Since the beginning of 2007 all newly authorised railway locomotives or other traction units, at least in Europe, have been given a twelve-digit number. This makes the locomotive or railcar clearly identifiable from an EU-wide list of registered railway vehicles and which follows the UIC Code of Practice 438-3, Identification marking for tractive stock. A complete index number comprises 12 digits. The first two digits form the type code, the third and fourth, as with wagon numbers, the country of origin. Digits 5 to 11 may be freely defined by the country concerned, and the final digit is a check figure. It is followed by abbreviations for the country of origin and the owner of the vehicle.
By the deadline of 1 August 2008 all traction units in a fleet had to be registered and marked up with their index number. Existing locomotive numbers used internally were not affected.
Contents |
| 90 | Tractive unit not otherwise classified, e.g. steam locomotive |
| 91 | Electric locomotive with a top speed of 100 km/h or more |
| 92 | Diesel locomotive with a top speed of 100 km/h or more |
| 93 | Electric railcar with a top speed of 190 km/h or more |
| 94 | Electric railcar with a top speed of less than 190 km/h |
| 95 | Diesel railcar |
| 96 | Trailer car |
| 97 | Electric locomotive with a top speed of less than 100 km/h (shunter) |
| 98 | Diesel locomotive with a top speed of less than 100 km/h (shunter) |
| 99 | Departmental tractive units |
In Germany a national register of tractive units has been introduced by the Federal Railway Office (Eisenbahnbundesamt or EBA). The EBA is also responsible for issuing vehicle index numbers. The national section of the index number (figures 5 to 11) comprises a four-digit class number and the associated 3-figure serial number of the vehicle within its class.
In order to simplify renumbering for the Deutsche Bahn, in choosing the class numbers for vehicles in the existing fleet the DB selected the first four digits in such a way that the previous DB number could continue to be used without changing the check digit. An amendment of the check digit was only needed for the DB's combustion-engined railcars. For new DB vehicles, such as the Alstom Class 1214, first introduced in 2008, this is not valid. Although they are internally counted as Class 262, they have been given an index number corresponding to the class used by the manufacturer.
As a result of the requirement to be entered into the register, vehicles and classes were included that had never been part of the DB. These were allocated to new classes by the EBA, which were no longer based around the historical classification systems of the Deutsche Bahn. This has caused misunderstandings for railway fans, because the classes are now generally made up of four-digit numbers which no longer give a clue as to the type of vehicle. For that the first two digits are required, in other words the digits making up the type code.
Example:
Class "0128" appears to have a typical DB classification number for an electric locomotive, if you look at the last 3 digits. However, because the full index number includes the type code "98", it is in fact a diesel shunter. The three-figure numbers "3xy" or "2xy" previously used by the Deutsche Bahn are not part of the new classification numbers. The traditional classification numbers are therefore obsolete and may only be found in the index numbers of former state railway vehicles.
Vehicles that are used both by the DB as well as private railways are allocated to the same class. The difference is always recognisable from the owner's abbreviation. One advantage of the system is its simplicity, because when vehicles change ownership they retain the same index number. Only the abbreviation of the owner's name needs to be changed. For a major rebuild the actual number can however be changed to that of an appropriate class.
See also List of classes in the German Railway Vehicle Register
The check digit is calculated from the first eleven numbers and is derived from the sum of the numbers that arise when the digits are alternately multiplied by 2 and 1 (the first digit by 2, the second by 1, the third by 2 etc.); the difference of this summation from the next multiple of ten produces the check digit. (For examples of this see the article on wagon numbers) On entering a number into a computer the check digit acts as an accuracy check.
For every railway company, that enters its tractive units into the register, a clear, European-wide code is needed. This is allocated by the respective railway administration and is the fleet component of the index number. The list of owner's codes may be seen in the European Railway Agency article.
| Meaning of 97 80 8194 052-7 D-LEG | |
|---|---|
| 97 | Type description, here: electric locomotive, top speed up to 100 km/h |
| 80 | Country code, here: Germany |
| 8194 | Federal Railway Office type code, here a DRB Class E 94 |
| 052 | Serial number |
| 7 | Check digit |
| D-LEG | Name of owner, here Leipzig Railway Company (Leipziger Eisenbahngesellschaft). |