{{short description, Regulations covering international use of passenger coaches among European railways Berlijn Lichtenberg Russische treinen 03

Berlijn Lichtenberg Russische treinen 03

The International Coach Regulations or RIC (Regolamento Internazionale delle Carrozze) were first agreed in 1922 and covered the international use of railway

passenger coaches A passenger railroad car or passenger car (American English), also called a passenger carriage, passenger coach (British English and International Union of Railways), or passenger bogie (Indian English) is a railroad car that is designed to ca ...

between European railways. Until 1982 the RIC was looked after by the

Swiss Federal Railways Swiss Federal Railways (, SBB; , CFF; , FFS) is the national railway company of Switzerland. The company was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Bern. It used to be a State-owned enterprise, government institution, but since 1999 it has be ...

, but since then the

International Union of Railways The International Union of Railways (, UIC) is an international rail transport industry body based in Paris. History The railways of Europe had originated during the nineteenth century as many separate concerns across numerous nations; this le ...

(UIC) has taken responsibility for them. Today 27 railway companies from all the European countries apart from 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 ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

and

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, ...

are party to the RIC agreement.

Technical requirements

The RIC lays down the technical requirements that a coach must meet in order to be used in international services. Coaches that fulfil these requirements are given the symbol ''RIC'' and can be used on all RIC railways without needing special permission.

RIC table

In the ''RIC table'' painted on the coach the permitted top speed, voltages and maximum current through the collector is stated. An anchor symbol indicates that the coach is suitable for use on ferries. If country codes are displayed in the table, the coach is only cleared for use in those countries.

Numbering

The

wagon number Wagon numbers (or coach numbers) are key data for railway operations. They enable a railway wagon or coach to be positively identified and form a common language between railway operators, infrastructure companies and the state authorities. Th ...

of an RIC coach begins with 51, 52, 53, 61, 62, 63, 71 or 73. Wagon number 71 was only used from 1971 to 1995 for the international sleeping car pool, also known as the TEN Pool. This pool was only used in Western Europe and only contained CIWL and DSG sleepers.

Non-RIC coaches

There are also internationally operating coaches without RIC clearance. These require a special agreement between the railways on whose networks they are intended to be used. Such coaches may also have an RIC table painted on them, but with a cross instead of the letters RIC and showing the relevant country codes (excluding the coach's home country).

References

Rail transport in Europe Passenger rail rolling stock International Union of Railways Rail transport standards

Technical requirements

RIC table

Numbering

Non-RIC coaches

See also

References