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International Union of Railways

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International Union of Railways
Union internationale des chemins de fer
AbbreviationUIC
Formation17 October 1922;101 years ago(1922-10-17)
Legal statusActive
PurposePromote rail transport at world level
Meet the challenges of mobility and sustainable development
Headquarters16 rue Jean Rey
Paris,France
Membership(2021)
204
Chairman
Dr Alan Beroud (PKP)[1]
Vice Chairman
Mohamed Rabie Khlie (ONCF)[1]
Director General
François Davenne (UIC)[1]
Coordinator
Karine Van Ceunebroeck[1]
Websiteuic.orgEdit this at Wikidata

TheInternational Union of Railways(French:Union internationale des chemins de fer,UIC) is an internationalrail transportindustry body.

History

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The railways of Europe had originated during the nineteenth century as many separate concerns across numerous nations; this led to disparate and conflicting standards emerging and thus onto incompatibility. One prominent example was theBritish Gauge War,during which differentrailwaycompanies were laying differenttrack gaugesacrossGreat Britain,causing inefficiency wherever abreak of gaugeoccurred, prior to anAct of Parliamentthe issue in 1846 by establishing onestandard gaugeof4 ft8+1⁄2in(1,435 mm).[2][3]The early effort towards standardisation somewhat influenced railways aboard as well, however various other track gauges persisted and developed across the world; even through to the twenty first century, incompatible track gauges, let alone other issues, persisted to hinder interoperability efforts.[4][5][6][7]

Several key events happened during the early twentieth century; in the aftermath of theFirst World Warand theTreaty of Versailles,numerous border changes were enacted across Europe, which greatly impacted several formerly united national railway networks while compelling several others together in some cases. It was early into theinterwar periodthat the UIC was established on 17 October 1922 with the principal aim of standardising practices across the railway industry and expanding international cooperation in the sector.[8]

The UIC has introduced numerous classification systems over the decades. During the 1970s, theUIC Franccurrency equivalent was established for the purpose of easing international ticket revenue sharing;[9]it was replaced by theEuropean Currency Uniton 1 January 1990.[10]UIC classificationandUIC Country Codesallowed precise determination of rolling stock capabilities and ownership;[11][12]furthermore, wagons have been assigned their own uniqueUIC wagon numbers.[13][14]

Over time, the UIC has formed various partnerships and cooperative frameworks with other multinational railway authorities, such as theEuropean Union Agency for Railways.[15]The UIC has played a leading role in the development ofTechnical Specifications for Interoperability(TSIs), which have gradually taken over from older standards developed by various national railway entities.[16][17][18]

During the 1990s, theGSM-Rradio telecommunication system was formulated as an internationalinteroperabilityspecification covering voice and signalling systems for railway communications.[19][20]GSM-R, which is built onGSMtechnology, was designed to be a cost efficient digital replacement for various existing incompatible in-track cable and analogue railway radio networks.[21][22]The specification for GSM-R is maintained via the UIC projectEuropean Rail Traffic Management System(ERTMS). By June 2023, GSM-R had been implemented across roughly 130,000km of track, along with 90,000 cab radios and 20,000datalinkradio units.[23]

A more capable next-generation radio, theFuture Railway Mobile Communication System(FRMCS) program, is under development as of 2023.[24][23]In addition to eventually replacing GSM-R, it will provide new capabilities that require more rapid data exchange, such as live video transmission.[25][23]

Mission

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The UIC's mission is "to promote rail transport at world level and meet the challenges of mobility and sustainable development."[26]

Objectives

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The UIC's main objectives[26]are to:

  • Facilitate the sharing of best practices among members (benchmarking)
  • Support members in their efforts to develop new business and new areas of activities
  • Propose new ways to improve technical and environmental performance
  • Promote interoperability, create new world standards for railways (including common standards with other transport modes)
  • Develop centres of competence (High Speed, Safety, Security, e-Business,...)

Members

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When founded in 1922 the UIC had 51 members from 29 countries, including Japan andChina.They were soon[when?]joined by members from theSoviet Union,the Middle East and North Africa.[specify]As of February 2024, the UIC has 219 members[27]across five continents.[26]Of these there are:

  • 62 active members (usually companies located in Europe, East Asia, South Asia and Middle East):
  1. AustriaÖBB
  2. BelgiumInfrabelandSNCB
  3. Bosnia and HerzegovinaŽFBH
  4. BulgariaBDZandNRIC
  5. ChinaCRandNRA
  6. CroatiaHŽ Infrastruktura
  7. Czech RepublicČDandSpráva železnic
  8. DenmarkDSB
  9. FinlandFTIA
  10. FranceSNCF
  11. GermanyDB
  12. GreeceHellenic TrainandOSE
  13. HungaryGysev/RaaberbahnandMÁV
  14. IndiaIndian Railways
  15. IranRAI
  16. IraqIRR
  17. Republic of IrelandCIÉ
  18. IsraelIsrael Railways
  19. ItalyFS
  20. JapanJR East
  21. KazakhstanKTZ
  22. South KoreaKorailandKorea National Railway
  23. LatviaLDZ
  24. LithuaniaLTG
  25. MongoliaUBTZ
  26. MoroccoONCF
  27. NetherlandsNSandProRail
  28. NorwayBane Nor
  29. PolandPKP
  30. PortugalCPandIP SA
  31. RomaniaCFR Călători,CFR MarfăandCFR SA
  32. Saudi ArabiaSAR
  33. SerbiaIŽS
  34. SlovakiaŽSR,ZSSKandZSSK Cargo
  35. SloveniaSŽ
  36. SpainAdifandRenfe
  37. SwedenGreen Cargo,SJandTrafikverket
  38. SwitzerlandBLSandSBB CFF FFS
  39. SyriaCFS
  40. TaiwanTHSRC
  41. TurkeyTCDDandTCDDT
  42. UkraineUZ
  43. United KingdomEurostar IandNetwork Rail
  • 79 affiliate members (usually companies located in Africa, Oceania, South America and Southeast Asia, or universities and organisations in Europe and Asia, or government authorities):
  1. AlgeriaANESRIF
  2. ArgentinaALAFandJST
  3. AustraliaNTC,TFNSW,Queensland TMR,Victoria DOTPandWestern Australia PTA
  4. AustriaBR ICSandUbimet
  5. BelgiumBCC
  6. BrazilANPTrilhos
  7. CanadaRAC
  8. ChinaBJTU,CARS,CRDC,CRECC,CRRC Zhuzhou Institute,CRRC Qingdao Sifang RSRI,CRSC Research & Design Institute,SWJTUandTongji University
  9. ColombiaANi
  10. FranceErmewa,Europe Express,Lisea,Région Grand Est,SystraandTELT
  11. GabonARTF
  12. GermanyBodensee-SchiffsbetriebeandOPTIMA-TOURS
  13. HungaryÉKM,FoxRailandVPE
  14. IndiaNCRTCandNHSRCL
  15. IranIsfahan Kafriz
  16. ItalyNTV
  17. JapanJR RTRI
  18. JordanAqaba Railway CorporationandJHR
  19. South KoreaKRRI
  20. LatviaRB Rail
  21. MexicoARTF
  22. MongoliaMTZ
  23. NetherlandsEurailandHitrail
  24. NigerCOGEFER
  25. NorwayEnturandNorske Tog
  26. PhilippinesDOT
  27. PolandIK
  28. PortugalMedway
  29. RomaniaAFER
  30. Saudi ArabiaTGA
  31. SenegalCFSandSENTER
  32. SerbiaEurorail LogisticsandŽS
  33. South AfricaRSRandTUT
  34. SpainFCHandFFE
  35. SwedenASTOC,JernhusenandStena Line
  36. SwitzerlandAlliance SwisspassandEurofima
  37. ThailandDRT
  38. United Arab EmiratesMOEI
  39. United KingdomATOC,BCRRE,GCRE,Harsco,HS2 LimitedandRSSB
  40. United StatesAARandFRA
  • 61 associate members (usually companies in Africa and North America):
  1. AfghanistanARA[28]
  2. AlgeriaSNTF
  3. ArgentinaFASE
  4. ArmeniaSCR
  5. AustraliaSydney Trains
  6. AustriaGKBandWLB
  7. AzerbaijanADY
  8. BelgiumThalys
  9. Bosnia and HerzegovinaŽRS
  10. BulgariaBRC
  11. Burkina FasoSOPAFERB
  12. CameroonCamrail
  13. CanadaVia Rail
  14. ChileEFE
  15. Ivory CoastSIPFandSitarail
  16. CroatiaHŽ Cargo and HŽPP
  17. Czech RepublicStudent Agency
  18. EgyptENR
  19. EthiopiaEDR
  20. FinlandVR
  21. FranceGetlink
  22. GabonSetrag
  23. GermanyERC.D
  24. Georgia (country)Georgian Railway
  25. GreeceAttica Group
  26. HungaryGYSEV Cargo
  27. ItalyTrenord
  28. JapanJR Central,JR FreightandJR West
  29. KenyaKRC
  30. LuxembourgCFLandCFL Cargo
  31. MalaysiaKTM
  32. MauritaniaSNIM
  33. MontenegroŽPCG
  34. North MacedoniaZRSM Infrastructure
  35. OmanOman Rail
  36. PhilippinesPNR
  37. RomaniaCTV,GFRandUnicom
  38. SenegalGTS
  39. SerbiaSrbija KargoandSrbijavoz
  40. SpainETS,Euskotren,FGCandLFP
  41. SwitzerlandRHB
  42. TaiwanTRC
  43. ThailandSRT
  44. TunisiaSNCFT
  45. United Arab EmiratesEtihad Rail
  46. United KingdomNI Railways
  47. United StatesAmtrakandCHSRA
  48. VietnamVNR
  • 17 suspended members:
  1. BelarusBCh
  2. Democratic Republic of the CongoONATRA
  3. IndonesiaDJKA,KAIandMASKA
  4. LibyaLibya Railway
  5. MalaysiaMyHSR CorpandRAC
  6. North MacedoniaZRSM Transport
  7. RussiaFPC,MIIT,NIIAS,RZD,RZDstroyandVNIIZHT
  8. SudanSudan Railways Corporation
  9. SyriaSyrian Hedjaz Railways

On 12 November 2010, the UIC opened an African regional office inTunis,Tunisia with the support ofSNCFT.[29]

On 9 March 2022, the UIC suspended all member companies from Russia and Belarus, followingRussian invasion of Ukraine.[30]

Standard terminology

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In order to provide a common understanding and reduce potential confusion, the UIC has established standard international railway terminology and a trilingual (English-French-German) thesaurus of terms. The thesaurus was the result of cooperation with theEuropean Conference of Ministers of Transport(ECMT/CEMT) and was published in 1995.[31]

Classification of railway vehicles

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Main articles:UIC classification of goods wagons,UIC classification of locomotive axle arrangements,UIC classification of railway coaches,UIC identification marking for tractive stock,andUIC wagon numbers

The UIC has established systems for the classification oflocomotivesand theiraxle arrangements,coachesandgoods wagons.

Some UIC regulations

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UIC plays an important role in standardization of railway parts, data and terminology, though the degree to which its standards have been adopted by its members varies. Therefore, UIC codes (also known asUIC leaflet) are developed since the beginning of UIC's work. A new term for these UIC leaflets is used by UIC for better understanding:International Railway Solution(IRS).[32]

Some UIC codes are:

  • UIC 568The 13-corded standardized connectioncablewith connector is used to transmit data and commands between thelocomotiveand the carriages of apassenger train.
  • UIC 592-2 Large containers for transport on wagons – Technical conditions to be fulfilled by large containers accepted for use in international traffic. Describes the classes and categories of large containers, handling characteristics, identification markings, and special conditions applying to large tank containers.
  • UIC 592-3 Large containers (CT), swap bodies (CM) and transport frames for horizontal transhipment (CA) – Standard report on acceptance tests.
  • UIC 592-4 Swap bodies for grab handling and spreader gripping – Technical conditions. Swap bodies are the removable superstructures of road transport vehicles. Their dimensions and some of their fittings are standardised, particularly dimensions, strength parameters and securing devices, of the road vehicle, the wagon and transhipment arrangements (grab-handling grooves, lower securing parts and, in special cases, upper securing parts).
  • UIC 596-5 Transport of road vehicles on wagons – Technical organisation – Conveyance of semi-trailers with P coding or N coding on recess wagons. This leaflet sets out regulations and provisions for semi-trailers with normal road transport characteristics for conveyance on fixed-recess carrier wagons. The provisions are valid for semi-trailers, gantry equipment/industrial trucks with grab handles, recess wagon types 1a and 1b in accordance with UIC Leaflet 571–4.
  • UIC 596-6 Conveyance of road vehicles on wagons – Technical organisation – Conditions for coding combined-transport load units and combined-transport lines. The leaflet sets out the coding and organisation of loading units in respect of road vehicles on wagons, designed to ensure compatibility of loading units (LU) with the permissible profile for combined transport lines. The provisions aim to facilitate LU identification to speed-up international traffic movements. They are applicable to semi-trailers, swap bodies, roller units loaded on wagons and bogies in combined transport operations.
  • FU-7100[33]Future Railway Mobile Communication System(FRMCS) User Requirements Specification. Defines a set of technology independent user requirements in the form of individual applications. Each application has been defined to provide or support an identified communications need that is considered necessary for current and future railway operation.

See also

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References

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Citations

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  1. ^abcd"Executive Board UIC".31 December 2021.
  2. ^"Railway Regulation (Gauge) Act 1846"(PDF).railwaysarchive.co.uk.
  3. ^Rolt 1989, pp. 202–203.
  4. ^"What are the consequences of Europe's different railway gauges?".railfreight. 21 April 2022.
  5. ^"Why the end of the gauge war didn't standardise Britain's railway".Network Rail.20 May 2021.
  6. ^Maisel, Adam; Keturakis, Laurynas (4 February 2018)."Baltic Trainspotting: Railways and NATO's Logistics problem in Northeastern Europe".Modern War Institute.
  7. ^"Harmonising the future of railway operations".globalrailwayreview. 29 December 2006.
  8. ^"UIC since 1922".UIC – International union of railways.Archived fromthe originalon 21 October 2017.Retrieved30 June2019.
  9. ^de Fontgalland, Bernard (8 November 1984).The World Railway System.Cambridge University Press. p. 151.ISBN978-0-521-24541-8.
  10. ^"Intercontainer opts for the ECU".Rail International.21:34. 1990.
  11. ^The Railway Data File.Leicester: Silverdale, 2000. p. 52.ISBN1-85605-499-3.
  12. ^Peck C.B.,Locomotive cyclopedia of American practice, 1950-52, Association of American Railroads Mechanical Division, Simmons-Boardman Pub. Co., 1950, p. 449.
  13. ^UTP Marking 2015, Uniform Technical Prescription Applicable to Vehicle Numbers and linked Alpha betical marking on the bodywork: THE RAILWAY VEHICLE MARKING, Applicable from 1.1.2015, retrieved from:OTIF page Prescriptions and Other Rules
  14. ^Leaflet 419-2,Analytical numbering of international freight trains,Obligatory, 2nd edition, November 2008 - Translation, 1/09 (issued 1 February 2009),ISBN978-2-7461-1957-4
  15. ^"UIC and European Union Agency for Railways sign coordination framework".globalrailwayreview. 2 December 2021.
  16. ^"Train braking performance determination".globalrailwayreview. 31 May 2005.
  17. ^Paukert, Hans (3 April 2007)."UIC works to reduce train noise with composite brake shoes".globalrailwayreview.
  18. ^"Fuelling the debate on diesel engine emissions".globalrailwayreview. 28 May 2008.
  19. ^"GSM-R: where are we today?".globalrailwayreview. 3 November 2005.
  20. ^Kessell, Clive (30 January 2019)."GSM-R: a migration strategy to its successor?".Rail Engineer.Archived fromthe originalon 22 February 2019.
  21. ^"Siemens Wins Belgian GSM-R".Light Reading.14 May 2003.Retrieved11 January2014.
  22. ^"The way from the idea to GSM-R".UIC. 13 March 2013. Archived fromthe originalon 11 January 2014.Retrieved11 January2014.
  23. ^abcMandoc, Dan (2 June 2023)."The second phase of the FRMCS introduction begins".globalrailwayreview.
  24. ^Mandoc, Dan; Evanghelou, Jean-Michel (4 May 2020)."FRMCS: More than just a successive replacement for GSM-R".Global Railway Review.Russell Publishing Ltd.
  25. ^Smith, Kevin (1 March 2017)."Beyond GSM-R: the future of railway radio".International Rail Journal.Simmons-Boardman Publishing Inc. Archived fromthe originalon 8 May 2017.
  26. ^abcUIC Overviewas at 12 March 2009.
  27. ^"Vademecum".UIC.Retrieved15 May2024.
  28. ^"Afghanistan becomes UIC member | Pajhwok Afghan News".pajhwok.Archived fromthe originalon 19 December 2013.
  29. ^"UIC Office for Africa opened in Tunis".Railways Africa.Archived fromthe originalon 21 March 2012.Retrieved27 November2010.
  30. ^"The international railway community shows solidarity with the people of Ukraine".UIC. 9 March 2022.Retrieved15 March2022.
  31. ^"Transport Thesaurus".UIC. 1995. Archived fromthe originalon 6 June 2015.Retrieved20 May2009.
  32. ^Magnien, Airy."UIC e-news".UIC.Retrieved21 April2014.
  33. ^FRMCS Functional Working Group (19 February 2020)."Future Railway Mobile Communication System User Requirements Specification"(PDF).UIC.

Bibliography

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