- Sotetsu Holdings and Sagami Railway announced on 15 October 2026 that the new 13000 series train has won a 2026 Good Design Award. It is the company’s fourth winning train, after the refurbished 9000 series, the 20000 series and the 12000 series.
- The 13000 series is a commuter train that runs only on Sotetsu’s own lines. It entered service on 30 March 2026, and one eight-car set has been built, by J-TREC.
- Its design concept adds “future” to the company’s existing “safety, security and elegance”. Sotetsu says the front was shaped by training generative AI on 3D models drawn from sketches, producing thousands of variations, then refining the chosen ones by hand.
- The jury praised the covers that hide exposed bolts, headlights that wrap round onto the sides (unusual on a commuter train), the logo cut into the light covers and the rust-coloured accent inside the lights.
- Each end car has six more seats than the 12000 series, twelve more per train, and every car has a space for strollers and wheelchairs.
- An actual 13000 series car will be displayed at SOTETSU PARK, the Sotetsu Group’s area at GREEN×EXPO 2027.
Our take
Only one 13000 series train is in service. It stays on Sotetsu’s own tracks and does not run through onto Tokyu or JR lines, but waiting on the platform at Seya or Mitsukyo is no guarantee of seeing it. The announcement does not say which services it works.
The sure place to see one is SOTETSU PARK. The car going on show is No. 13100, a separate vehicle from the set in service, delivered from J-TREC’s Yokohama works on 30 July 2026 (see our SOTETSU PARK piece).
Everything the jury picked out is best seen from the side and close up: the headlights that wrap round, the hidden bolts. Those are easy to miss as a train pulls into a station. A stationary car you can stand beside suits them better than a platform.
Tips for visitors
- If you want to ride a 13000 series train on the line, there is no way to know in advance which services it will work.
- To see one at the Expo, go to SOTETSU PARK. The Expo runs from 19 March to 26 September 2027. What the area offers and how the car was brought in are covered in our SOTETSU PARK piece.
- Shuttle buses to the site leave from Seya and Mitsukyo stations on the Sotetsu Main Line; see our shuttle bus guide.
Our take
Only one eight-car 13000 series train is in service, and it runs only on Sotetsu's own lines, so catching it is luck. At GREEN×EXPO 2027, SOTETSU PARK will display a lead car of the same design, where the headlight details the jury praised can be seen up close.