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A bilevel car (
American English American English, sometimes called United States English or U.S. English, is the set of variety (linguistics), varieties of the English language native to the United States. English is the Languages of the United States, most widely spoken lang ...
) or double-decker coach (
British English British English is the set of Variety (linguistics), varieties of the English language native to the United Kingdom, especially Great Britain. More narrowly, it can refer specifically to the English language in England, or, more broadly, to ...
and
Canadian English Canadian English (CanE, CE, en-CA) encompasses the Variety (linguistics), varieties of English language, English used in Canada. According to the 2016 Canadian Census, 2016 census, English was the first language of 19.4 million Canadians or ...
) is a type of rail car that has two levels of passenger accommodation as opposed to one, increasing passenger capacity (up to 57% per car in extreme cases). The use of double-decker carriages, where feasible, can resolve capacity problems on a railroad, avoiding other options which have an associated infrastructure cost such as longer trains (which require longer station platforms), more trains per hour (which the signalling or safety requirements may not allow) or adding extra tracks besides the existing line. Double deck trains are claimed to be more energy efficient, and may have a lower operating cost per passenger. A bi-level car may carry up to about twice as many as a normal car, if
structure A structure is an arrangement and organization of interrelated elements in a material object or system, or the object or system so organized. Material structures include man-made objects such as buildings and machines and natural objects such as ...
and loading gauges permit, without requiring double the weight to pull or material to build. However, a bi-level train may take longer to exchange passengers at each station, since more people will enter and exit from each car. The increased dwell time makes them most popular on long-distance routes which make fewer stops (and may be popular with passengers for offering a better view). Double deck cars may not be usable in countries or on older railroad systems with low loading gauge, most notably the majority of the British railway network. In some countries such as the UK new lines are built to a higher than the existing structure gauge to allow the use of double-deck trains in future.


History

Double deck carriages date to at least as early as the second half of the 19th century. In France several hundred ''voitures à impériale'' with seats on the roof were in use by the Chemins de fer de l'Ouest, Chemins de fer de l'Est and Chemins de fer du Nord by 1870, having been in use for over 2 decades; the upper deck was open at the sides with a light roof or awning covering the seats. In the 1860s, M.J.B. Vidard introduced two-storied carriages on the Chemins de fer de l'Est, with a full body, windows, and doors; the same design lowered the floor of the lower storey to keep the center of gravity low. Vidard's carriages had a total height of with the head height in the lower part of the carriage only ; the carriages had a capacity of 80 persons (third class) in a 2 axle vehicle of 13 tons fully loaded. The first all-steel '' Chemins de fer de l'État bilevels'' are an early example of split-level cars. The
Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad was a railroad that operated in the Midwest, Midwestern United States. Commonly referred to as the Burlington Route, the Burlington, CB&Q, or as the Q, it operated extensive trackage in the states of ...
placed bilevel Gallery cars in commuter service in the Chicago area in 1950. These were successful, and led to the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway introducing long-distance Hi-Level cars on Chicago–
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
'' El Capitan'' streamliner in 1954. In 1968, the four experimental double-deck power cars entered service in
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, enabling the first fully double-deck
Electric Multiple Unit An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number o ...
passenger train in the world.


Typical design

The double-deck design usually includes lowering the bottom floor to below the top level of the wheels, closer to the rails, and then adding an upper floor above. Such a design will fit under more
bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...
s, tunnels and power wires ( structure gauge). For cost and safety, this design also minimizes car height ( loading gauge) and lowers the centre of gravity. Depending on train station platform heights, three designs can be used for entry – high platforms require use of a "split level" car design, where the doors are located on a middle level, with access into the upper or lower level branching off – with stairs or ramps going both up and down (sometimes this configuration includes a section of seating at the middle level in the entry section, with double levels only in part of the lengths of the car). For low train station platforms, a "two-floor" design with level entry onto the lower floor is used. Occasionally a third, very tall "two floors over-wheel" design is used. This is a traditional single floor car "with a second story" design which, when using a low platform, requires steps up to a traditional floor height and then internal stairs up to the upper floor.


Platform height and floor height issues

There are four important height measurements above the railhead: platform height, traditional floor height, downstairs floor height and upstairs floor height. Platform height determines the level entry height for wheeled objects, such as luggage, strollers, wheelchairs and bicycles. Platform height is ideally standardized across all stations the train serves. Traditional rail car floor height matters for end doors connecting to existing single floor rail cars. Downstairs or lowest floor height is primarily determined by the thickness of the beams connecting the span between the wheels and bogies (trucks) of a rail car. The upstairs floor or highest floor height is above the lowest floor and must fit under bridges and tunnels. Level entry floor height must match the platform height. Hopefully either the traditional or downstairs floor height already matches the platform height. Despite the name "bilevel" or "double-decker", for maximum compatibility the rail car will have up to four different floor heights. High platform design (Using outside steps to avoid having a level entry from the platform) is troublesome.


Common low-platform design

Most low-platform double-decker trains have level entry onto the lower level of the car, allowing wheelchair access. There are two-floor heights (upstairs and downstairs) in these "bilevel" cars. There is a staircase between floors inside the car. Connecting doors between cars are either at the (higher) upper floor or at an intermediate level over the bogies. In the former case, connecting directly to a single level car causes drag and connecting door problems. In the western USA, cars are of the upper-level-connection type. They use low-platform stations, because the traditional single floor trains all had exterior entry steps to maximize flexibility (emergency and temporary stops) and minimize infrastructure costs. There are no examples of two-floor platforms, so there are no platform doors on the upper floor. Car roof lines lengthwise are flat for connecting doors to the upstairs of bi-level cars. A Pullman-Standard / Bombardier Amtrak Superliner car is tall.


Uncommon very tall design

There are several very tall bilevel cars (e.g. the Colorado Railcar DMU is tall). They typically are described as a traditional rail car with a second story. Most of these cars serve low platforms so they have exterior steps up to the traditional "over-wheel" floor height e.g. US . End doors connect at the traditional height of existing rolling stock. Some cars have upstairs end doors as well. Many of these cars also include outside balconies on either the upper or lower level. Upstairs and downstairs connect by interior stairs. These cars can fit most able people, but lack level entry. On almost all these cars the upper level consists of a full-length glass dome. Some cars are self-propelled multiple units so using traditional floor heights appears fixed. In towed cars, it is possible to lower the downstairs floor between the wheels/bogies so that level entry is possible with more than of added headroom and interior steps from that floor to the traditional floor.


Operators


Argentina

In 2005, Emprendimientos Ferroviarios (Emfer), Trenes de Buenos Aires (TBA (Trains of Buenos Aires)), National Institute of Industrial Technology and the Argentine National Government subscribed to a framework agreement to start the national designing and construction of bi-level electric trains. This was decided due to the overwhelming and increasing number of passengers using the gauge urban Sarmiento Line, serving the centre and east of Greater Buenos Aires. The first prototype was released in 2005, but mass-production only started in mid 2008. In 2013, these coaches were retired from the line and replaced with new CSR Electric Multiple Units, though it remains unclear if the Emfer trains will be moved elsewhere in the country. In 2010, Emprendimientos Ferroviarios and Trenes de Buenos Aires presented non-engined double-decker coaches for a diesel interurban link between
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
and Mercedes city. Attending to different technical needs, the new coaches have only two simple non-automatic doors in the ends (instead of the two electric double doors in the middle) and were designed for low platforms. For 2020, a public tender was launched by Trenes Argentinos to recover these double-decker coaches, for inter-urban and long-distance services, equipping them with reclining seats, USB inputs and other amenities.


Australia

In 1964, Tulloch Limited built the first double-decker trailer cars for use in
Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
. They ran with single deck electric motor cars. After the success of the trailers, Tulloch built four experiment double decker power cars in 1968. From 1972, more double decker multiple units were constructed by Comeng and Goninan. These are now known as the S sets. All electric suburban and interurban trains in Greater Sydney are now double deck, though the Sydney Metro uses single deck carriages. All double deck carriages have two doors per side per carriage, with a vestibule at each end at platform height. The Sydney double deck commuter trains are high. The Public Transport Corporation in
Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
ordered a prototype Double Deck Development and Demonstration train in 1991, a modification of the Tangara design used in Sydney. It suffered frequent breakdowns and spent long periods out of use. It was withdrawn in 2002 and scrapped in 2006.


Austria

Historically, bilevel cars were implemented in 1873 and were in use until
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
. In 1993, the railway company ''Graz-Köflacher Bahn'' started to use 15 cars for suburban transport around the city of
Graz Graz () is the capital of the Austrian Federal states of Austria, federal state of Styria and the List of cities and towns in Austria, second-largest city in Austria, after Vienna. On 1 January 2025, Graz had a population of 306,068 (343,461 inc ...
. In 1997, the national railway company ÖBB ordered 120 bilevel cars for the use in Eastern
Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
and Vienna metropolitan area.


Canada

Canada's national passenger railway company, Via Rail, does not currently operate any bilevel coaches in its fleet, apart from the
dome car A dome car is a type of railway Passenger car (rail), passenger car that has a glass dome on the top of the car where passengers can ride and see in all directions around the train. It also can include features of a Coach (rail), coach, lounge c ...
s used on some long-distance services. These coaches include two levels over part of the length of the vehicle. The Ontario Northland Railway operates a bilevel dome car on its Polar Bear Express service with two levels along the entire length of the vehicle. The Bombardier BiLevel Coach was originally designed by Hawker-Siddeley Canada for the GO Transit commuter rail network in southern
Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...
. It is now used by 14 different railway operators across North America, including all three of Canada's commuter rail systems. All train services operated by GO Transit and West Coast Express use Bombardier BiLevel coaches, while Montreal's Exo trains use a mix of Bombardier Bilevel, Bombardier MultiLevel and various single-level coaches. The private rail tour company Rocky Mountaineer uses bilevel full-length dome cars built by Colorado Railcar.


China

The first bilevel train for China Railways was built by Sifang in 1958 as Dongfeng diesel multiple unit, consisting of two locomotives and four bilevel coaches. After withdrawing Dongfeng DMU from use in 1982, China Railways redeveloped double-decker trains, the first of which rolled out from Nanjing Puzhen Rolling Stock Works in 1987 as SYZ25 and SRZ25. The carriage designations of bilevel cars in China start with "S", abbreviating "double-decker" () in Chinese. Current models of double decker trains include the , and . Most bilevel cars in China were built by Nanjing Puzhen Rolling Stock Works, while some bilevel coaches were built by Changchun Railway Vehicles. The types of bilevel cars including bilevel hard seat (SYZ), bilevel soft seat (SRZ), bilevel hard sleeper (SYW), bilevel soft sleeper (SRW), Bilevel dining car (SCA) and bilevel soft seat-baggage combine car (SRZXL). Bilevel coaches are mainly used for regional services in China, like
Kunming Kunming is the capital and largest city of the province of Yunnan in China. The political, economic, communications and cultural centre of the province, Kunming is also the seat of the provincial government. During World War II, Kunming was a Ch ...
DaliLijiang intercity trains in
Yunnan Yunnan; is an inland Provinces of China, province in Southwestern China. The province spans approximately and has a population of 47.2 million (as of 2020). The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders the Chinese provinces ...
and ShijiazhuangQinhuangdao express train in
Hebei Hebei is a Provinces of China, province in North China. It is China's List of Chinese administrative divisions by population, sixth-most populous province, with a population of over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. It bor ...
. Additionally, a cross-railway bureau double-deck train service is provided between
Tianjin Tianjin is a direct-administered municipality in North China, northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the National Central City, nine national central cities, with a total population of 13,866,009 inhabitants at the time of the ...
and
Baoji Baoji ( zh, s= , t= , p=Bǎojī; ) is a prefecture-level city in western Shaanxi province, People's Republic of China. Since the early 1990s, Baoji has been the second largest city in Shaanxi. Geography The prefecture-level city of Baoji had a ...
(via Beijing West railway station).


Czech Republic

České dráhy České dráhy (English: ''Czech Railways''), often shortened to ČD, is the major Rail transport, railway operator in the Czech Republic providing regional and long-distance services. The company was established in January 1993, shortly after ...
operates 83
electric multiple unit An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number o ...
s of Class 471 manufactured by Škoda Vagonka, which was a subsidiary of Škoda Transportation and locomotive-hauled trains which was also used on the non-electrified routes around
Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
.


Denmark

In
Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
, DSB began running Bombardier Double-deck Coaches in 2002. The coaches are used on Regional services on Zealand.


Finland

In
Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...
, VR began operating double-deck day cars in 1998. They are Finnish-designed and manufactured by Transtech in Kajaani. Each car has two entrances on the lower level of the middle section, allowing level entry from station platforms at the modern Finnish standard height of . The end sections of each car – and the inter-car connections – are at mid-level. VR introduced its first double-deck sleeping cars on 1 February 2006. The two-bed cabins on the upper deck have toilets and showers while cabins on the lower deck use shared ones. Double-deck driving-trailers were introduced during late 2013 and restaurant cars in early 2014. The double-deck cars are designed for running at higher speeds than ordinary passenger cars – up to , although the upper limit was later reduced for trains entering tunnels. The cars are frequently operated in all-double-deck
InterCity InterCity (commonly abbreviated ''IC'' on timetables and tickets) is the train categories in Europe, classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe. Such trains (in contrast to InterRegio, regional train, r ...
trains (known as IC2) with at-seat
power supply A power supply is an electrical device that supplies electric power to an electrical load. The main purpose of a power supply is to convert electric current from a source to the correct voltage, electric current, current, and frequency to power ...
for
laptop A laptop computer or notebook computer, also known as a laptop or notebook, is a small, portable personal computer (PC). Laptops typically have a Clamshell design, clamshell form factor (design), form factor with a flat-panel computer scree ...
s and wireless LAN internet connection.


France

The Chemins de fer de l'État in France ran '' voitures à 2 étages'' split level double-deck suburban coaches from 1933. Its successor, the
SNCF The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (, , SNCF ) is France's national State-owned enterprise, state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the Rail transport in France, country's national rail traffic along with th ...
, has been running VB2N double-decker coaches since 1975; VB2N were introduced from 1975 as a replacement of the État cars. SNCF began running double-deck RER trains in 1982, followed by RATP in 1995. And since 1996,
SNCF The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (, , SNCF ) is France's national State-owned enterprise, state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the Rail transport in France, country's national rail traffic along with th ...
runs double-deck TGV cars on heavily used high-speed services, such as on the Paris-Lyon-Marseille line. Many
suburban rail Commuter rail or suburban rail is a Passenger train, passenger rail service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Central business district, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter town ...
,
regional rail Regional rail is a public transport, public rail transport service that operates between towns and cities. These trains operate with more stops than inter-city rail, and unlike commuter rail, operate beyond the limits of urban areas, connectin ...
and high-speed services are operated by double-deck DMUs, EMUs, coaches and TGV. The TGV Duplex are the fastest double-decker trains in the world with a commercial top speed of 320 km/h. Specially tuned trainset 4402 also holds the world speed record for conventional trains, reaching 574.8 km/h in 2007. The French loading gauge dictates that the double-deck cars have a maximum height of . Doppelstocktriebwagen of the ''Deutsche Bahn''


Germany

The East German railway company '' Deutsche Reichsbahn (DR)'' implemented the first bilevel cars in 1974 for interurban lines. After the revolutions in Eastern Europe, the
German reunification German reunification () was the process of re-establishing Germany as a single sovereign state, which began on 9 November 1989 and culminated on 3 October 1990 with the dissolution of the East Germany, German Democratic Republic and the int ...
the new founded national railway company '' Deutsche Bahn'' took over the DR bilevel cars and started to order high numbers of bilevel cars for regional and interurban traffic.


Hong Kong

MTRCL and formerly KCRC operate double-decker carriages with the KTT train sets on its cross-boundary route between Kowloon and
Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
. These cars were manufactured in Japan by Kinki Sharyo. The "Ktt" cars were used to serve between the Hung Hom and Lo Wu stations from January to May 1998, before the electrification of Guangzhou–Shenzhen railway. The "Ktt" cars have lower bottom floor than the ordinary single-deck cars serving on the same pair of tracks.


India

In
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
, the Sinhagad Express was the first train to operate with double-decker carriages, followed by other trains on the
Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
-
Pune Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...
route like the Deccan Queen and the Deccan Express, although double-decker service on these routes was later discontinued. In 1979, the Flying Ranee, a passenger train between Surat and Mumbai Central on the Western Railway became the first superfast train to use double-deck cars. The first air-conditioned double-decker service was introduced in 2011 on the Howrah–Dhanbad Double Decker Express between Howrah station in
West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...
and Dhanbad Junction in
Jharkhand Jharkhand (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in East India, eastern India. The state shares its border with the states of West Bengal to the east, Chhattisgarh to the west, Uttar Pradesh to the northwest, Bihar to the north ...
which was subsequently followed by Delhi Sarai RohillaJaipur, Ahmedabad–Mumbai Central, Chennai CentralBangalore, Anand Vihar (New Delhi)Lucknow, Visakhapatnam–Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam–Tirupati and Mumbai Lokmanya Tilak TerminusMadgaon double decker expresses.


Israel

Israel Railways began running Bombardier Double-deck Coaches in 2001. The coaches were manufactured in Görlitz, Germany, and form the vast majority of its passenger fleet as of 2021. Later, a Desiro HC by Siemens has been introduced to Israel Railways. Desiro HC has 2-floor coaches in the middle of the train, while the first and the last coaches are single-floor. The train operates mainly on the Herzlia–Jerusalem electrified line (via Tel Aviv) as of 2022.


Italy

In the 1970s, with the rise of mass commuting to the big cities the Ferrovie dello Stato have found themselves having to quickly increase the capacity of their services with Carrozze Due Piani Tipo 1979 based on French VB2N (see :it:Carrozza Due Piani). Today, double-decker coaches are also in use by private railway companies Ferrovie Nord Milano and Ferrovie del Sud Est. The types of double-decker train is circulating today in Italy are: ''Rock'' (''Caravaggio'')'', Vivalto'', '' TAF'', '' TSR''.


Japan

In Japan, double-decker trains are used either to show better scenery, or to increase seat capacity. In
Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
area commuter trains, double-decker cars are generally used as ''Green Cars'', the cars with better accommodations than the regular commuter cars. The first Japanese double-decker train appeared in 1904. It was Type 5 train of Osaka City Tram. The Kintetsu Railway 20100 Series EMUs were built in 1962 and designed for school excursion. Sightseeing trains that feature double-decker carriages include the JR Shikoku 5000 series, Keihan 8000 series, JR Central 371 series, and Odakyu 20000 series RSE. The first JNR/JR double-decker trains were 200 series Shinkansen and 100 series Shinkansen, for Shinkansen lines. JR East introduced the 215 series double-deck EMUs for '' Home Liner'' services in 1992. JR East also introduced E1 Series Shinkansen and E4 Series Shinkansen for its Shinkansen Lines; the trains are doubled decked to increase their capacities. This includes JR West 285 series EMUs for '' Sunrise Izumo''/'' Sunrise Seto'' and JR East E26 series cars for '' Cassiopeia'' services.


Russia

In 2012, a prototype double-decker rail carriage was made at the TVZ Tver Carriage Building Factory for the RZD Russian Railways company. This prototype carriage is a sleeping car with four-berth compartments and a total capacity of 64 passengers. Russian Railways ordered double-decker sleeper carriages from Transmashholding for the Adler-Moscow train service. they were expected to be delivered in time for the 2014 winter Olympics in
Sochi Sochi ( rus, Сочи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg, from  – ''seaside'') is the largest Resort town, resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi (river), Sochi River, along the Black Sea in the North Caucasus of Souther ...
. RZD offers low platforms for Moscow-Adler route. On 27 October 2017, Aeroexpress began operating ESH2 motor-car (locomotive-less) high-speed double-decker trains developed by the Swiss company Stadler on the routes MoscowDomodedovo Airport and MoscowVnukovo Airport. From November 2019, the trains were transferred to the OdintsovoSheremetyevo Airport route (OdintsovoBelorussky railway Station in the MDC mode).


Slovakia

ZSSK operates 19
electric multiple unit An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number o ...
s of Class 671 and 10 push-pull units of Class 951 manufactured by Škoda Transportation. These trains mostly operate services between
Žilina Žilina (; ; ; ; Names of European cities in different languages: U-Z#Z, names in other languages) is a city in north-western Slovakia, around from the capital Bratislava, close to both the Czech and Polish borders. It is the List of cities ...
and
Košice Košice is the largest city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary. With a population of approximately 230,000, Košice is the second-largest cit ...
(Žilina – Trenčín, Žilina – Košice, Košice –
Prešov Prešov () is a city in eastern Slovakia. It is the seat of administrative Prešov Region () and Šariš. With a population of approximately 85,000 for the city, and in total more than 100,000 with the urban area, it is the second-largest city i ...
and some others) and around
Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...
(between Kúty and
Trnava Trnava (, , ; , also known by other #Names and etymology, alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia, to the northeast of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river. It is the capital of the Trnava Region and the Trnava District. It is the seat o ...
). As of 2016 some of units 951, usually with locomotive of class 350 (Škoda 55E), are used at international train service on
Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...
( SK) –
Břeclav Břeclav (; ) is a town in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 25,000 inhabitants. Located at the Czech-Austrian state border and near the Czech–Slovak state border, it is an important railway hub. Administrative divis ...
( CZ) main line.


Spain

Since 2021 the Bi-Level SNCF High Speed Trains “Ouigo España” operates. There are also some double-decker commuter trains (Class 450) nicknamed Vessels.


Sweden

SJ AB operates 43 double-decker EMUs built by Alstom and designated class X40. The EMU comes in a two-coach version and a three-coach version. The trains are mainly used in regional trains in the areas around lake Mälaren and in the trains between Gävle and Linköping. It has a maximum speed of and is equipped with wireless internet. From 2019 onwards, the bilevel Stadler KISS (known as DOSTO in Sweden) has also been used in the Mälardalen and Uppsala regions of Sweden, and since 2023, has operated the same train sets in the Bergslagen region. Between 1966 and 1990, SJ used DMUs of class Y3 with double-decker end cars and normal cars in between. Due to the distinct humps on the endcars, it was nicknamed "the camel".


Switzerland

Double-decker commuter trains are used by the Zürich S-Bahn. Three types of trains are used, an older type consisting of an electric locomotive with double-decker cars, and Electric Multiple Units where the motors are on board the car. From 2010 onwards, a third type – the Stadler KISS – has entered service. The Swiss Federal Railways also operate the
IC 2000 The IC 2000 is a Bilevel rail car, double-deck push-pull train, push-pull train in Switzerland and is run by Swiss Federal Railways, Swiss Federal Railways (SBB-CFF-FFS) as part of its InterCity#Switzerland, InterCity service. Top speed is 200&n ...
double-decker passenger coaches in most of Switzerland for high speed
InterCity InterCity (commonly abbreviated ''IC'' on timetables and tickets) is the train categories in Europe, classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe. Such trains (in contrast to InterRegio, regional train, r ...
and InterRegio services. After massive delays, they are introducing the Bombardier TWINDEXX from 2019 on. Both these high speed trains feature passages on the upper level only, which makes them incompatible with single level coaches, IC2000 are however still used in combination with single level coaches during rush hours.


Ukraine

In 2012, as part of preparation for UEFA Euro 2012, Ukrainian Railways bought two EJ675 EMUs manufactured by Škoda Transportation. These trains are used on inter-regional services. They were discontinued for modernization and redesigning in 2019. The two units were brought back to service in 2022 and currently run on the Kyiv–Lutsk line.


United Kingdom

In the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, due to the small loading gauge, the railway system cannot easily accommodate double-deck trains. A modest attempt at double decking was made in 1948 on the Southern Railway with the two trains of the Bulleid 4DD class. Although innovative, with stepped compartments where the bottoms of the upper seats are above the heads of the people on the lower level but the feet of the people above are not, the loading gauge severely restricted their use and they were removed from service in 1971. Research by DCA concluded that double-decker trains were practical within the UK loading gauge and proposed a design for Crossrail in 2006, however the design was not taken forwards. Double-decker trams, taller than the railway loading gauge, were common in British cities. When trams were replaced between the 1930s–1960s, their replacement would be double-decker buses.


United States

Bilevel passenger rail cars used in the United States are manufactured by Bombardier (now Alstom), Kawasaki, Colorado Railcar (today US Railcar), and several others, with the former two having produced the majority of the high platform "split level" commuter rail cars in use in the northeastern states. Colorado Railcar produced bilevel DMUs and Ultra Dome passenger cars. Colorado Railcar cars measure in height and have steps that enter to a lower deck that is above the rail. Other designs, including rolling stock made by Colorado Railcar, Budd, Pullman-Standard, Bombardier and others have an entrance on the lower deck rather than an intermediate level.
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
Superliners are double-decker cars of this variety, with the entrance a step or so up from the lowest station platform level, or at the level of slightly higher platforms, and allow passage from car to car on the upper level. Some operators in the United States use a specific design of bi-level car known as a "gallery car" (see below).


Long-distance trains

Most of
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
's intercity passenger trains operating to points west of Chicago use Superliners, as do select trains east of Chicago, like the Capitol Limited and Auto Train. In addition, Alaska Railroad operates passenger trains with a mix of traditional passenger equipment and large fleets of Colorado Railcar Ultra Domes (sometimes as many as 15 in one train) owned by several major cruise ship lines.


Northeastern United States

Most passenger rail lines in the Northeast have a loading gauge that can only accommodate cars or less in height. This is due to structure gauge restrictions such as
bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...
s and tunnels that are too low, and may also have electrified lines overhead. Nevertheless, commuter railroads such as the
Long Island Rail Road The Long Island Rail Road , or LIRR, is a Rail transport, railroad in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County, New York, Suffolk County on Long Islan ...
, New Jersey Transit, MARC, and MBTA all use bilevel railcars built to unique designs to clear specific structure gauge problems on those systems. The bilevels used on LIRR, MARC, and MBTA were built by Kawasaki Rail Car, Inc., while the bilevel cars used by NJ Transit were built by Bombardier. Recently Hyundai Rotem has built additional new cars of a similar design for MBTA. In each of these agencies' bilevel cars, two levels are present between the trucks of the car. At each end, stairs lead from both levels to a common floor which is located at standard height over the trucks. All LIRR bilevel passenger rail cars have two wide quarter-point doors on each side, for high level platforms only. The bilevel cars used by NJ Transit and Exo have four doors on each side, two quarter-point doors at high level platform height and one at each end vestibule, with traps used to reach low level platforms. The bilevel cars used by MBTA have side doors with traps at each end vestibule. MARC operates both of the latter two types of cars. The Superliners used for many Amtrak intercity services do not fit in these systems. Single-deck Viewliners and Amfleet IIs are used instead.


California

Due to the typically-generous clearances on California railroads due to freight railroads expanding clearances to accommodate double-stacked containers, bilevel cars are common in the state. The
California Department of Transportation The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is an Executive (government), executive department of the U.S. state of California. The department is part of the Government of California#State agencies, cabinet-level California State Tran ...
owns 88 California Cars, which are based on the Superliner body shell, but with high-density interiors suitable for corridor trains. These cars, along with 39 owned directly by Amtrak, are dedicated to state-subsidized Amtrak California routes including the San Joaquin, Capitol Corridor and Pacific Surfliner routes. The Surfliner also serves Amtrak's California lines. Metrolink, which serves Southern California, has 137 active Bombardier BiLevel Coaches (Sentinel Fleet) and 137 Hyundai Rotem bi-level cars (Guardian Fleet). Caltrain in the Bay Area uses both Bombardier BiLevels and Nippon Sharyo gallery cars. From 2024, bilevel Stadler KISS
electric multiple unit An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number o ...
s will run on the newly electrified network.


Florida

Southeast Florida's Tri-Rail commuter service between Miami and West Palm Beach uses the Bombardier BiLevel Coach and Rotem Commuter Cars. SunRail, which serves the Greater Orlando area, also uses Bombardier BiLevel coaches.


Illinois

Metra Metra is the primary commuter rail system in the Chicago metropolitan area serving the city of Chicago and its surrounding suburbs via the Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF Railway, and other railroads. The system operates 243 train station, stati ...
has a large fleet of gallery cars, and Highliner II gallery
electric multiple unit An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number o ...
s (EMUs). The NICTD South Shore Line fleet also includes very similar gallery EMUs. Chicago does not have the loading gauge problems that affect passenger rail lines in most northeastern states because it has very few railroad tunnels for the lines of these passenger trains except for a brief distance in the city. In January 2021, the Metra board approved the purchase of 200 of a new design of multilevel car from Alstom, with options for up to 300 more. Former Metra coaches were operated by a number of other agencies in the first two decades of the twenty-first century; as of 2021, they are still used for
Nashville Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
's WeGo Star (formerly branded as the Music City Star).


Massachusetts

The MBTA is the public agency responsible for operating most
public transport Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of whic ...
services in
Greater Boston Greater Boston is the metropolitan region of New England encompassing the municipality of Boston, the capital of the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the most populous city in New England, and its surrounding areas, home to 4,941,632. The most s ...
. Its MBTA Commuter Rail system currently uses 277 bilevel passenger cars made by Kawasaki and Hyundai Rotem.


New Mexico

The New Mexico Rail Runner Express utilizes Bombardier BiLevel cars on its route from
Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , literal translation, lit. "Holy Faith") is the capital city, capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico, and the county seat of Santa Fe County. With over 89,000 residents, Santa Fe is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, fourt ...
to Belen, New Mexico.


Virginia

Virginia Railway Express operated 13 Kawasaki bi-level cars between 1999 and 2008, after which they were sold to MARC (these cars were originally procured as an option on MARC's larger order). From 2001, VRE also operated a number of ex-Metra Pullman-Standard gallery cars. These were all gradually replaced by new Sumitomo/ Nippon Sharyo gallery cars between 2006 and 2018.


Utah

FrontRunner commuter rail, operated by the Utah Transit Authority to connect multiple cities along the Wasatch Front, utilizes Bombardier BiLevel Coaches.


Other countries


Asia

In
Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
, the
Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...
- Hashtgerd suburban commuter line is served with electric push-pull hauled trainsets with double-decker carriages manufactured by Wagon Pars in Iran. In the
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
, bilevel
tram A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which Rolling stock, vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some ...
s ran on the '' Tranvias'' of
Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...
. These were push–pull trains carried by lightweight steam locomotives. There were also double-deck sleeping cars used on the ''Bicol Express'' until 2014. In
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...
, ITX-Cheongchun, the express train of Korail uses double-decker cars along with single-decker ones. In
Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...
, the train operated by Vietnam Railways between Saigon and Phan Thiet occasionally carries double deck carriages to fulfil extra demand.


Europe

In
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, Bombardier's double-deck rail cars are also used extensively on suburban trains by the DB. The same rail cars serve some of the routes on the Israel Railways network, hauled by diesel locomotives and include electric generators housed in the control car. Belgian latest models (M6 and M7 cars) also belong to the Bombardier double deck family while the older M5 are based on the French VB2N. In the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
, there are two types of double-deck trains in use, the VIRM and the DDZ. The VIRM, is an example from the Netherlands, of High platform (split level) double-decker multiple units. It is one step up from the station platform to the entrance, and from there seven steps upstairs or four steps downstairs. There are two retired types of double-deck trains, the DDM-1 and the DD-AR who were retired from regular service on 15 December 2019. DDZ trainsets are made of refurbished DD-AR coaches with a six-axle MDDM power car. In
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
, CP Urban Services and Fertagus use double-deck trains around
Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...
in commuter rail services. In
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
, several lines of Cercanías ( Renfe's commuter rail service) use double-deck trainsets. In
Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...
, some regional trains use bilevel cars. Over 200 bi-level cars were imported from Waggonbau Görlitz starting with the early 1980s.


Gallery cars


Design

Because the two levels are separate on most bi-level cars, there is a physical limitation on a single conductor, as it can be difficult for them to check and sell tickets to passengers on the two levels. Gallery cars feature upper levels, which are " mezzanines" or "balconies" running along both sides of the car, with an open area between them. The split balcony enables conductors walking along on the lower level to easily reach up and punch or validate tickets of the passengers seated on the mezzanine level. Passengers can place their tickets in clips along a lengthwise panel, located slightly above the conductor's head and within easy reach. The conductor can then check all tickets and move to the next car. Most gallery cars have four separate galleries with four separate stairwells to the main level (one gallery on each side, split in the middle by the central vestibule). These stairwells are adjacent to the central vestibule where the exterior doors are situated. There is typically a low first step at the vestibule entrance to the car, which is above the head of the rail. However, Metra Electric Highliner (now retired) and Highliner II have high-level entrances for the high-level platforms on that line. NICTD South Shore Line Bi-Levels are similar to the Metra Highliner IIs but have entrances at the end of the rail car opposite the cab with a stairwell and trap doors for low-level platforms.


Manufacturers and operators

The Chicago, Burlington and Quincy was the first railroad to receive gallery cars, built by the Budd Company in 1950. In total, 141 cars of this design were delivered to the CB&Q (and its successors) between 1950 and 1978. The
Milwaukee Road The Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad (CMStP&P), better known as the Milwaukee Road , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwestern United States, Midwest and Pacific Northwest, Northwest of the United States from 1847 ...
ordered a revised design of gallery car from Budd in 1961, and production ran until 1980. Over 250 of this design were produced, including a small batch for the Rock Island Line. Most of these Budd gallery cars are still in service with
Metra Metra is the primary commuter rail system in the Chicago metropolitan area serving the city of Chicago and its surrounding suburbs via the Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF Railway, and other railroads. The system operates 243 train station, stati ...
. The design was also licensed to Canadian Vickers, who built 9 cars for Canadian Pacific in 1970 for commuter service in
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
. In 1955, the Chicago and North Western ordered 16 gallery cars from the St. Louis Car Company. Unlike the stainless steel Budd cars, these cars have smooth, painted steel bodyshells. Further orders were built by Pullman-Standard between 1956 and 1970, with minor revisions to the design, including a cab car variant from 1960 onwards. Over 250 were built for the C&NW, Rock Island Line and their successors, a small number of which remain in service. After initial retirement from Metra in the late 1990s, many of these cars were acquired by other commuter rail agencies across the United States, including (among others) UTA FrontRunner, MARC, WeGo Star and Virginia Railway Express. Southern Pacific also acquired 46 Pullman-Standard gallery cars for the Peninsula Commute service in
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
in three orders: 1955, 1957 (built by American Car and Foundry to Pullman-Standard designs) and 1968. To replace the Southern Pacific gallery cars, Caltrain acquired new gallery cars from Nippon Sharyo in 1985. A second batch followed in 1999-2000. Further orders for this design were placed by
Metra Metra is the primary commuter rail system in the Chicago metropolitan area serving the city of Chicago and its surrounding suburbs via the Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF Railway, and other railroads. The system operates 243 train station, stati ...
and Virginia Railway Express between 2002 and 2008. Follow-on contracts included options for additional cars, the last of which were delivered in 2020. Morrison-Knudsen/Amerail had also built similar gallery cars for Metra between 1992 and 1998, using bodyshells provided by Nippon Sharyo.


Highliner electric multiple unit

The Highliner and Highliner II, along with similar vehicles in the NICTD South Shore Line fleet, are electric multiple units formed of gallery cars. The Highliner I was built by the St. Louis Car Company in 1971 for the Illinois Central, with additional cars built by Bombardier in 1978-1979. These were replaced by Highliner II EMUs built by Nippon Sharyo in 2005.


See also

* Autorack ** Double-stack rail transport ** Piggyback (transportation) * Double-decker bus * Double-decker tram * Super Dome (railcar)


References


External links


Double Deck Train in China
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bilevel Car Double-decker rail vehicles