The 80 Series "SHONAN" Electric Multiple-Unit

The traffic in the city in Tokyo increased rapidly after the Pacific War, and the railroads of Japan had short intervals between stations. Therefore, the trains became more popular.
The first full-scale long-distance trains were the 80 series Electric Multiple-Unit. It was developed by Hideo Shima who was the same person that developed the Shinkansen. He was known as the father of the Shinkansen. The 80 series became the basis of the success of the Shinkansen of a new time. This 80 series was called the Shonan Electric Multiple-Unit. Shonan is the name of a place on the seashore of Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan.
The TANNA tunnel was opened for traffic in 1934. Electrification of the main Tokaido line was completed from Tokyo to Numazu. JNR formed a plan to make about 126km of this section into the Electric Multiple-Unit. However, GHQ of the allied forces who occupied Japan were opposed to this plan in those days. That is because an inter-urban decline had already started in the U.S. So, JNR considered another strategy. These 80 series were first used for short-distances towards Yokosuka. They were secretly used for long-distance transportation after that. It is possible to call it an artifice. However, JNR needed to develop a train which could run on the original features of the railroads of Japan for a long distance. As for rightness, the judgment was checked by success of the next Shinkansen.