ありがとう255系「房総ビューエクスプレス」
8日、JR東日本255系電車で運行される特急「わかしお」に乗った。255系は1993(平成5)年7月2日、東京駅~南房総地区を運行する特急「さざなみ」「わかしお」のイメージアップを目的にデビュー。255系で運行される列車は「ビューさざなみ」「ビューわかしお」として、既存の183系電車で運行される列車と区別された。房総の海(内房線は東京湾、外房線は太平洋)が大きく見える高さ70cm(1993(平成5)年製造のマリBe-01、Be-02編成)もしくは76cm(1994(平成6)年製造のマリBe-03~Be-05編成)の側窓も255系の特徴の1つ。「ビューさざなみ」「ビューわかしお」の列車愛称は2005(平成17)年に消え、「さざなみ」「わかしお」に統一された。2024(令和6)年での引退が予告されており、今回が僕にとって最後の255系乗車となりそうだ。今回僕が乗った列車は「わかしお3号」。2023(令和5)年3月改正時点のダイヤでは、255系は3往復運行されている。今回僕が乗車したのは、9:01東京駅発の「わかしお3号」。車両は窓の高さが76cmのマリBe-04編成のサロ255-4号車。サロ255形は255系のグリーン車で、4号車(安房鴨川方から数えて6両目)に連結されている。客室真ん中に設置されている透明な仕切り板はかつての喫煙席と禁煙席を分ける分煙の名残。JR東日本では2007(平成19)年より新幹線・特急列車のすべての車両が禁煙となっているが、それ以前は車内でたばこを吸える車両(喫煙車)と吸えない車両(禁煙車)が混在していた。255系のグリーン車はサロ255形1両だけだったことから、半分を喫煙席、もう半分を禁煙席としていた。この日はあいにくの天気で、太平洋沿岸を走る外房線では海がはっきり見えず。ようやく車窓から海が見えるようになったのは、旅も終盤に迫った御宿駅付近から先の区間だけだった。On March 8th, I travelled on "Wakashio" limited express operated by 255 Series.255 Series was introduced in 1993 to improve the image of the limited express trains "Sazanami" and "Wakashio" that operated between Tokyo Station and the Boso Peninsula in Chiba Prefecture. The trains operated by 255 Series were called "View Sazanami" and "View Wakashio" to distinguish them from ones by 183 Series.One of the distinctive features of 255 Series is the side windows that are 70cm/27.6in high (for the Be-01 and Be-02 formations manufactured in 1993) or 76cm/30in high (for the Be-03 to Be-05 formations manufactured in 1994), which provide a great view of the sea in the Boso region (Uchibo Line faces Tokyo Bay, while Sotobo Line faces the Pacific Ocean).The train names "View Sazanami" and "View Wakashio" were discontinued in 2005, and the trains were unified under the names "Sazanami" and "Wakashio".255 Series is scheduled to be retired in 2024, so this may be my last travel on 255 Series. As of the March 2023 timetable revision, 255 Series operates on three round trips.The train I boarded on this occasion was the "Wakashio 3", which departed from Tokyo Station at 9:01 AM. The train was operated by the Be-04 formation, which has 76cm-high windows.The Saro 255 is a green car (second-class seat carriage) of the 255 Series and is connected to the 4th car (the 6th car counting from the direction of Awa-Kamogawa). The transparent partition in the middle of the passenger cabin is a remnant of the border between smoking and non-smoking sections. Since 2007, all Shinkansen and limited express trains in the JR East area have been non-smoking, but before that, smoking carriages and non-smoking carriages coexisted. As the Saro 255 was the only green car in 255 Series, half of the seats were designated as a smoking section and the other half as a non-smoking section.Because of a cloudy day, the sea was not visible along the Sotobo Line. The only section where the sea could be seen from the train window was from the area around Onjuku Station towards the end of the trip.