Numbering scheme of the German railways
Encyclopedia
The different railway companies in Germany
have used various schemes to classify their rolling stock.
. The first railway lines were built by privately owned companies. That changed later when many railway companies were taken over or founded by the respective German states such as Prussia
, Bavaria
, etc.
in German) developed their own schemes, e. g. the Prussian state railways
(preußische Staatseisenbahnen sometimes erroneously referred to as the Königlich Preussische Eisenbahn-Verwaltung
or KPEV) introduced P for passenger train locomotives (the P 8
was one of the most important locomotive types with a total of over 3,000 units built), S for Schnellzug
(express train
) locomotives (e. g. the famous S 10
), G for Güterzug (freight train
) locomotives and T for Tenderlokomotive (tank locomotive
). Basically the numbers were used continuously. As the Prussians also standardised technical standards, some of the smaller companies also used the Prussian numbering scheme or a similar one.
Bavaria's state-owned railway chose a different way: They also used P, S, or G to indicate the train type, but combined with the numbers of driving axles and of the axles in total, separated by a slash (similar to the Swiss system). E. g., the famous S 3/6
was a 2'C1' or 4-6-2
Pacific, meaning that of a total of 6 axles, 3 were driving axles.
These various state-owned companies and thus their numbering schemes were retained after German unification in 1871 and kept until well after World War I
.
DRG was founded in 1924 by the amalgamation of the various state-owned Länderbahnen. One of its first tasks was to introduce a numbering scheme that allowed to integrate the existing various pre-DRG classes.
s, the system was purely numeric. Every locomotive received a unit number, consisting of the number for the class (in German Baureihe, abbr. BR), and an ordering number, separated by a space. The class numbers 01 to 19 indicated express train tender locomotive
s, numbers 20 to 39 passenger train tender locomotives, 40 to 59 freight train tender locomotives, 60 to 79 passenger train tank locomotive
s, 80 to 96 freight train tank locomotives (including switcher
s), 97 rack
locomotives, 98 Lokalbahn (local railway) locomotives and 99 for narrow gauge locomotives. Besides, the DRG constructed the so-called Einheitslokomotive
n (unified or standardised locomotives) to renew rolling stock and to overcome the expensive necessity of keeping dozens of different classes with hundreds of different parts. For example, Class 01
was the first class of unified express train locomotive, and the first unit of this class received the number 01 001.
and diesel locomotives, but with prefix letters E for electrics and V (from German Verbrennungsmotor for internal combustion engine
) for diesels. For electric locomotives, the class numbers roughly followed the scheme for steam locomotives, e. g. E 18 22 was a locomotive from the class E 18
introduced in 1935. Diesel locomotives received class numbers indicating one tenth of the horsepower
rating (according to the original design), e. g. V 80 001 was the first unit of class V 80
introduced by the DB
in 1953 with originally 800 hp (later re-engined to 1100 hp).
s and multiple unit
s were designated by prefix letters ET and VT, respectively (from German Elektrischer Triebwagen and Verbrennungsmotortriebwagen). The numbering schemes for those were originally derived from the numbering scheme for passenger carriages. However, in 1940 a system using class and ordering numbers, like for locomotives, was introduced for electric multiple units. A plan to introduce a similar system for diesel railcars and multiple units was put on hold due to World War II
; in post-war Western Germany
(FRG), the Deutsche Bundesbahn
eventually followed through while in Eastern Germany
(GDR), the Deutsche Reichsbahn
continued to use the pre-war system for pre-war vehicles while starting off several new numbering plans for post-war units over the years, thus ending up with a hodge-podge of conflicting schemes for diesel railcars and multiple units until 1970.
(DB) in Western Germany decided to use three-digit class numbers, with first digit 0 for steam engines (the rest of the scheme was basically unchanged), first digit 1 for electric locomotives (scheme for second and third number also unchanged), first digit 2 for diesel engines, first digit 4 for EMUs, first digit 5 for battery-powered EMUs, first digit 6 for DMUs, first digit 7 for rail busses (light DMU) and service vehicles. Ordering numbers were uniformly three-digit as well (shortened or filled out from the previous version where necessary) and a check digit
separated by a hyphen
was added to the end, resulting in a uniform length of seven digits (including the check digit) for all unit numbers. Thus, e. g. the old electric express locomotive E 18 22 received the new number 118 022-3. The new DB system came into effect January 1, 1968 (although the actual conversion spread out over several years) and effectively continues to be in use today.
(DR) in Eastern Germany also introduced a numbering scheme with seven-digit unit numbers (including check digit), but continuing to use two-digit class numbers for steam locomotives (thus providing for four-digit ordering numbers) and three-digit class numbers for diesel and electric vehicles (which therefore also had three-digit ordering numbers). As a further contrast to the new DB system, the DR decided to use the first digit 1 for diesel and the first digit 2 for electric vehicles (including both locomotives and multiple units/railcars). Therefore e. g. the DRG-built E 44 class was renumbered 144 by the DB and 244 by the DR. To avoid clashes between steam and electric/diesel unit numbers (the space separating class and ordering number being non-significant in computer processing), steam locomotive class numbers in the 10-19 and 20-29 number ranges were reassigned to the 01-09 and 30-39 number ranges, respectively (e. g. the steam locomotive with the old number 23 1046, built in 1958 for the DR, received the new number 35 1046-8). This new DR system came into effect January 1, 1970.
the DB number scheme was also introduced to DR locomotives (effective January 1, 1992), thus creating some numbers that were used again (e. g. the former Class 120 diesel-electric engine became class 220 (new), with Class 220 (old)
already removed from service). Some numbers had to be changed to avoid double numbers, e. g. former Class 211 became Class 109.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
have used various schemes to classify their rolling stock.
From the beginning
As widely known the first few locomotives had names. The first locomotive in public service in Germany from 1835 was named AdlerAdler (locomotive)
The Adler was the first locomotive which was successfully commercially used for rail transport of passengers and goods in Germany. The rail vehicle was constructed and built in 1835 from the british railway pioneers George and Robert Stephenson in the english town Newcastle...
. The first railway lines were built by privately owned companies. That changed later when many railway companies were taken over or founded by the respective German states such as Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
, Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
, etc.
Different numbering schemes prior to 1924
The fast growing number of locomotives made a numbering scheme inevitable. Most of the various state-owned German railway companies (called LänderbahnenLänderbahnen
The German term Länderbahnen generally refers to the state railways of the German Empire in the period from about 1840 to 1920 when they were merged into the Deutsche Reichsbahn after the First World War....
in German) developed their own schemes, e. g. the Prussian state railways
Prussian state railways
The term Prussian state railways encompasses those railway organisations that were owned or managed by the State of Prussia...
(preußische Staatseisenbahnen sometimes erroneously referred to as the Königlich Preussische Eisenbahn-Verwaltung
Royal Prussian Railway Administration
The title Royal Prussian Railway Administration or KPEV is often mistakenly used to describe the Prussian state railways ....
or KPEV) introduced P for passenger train locomotives (the P 8
PKP class Ok1
Ok1 is the Polish designation of a Prussian steam locomotive, the Prussian P 8, used on Polish State Railways. After the end of World War I, 190 Class P 8 engines were handed over as a reparation to Poland, where they were re-designated as Class OK1 locomotives...
was one of the most important locomotive types with a total of over 3,000 units built), S for Schnellzug
Schnellzug
A Schnellzug is an express train in German-speaking countries, where it refers to trains that do not stop at all stations along a line. The term is used both generically and also as a specific train type...
(express train
Express train
Express trains are a form of rail service. Express trains make only a small number of stops, instead of stopping at every single station...
) locomotives (e. g. the famous S 10
Prussian S 10
The Prussian Class S 10 included all express train locomotives in the Prussian state railways that had a 4-6-0 wheel arrangement. There were four sub-classes: the S 10, S 10.1 and S 10.2.-Prussian S 10:...
), G for Güterzug (freight train
Freight train
A freight train or goods train is a group of freight cars or goods wagons hauled by one or more locomotives on a railway, ultimately transporting cargo between two points as part of the logistics chain...
) locomotives and T for Tenderlokomotive (tank locomotive
Tank locomotive
A tank locomotive or tank engine is a steam locomotive that carries its water in one or more on-board water tanks, instead of pulling it behind it in a tender. It will most likely also have some kind of bunker to hold the fuel. There are several different types of tank locomotive dependent upon...
). Basically the numbers were used continuously. As the Prussians also standardised technical standards, some of the smaller companies also used the Prussian numbering scheme or a similar one.
Bavaria's state-owned railway chose a different way: They also used P, S, or G to indicate the train type, but combined with the numbers of driving axles and of the axles in total, separated by a slash (similar to the Swiss system). E. g., the famous S 3/6
Bavarian S 3/6
The Class S 3/6 steam locomotives of the Royal Bavarian State Railways were express train locomotives with a 4-6-2 Pacific or 2'C1' wheel arrangement....
was a 2'C1' or 4-6-2
4-6-2
4-6-2, in the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, represents the wheel arrangement of four leading wheels on two axles , six powered and coupled driving wheels on three axles, and two trailing wheels on one axle .These locomotives are also known as Pacifics...
Pacific, meaning that of a total of 6 axles, 3 were driving axles.
These various state-owned companies and thus their numbering schemes were retained after German unification in 1871 and kept until well after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
.
The first uniform scheme
The Deutsche Reichsbahn-GesellschaftDeutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft
The Deutsche Reichsbahn – was the name of the German national railway created from the railways of the individual states of the German Empire following the end of World War I....
DRG was founded in 1924 by the amalgamation of the various state-owned Länderbahnen. One of its first tasks was to introduce a numbering scheme that allowed to integrate the existing various pre-DRG classes.
Steam locomotives
For steam locomotiveSteam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s, the system was purely numeric. Every locomotive received a unit number, consisting of the number for the class (in German Baureihe, abbr. BR), and an ordering number, separated by a space. The class numbers 01 to 19 indicated express train tender locomotive
Tender locomotive
A tender or coal-car is a special rail vehicle hauled by a steam locomotive containing the locomotive's fuel and water. Steam locomotives consume large quantities of water compared to the quantity of fuel, so tenders are necessary to keep the locomotive running over long distances. A locomotive...
s, numbers 20 to 39 passenger train tender locomotives, 40 to 59 freight train tender locomotives, 60 to 79 passenger train tank locomotive
Tank locomotive
A tank locomotive or tank engine is a steam locomotive that carries its water in one or more on-board water tanks, instead of pulling it behind it in a tender. It will most likely also have some kind of bunker to hold the fuel. There are several different types of tank locomotive dependent upon...
s, 80 to 96 freight train tank locomotives (including switcher
Switcher
A switcher or shunter is a small railroad locomotive intended not for moving trains over long distances but rather for assembling trains ready for a road locomotive to take over, disassembling a train that has been...
s), 97 rack
Rack railway
A rack-and-pinion railway is a railway with a toothed rack rail, usually between the running rails. The trains are fitted with one or more cog wheels or pinions that mesh with this rack rail...
locomotives, 98 Lokalbahn (local railway) locomotives and 99 for narrow gauge locomotives. Besides, the DRG constructed the so-called Einheitslokomotive
Einheitslokomotive
Einheitslokomotive was the name given to standard classes of German steam locomotives built from 1925 under the direction of the Deutsche Reichsbahn to certain common designs, and also to standard German electric locomotives produced after 1952 for the Deutsche Bundesbahn...
n (unified or standardised locomotives) to renew rolling stock and to overcome the expensive necessity of keeping dozens of different classes with hundreds of different parts. For example, Class 01
DRG Class 01
The Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft's BR 01 steam locomotives were the first standardised steam express passenger locomotives built by the unified German railway system. They were of 4-6-2 "Pacific" wheel arrangement in the Whyte notation, or 2′C1′ h2 in the UIC classification. The idea of...
was the first class of unified express train locomotive, and the first unit of this class received the number 01 001.
Electric and diesel locomotives
In addition, similar numbering schemes were introduced for electricElectric locomotive
An electric locomotive is a locomotive powered by electricity from overhead lines, a third rail or an on-board energy storage device...
and diesel locomotives, but with prefix letters E for electrics and V (from German Verbrennungsmotor for internal combustion engine
Internal combustion engine
The internal combustion engine is an engine in which the combustion of a fuel occurs with an oxidizer in a combustion chamber. In an internal combustion engine, the expansion of the high-temperature and high -pressure gases produced by combustion apply direct force to some component of the engine...
) for diesels. For electric locomotives, the class numbers roughly followed the scheme for steam locomotives, e. g. E 18 22 was a locomotive from the class E 18
DRG Class E 18
The Deutsche Bundesbahn Baureihe E 18 is a class of electric locomotives in Germany, originally operated by Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft...
introduced in 1935. Diesel locomotives received class numbers indicating one tenth of the horsepower
Horsepower
Horsepower is the name of several units of measurement of power. The most common definitions equal between 735.5 and 750 watts.Horsepower was originally defined to compare the output of steam engines with the power of draft horses in continuous operation. The unit was widely adopted to measure the...
rating (according to the original design), e. g. V 80 001 was the first unit of class V 80
DB Class V 80
The Class V 80 is a type of German diesel locomotive operated by theDeutsche Bundesbahn, that was redesignated as Class 280 from 1968.- History :...
introduced by the DB
Deutsche Bundesbahn
The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany on September 7, 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft '...
in 1953 with originally 800 hp (later re-engined to 1100 hp).
Multiple units and railcars
Electric and diesel railcarRailcar
A railcar, in British English and Australian English, is a self-propelled railway vehicle designed to transport passengers. The term "railcar" is usually used in reference to a train consisting of a single coach , with a driver's cab at one or both ends. Some railways, e.g., the Great Western...
s and multiple unit
Multiple unit
The term multiple unit or MU is used to describe a self-propelled carriages capable of coupling with other units of the same or similar type and still being controlled from one driving cab. The term is commonly used to denote passenger trainsets consisting of more than one carriage...
s were designated by prefix letters ET and VT, respectively (from German Elektrischer Triebwagen and Verbrennungsmotortriebwagen). The numbering schemes for those were originally derived from the numbering scheme for passenger carriages. However, in 1940 a system using class and ordering numbers, like for locomotives, was introduced for electric multiple units. A plan to introduce a similar system for diesel railcars and multiple units was put on hold due to World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
; in post-war Western Germany
Western Germany
The geographic term Western Germany is used to describe a region in the west of Germany. The exact area defined by the term is not constant, but it usually includes, but does not have the borders of, North Rhine-Westphalia and Hesse...
(FRG), the Deutsche Bundesbahn
Deutsche Bundesbahn
The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany on September 7, 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft '...
eventually followed through while in Eastern Germany
Eastern Germany
Eastern Germany may refer to:* New federal states of Germany, the states that joined the Federal Republic of Germany after 1990Historically:* Former eastern territories of Germany, territories lost by Germany during and after the two world wars...
(GDR), the Deutsche Reichsbahn
Deutsche Reichsbahn of the GDR
The Deutsche Reichsbahn or DR was the operating name of state owned railways in the German Democratic Republic ....
continued to use the pre-war system for pre-war vehicles while starting off several new numbering plans for post-war units over the years, thus ending up with a hodge-podge of conflicting schemes for diesel railcars and multiple units until 1970.
IT compatible numbering schemes
Due to the introduction of computers/IT in the late 1960s it became necessary to revise the numbering schemes, as the old numbers could not tell whether a class 10 might be a steam or an electric locomotive without including the prefix letters, which were difficult to process by computers of the day. Another problem was both class and ordering numbers could vary in length under the old system.DB numbering scheme
The Deutsche BundesbahnDeutsche Bundesbahn
The Deutsche Bundesbahn or DB was formed as the state railway of the newly established Federal Republic of Germany on September 7, 1949 as a successor of the Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft '...
(DB) in Western Germany decided to use three-digit class numbers, with first digit 0 for steam engines (the rest of the scheme was basically unchanged), first digit 1 for electric locomotives (scheme for second and third number also unchanged), first digit 2 for diesel engines, first digit 4 for EMUs, first digit 5 for battery-powered EMUs, first digit 6 for DMUs, first digit 7 for rail busses (light DMU) and service vehicles. Ordering numbers were uniformly three-digit as well (shortened or filled out from the previous version where necessary) and a check digit
Check digit
A check digit is a form of redundancy check used for error detection, the decimal equivalent of a binary checksum. It consists of a single digit computed from the other digits in the message....
separated by a hyphen
Hyphen
The hyphen is a punctuation mark used to join words and to separate syllables of a single word. The use of hyphens is called hyphenation. The hyphen should not be confused with dashes , which are longer and have different uses, or with the minus sign which is also longer...
was added to the end, resulting in a uniform length of seven digits (including the check digit) for all unit numbers. Thus, e. g. the old electric express locomotive E 18 22 received the new number 118 022-3. The new DB system came into effect January 1, 1968 (although the actual conversion spread out over several years) and effectively continues to be in use today.
DR numbering scheme
In contrast, the Deutsche ReichsbahnDeutsche Reichsbahn of the GDR
The Deutsche Reichsbahn or DR was the operating name of state owned railways in the German Democratic Republic ....
(DR) in Eastern Germany also introduced a numbering scheme with seven-digit unit numbers (including check digit), but continuing to use two-digit class numbers for steam locomotives (thus providing for four-digit ordering numbers) and three-digit class numbers for diesel and electric vehicles (which therefore also had three-digit ordering numbers). As a further contrast to the new DB system, the DR decided to use the first digit 1 for diesel and the first digit 2 for electric vehicles (including both locomotives and multiple units/railcars). Therefore e. g. the DRG-built E 44 class was renumbered 144 by the DB and 244 by the DR. To avoid clashes between steam and electric/diesel unit numbers (the space separating class and ordering number being non-significant in computer processing), steam locomotive class numbers in the 10-19 and 20-29 number ranges were reassigned to the 01-09 and 30-39 number ranges, respectively (e. g. the steam locomotive with the old number 23 1046, built in 1958 for the DR, received the new number 35 1046-8). This new DR system came into effect January 1, 1970.
After German reunification
After German reunificationGerman reunification
German reunification was the process in 1990 in which the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany , and when Berlin reunited into a single city, as provided by its then Grundgesetz constitution Article 23. The start of this process is commonly referred by Germans as die...
the DB number scheme was also introduced to DR locomotives (effective January 1, 1992), thus creating some numbers that were used again (e. g. the former Class 120 diesel-electric engine became class 220 (new), with Class 220 (old)
DB class V 200
DB Class V 200.0 was one of the first diesel-hydraulic express locomotives of the German Deutsche Bundesbahn and - as Am 4/4 - of the SBB-CFF-FFS in Switzerland.-DB Service:...
already removed from service). Some numbers had to be changed to avoid double numbers, e. g. former Class 211 became Class 109.
See also
- History of rail transport in GermanyHistory of rail transport in GermanyGerman Railway history began with the opening of the steam-hauled Bavarian Ludwig Railway between Nuremberg and Fürth on 7 December 1835. This had been preceded by the opening of the horse-hauled Prince William Railway on 20 September 1831...
- Deutsche ReichsbahnDeutsche ReichsbahnDeutsche Reichsbahn was the name of the following two companies:* Deutsche Reichsbahn, the German Imperial Railways during the Weimar Republic, the Third Reich and the immediate aftermath...
- Deutsche Reichsbahn-GesellschaftDeutsche Reichsbahn-GesellschaftThe Deutsche Reichsbahn – was the name of the German national railway created from the railways of the individual states of the German Empire following the end of World War I....
- UIC classificationUIC classificationThe UIC classification of locomotive axle arrangements describes the wheel arrangement of locomotives, multiple units and trams. It is set out in the International Union of Railways "Leaflet 650 - Standard designation of axle arrangement on locomotives and multiple-unit sets". It is used in much...