We propose an effective model called the ``charge model,'' for the half-filled one-dimensional Hubbard and extended Hubbard models. In this model, spin-charge separation, which has been justified from an infinite on-site repulsion (
U) in the strict sense, is compatible with charge fluctuations. Our analyses based on the many-body Wannier functions succeeded in determining the optical conductivity spectra in large systems. The obtained spectra reproduce the spectra for the original models well even in the intermediate
U region of
U=5--
10T, with
T being the nearest-neighbor electron hopping energy. These results indicate that the spin-charge separation works fairly well in this intermediate
U region against the usual expectation and that the charge model is an effective model that applies to actual quasi-one-dimensional materials classified as strongly correlated electron systems.