as stopgaps on Fukuchiyama Line in Osaka area, but soon all units entered into Nanao Line services. Some units were refurbished with transverse seating and used for Express Notoji (Kanazawa - Wakuraonsen).
Despite being built originally in the 1960s, all of them had been in use until the mid-2010s, but they finally retired by 2021 following introduction of 521 series.
Current Operations & Future Prospects
JR Kyushu is now the only company that owns and uses the series, mostly on San-yo Main Line between Shimonoseki and Moji, where both DC 1.5 kV and AC 20 kV are supplied. In addition, there are limited services on Nippo Main Line between Kokura and Saiki via Oita. The series had been widely used in Fukuoka, Oita and Kagoshima areas, but the number of active trains dramatically dropped when Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen high-speed rail was opened in 2022. Today, all active units are the stainless-steel body group (variant 1500).
Since the 415 series is the only dual-voltage train that JR Kyushu owns, the remaining trains are likely to be operational until the late-2020s.
