JAPAN: Seibu Railway has announced the branding for a fine dining train which is scheduled to launch in March 2028 using a distinctive Hitachi Rail trainset.
The Vies service is a further development of the concept behind Seibu Railway’s 52 Seats of Happiness restaurant train which was launched in April 2016 using a refurbished Series 4000 electric multiple-unit.
On March 26 Hitachi said Vies aims to offer a more refined and exclusive dining experience, for ‘quality time shared with someone special.’
Enriching lives
The branding and logo for the Vies service has been developed by Pool. The name comes from ‘life’ or ‘living’ in French, and is intended to reflect respect for nature and the desire to enrich the lives of each passenger. The plural form Vies was chosen to represent this idea, and in reverse reads as ‘Seibu’.
The subtitle Fine Dining Train ‘expresses a special dining stage where multiple lives meet and resonate through a refined culinary experience.’
Rolling stock
The 1 067 mm gauge four-car 1·5 kV DC EMU will be based on the design of Seibu Railway’s flagship Series 001 Laview (Luxurious living, Arrow-like speed and View through the large windows) limited express eight-car trainsets which were manufactured by Hitachi with distinctive styling by architect Kazuyo Sejima and launched in March 2019.
Hitachi said the Vies trainset would have an open and spacious interior with large windows, ‘design philosophies that harmonise with surrounding landscapes’, and technologies that ‘realise a comfortable travel environment.’
