Sapporo Streetcar M100 series

The Sapporo Streetcar M100 series is a Japanese streetcar type operated by the Sapporo Municipal Transport Bureau on the Sapporo Streetcar network from July 1961 to October 2021. This article will also talk about the Tc1 series, a companion car to the M100 series car.
==History==
The M100 series was a series of streetcars manufactured for the Sapporo Streetcar network. Two cars were manufactured by Nippon Sharyo in 1961, numbered M101 and Tc1, the latter being similar to that of a slug; the idea was for the two cars to be connected together in a master-slave formation and used during rush hours, with M101 used separately during non-peak hours. The cars featured a high power output to allow the sets to scale the grades of some sections of the network.
Operation began on 21 July 1961; in advertising and other media the cars were introduced as a "parent-child train", while officially they were collectively known as the MTc EMU. Three people were required to be onboard the MTc set at all times: the driver and two conductors, one for each car. Although more cars were slated to be built, the idea was not pursued further; the need of having two conductors on board was required due to there being no gangway to allow people to pass through either car, therefore making the fare collection systems impossible to share and increasing personnel costs. It was also a hassle to connect and disconnect the cars before and after each shift, so as a result they were run together even during non-peak hours. Some two years later, the A800 series articulated streetcars were produced by Nippon Sharyo, which featured gangway connections to solve these issues.
The MTc set last ran together in October 1970, at which point both cars were separated. M101 was given wanman modifications to allow for further use, while Tc1 was withdrawn as it could not run on its own and therefore was no longer of use. As coupling was no longer needed M101's jumper plug and rod coupler system was removed. There was a proposal in the 1990s where M101's body would be removed and replaced with a new-style body similar to that of the 3300 series cars but reusing its original equipment, but this was not pursued due to the high power output of the motors and the "effectiveness" of the double door system.
M101's rollsign destination indicator was replaced with an LED destination indicator in 2015. "Cannibal maintenance" was being conducted on M101 as of 2017, where spare parts from scrapped streetcars were used to maintain M101; it was predicted that M101 could run for another ten years if major maintenance was performed. Some news outlets considered M101 as being preserved operationally. In July 2021, the Sapporo Municipal Transport Bureau announced that M101 would be retired on 31 October 2021. On 30 October 2021, one day before M101 was expected to be retired, it was involved in an accident with a car; operations for the next day would start at 13:00 JST as opposed to 7:00 JST due to repairs and test runs. After retirement, M101 was stored at Horokita Depot for a time.
==Design==
The MTc set featured a curved design although it was less curved than other "Sapporo Style" trams. Both M101 and Tc1 are painted in the Sapporo Municipal Transport Bureau's corporate colors of a tan body with green accents; M101 was continuously hand-painted by staff to keep the paint fresh. M101 was never painted in the Sapporo Municipal Transport Bureau's second corporate livery of all-over green.
==Specifications==
Construction of the cars is of steel. Both cars use a nose suspension drive system and rode on Nippon Sharyo's N-104 bogies; Tc1 used a special N-104T bogie for connecting with M101.
Tc1 acted similarly to a slug locomotive, featuring one traction motor but was not able to run on its own and requiring M101 to function. M101's original current collector was a bow collector; this was later changed to a Z-type pantograph. Tc1 was originally equipped with a bow collector but this was later removed.
==Preservation==
Both M101 and Tc1 are preserved at the Sapporo City Transportation Museum. Some parts of M101 were restored to their original condition, such as the rollsign destination indicators. Tc1 was given a white stripe on its side when it was repainted by volunteers in 2020; Tc1 never had such a white stripe when it was in active service.
Category:Light rail vehicles
Category:Streetcars
Category:Nippon Sharyo locomotives
Category:Sapporo Streetcar trains