GB/T 4549.1-2004Railway vehicle vocabulary - Part 1: Basic vocabulary (English PDF)

2.1 Railway vehicle; railway car

A unit of carrying equipment used on railway track to transport passengers or goods or to serve such transport, which is in principle marshalled into a passenger train or a freight train. It may be referred to simply as a "vehicle".

2.2 Carriage; passenger car; coach

A vehicle used to carry passengers or to serve such transport, which is in principle marshalled into a passenger train.

2.3 Tilting train passenger coach

A passenger car fitted with a tilting device, whose car body can tilt when running through curves so as to raise the speed limit.

2.4 Double-deck coach; double-deck passenger car

A passenger car with passenger compartments on an upper and a lower deck.

2.5 Common passenger car

A passenger car whose maximum operating speed does not exceed 200 km/h.

2.6 High-speed passenger car

A passenger car whose maximum operating speed exceeds 200 km/h.

2.7 First class passenger car

A passenger car with a small seating capacity and a high level of riding comfort.

2.8 Second class passenger car

A passenger car with a fairly small seating capacity and a fairly high level of riding comfort.

2.9 Air conditioned passenger car; air conditioned coach

A passenger car fitted with air-conditioning equipment.

2.10 Luxury passenger car

A passenger car with a spacious interior layout, a comfortable environment and complete service facilities.

2.11 Tour passenger car

A passenger car of fairly high grade used for tourism.

2.12 Composite passenger car; combined coach

A passenger car fitted in the same vehicle with interior equipment for two or more different uses (for example soft seats and hard seats).

Examples: soft/hard seat coach, luggage and mail car, etc.

2.13 Suburban passenger car; suburban coach

A short-distance passenger car operated between a city and its suburbs.

2.14 Seat coach

A passenger car fitted with seats, for passengers to sit in.

2.15 Semi-cushioned seat coach

A seat coach fitted with hard-class seats.

2.16 Cushioned seat coach; upholstered seat coach

A seat coach fitted with soft-class seats.

2.17 Sleeping car

A passenger car fitted with berths on which passengers can sleep.

2.18 Semi-cushioned berth sleeping car; semi-cushioned couchette

A sleeping car fitted with hard-class berths.

2.19 Cushioned berth sleeping car; upholstered couchette

A sleeping car fitted with soft-class berths.

2.20 Open type sleeping car

A sleeping car whose berth sections have no compartment doors.

2.21 Compartment sleeping car

A sleeping car whose berth sections have compartment doors.

2.22 Super class compartment sleeping car

A sleeping car in which each compartment contains a sleeping room and a toilet.

2.23 Dining car

A vehicle fitted with a kitchen, a dining room and a storeroom (or a sales counter) and with cooking equipment, in which passengers take meals during the journey.

2.24 Buffet car

A passenger car fitted with a bar counter and entertainment facilities.

2.25 Kitchen car

A vehicle with a kitchen but no dining room, used for meals by the staff of a special train or a rescue train.

2.26 Dormitory van; train crew car

A vehicle in which train crew or working personnel rest.

2.27 Service car; officer's car

A vehicle used exclusively as an office by personnel of state authorities.

2.28 Luggage van; baggage car

A vehicle with a luggage room and a luggage clerk's office, used to carry passengers' luggage and articles.

2.29 Mail sorting van; postal car; mail car

A vehicle with a mail room and a postal clerk's office, used to carry mail.

2.30 Culture and education car

A vehicle fitted with cultural and educational appliances and equipment.

2.31 Hospital car

A vehicle fitted with medical equipment, providing medical treatment along the railway line.

2.32 Ambulance car

A vehicle fitted with simple medical equipment, used to carry the sick and wounded.

2.33 Generator car

A vehicle fitted with power-generating equipment driven by a prime mover.

2.34 Light rail car

A vehicle fitted with a drive unit and used in urban rail transit. Usually referred to simply as a "light rail vehicle".

2.35 Car with axle generator

A passenger car fitted with axle-driven generating equipment that can supply power to adjacent cars.

2.36 Car without axle generator

A passenger car not fitted with axle-driven generating equipment.

2.37 Wagon; freight car

A vehicle used to carry goods or to serve such transport, which is in principle marshalled into a freight train.

By use, freight cars are divided into general-purpose freight cars and special-purpose freight cars.

2.38 General-purpose freight car

A vehicle suitable for carrying many kinds of goods, for example flat cars, open-top wagons and covered wagons.

2.39 Special-purpose freight car

A vehicle used exclusively to carry one kind of goods, for example bulk cement cars, container cars and coal cars.

2.40 Open-top wagon; gondola car

A vehicle without a roof, whose underframe floor is flat or of the tub type (single tub or double tub), used to carry goods that need no strict protection against damp or sun. Its end walls and side walls are usually 0.8 m or more in height.

2.41 Covered wagon; box car

A vehicle with a roof and with doors and windows (or ventilation openings) that keep out rain, used to carry goods that need protection against damp, sun or loss.

By construction, covered wagons are divided into movable-roof covered wagons, movable-wall covered wagons, etc.

2.42 Flat car

A vehicle whose underframe load-carrying surface is a flat plane, usually with stakes on both sides; some are also fitted with end doors and side doors that can be let down.

2.43 Tank car

A vehicle fitted with a tank, used to carry liquids, liquefied gases, powdered goods and similar media. The tank is made of different materials such as steel, glass-fibre reinforced plastic, aluminium and aluminium alloy.

By use, tank cars are divided into light oil tank cars, viscous oil tank cars, lubricating oil tank cars, asphalt tank cars, edible oil tank cars, water tank cars, chemical tank cars, powdered goods tank cars, liquefied gas tank cars, special tank cars, etc.

By construction, they are divided into tank cars with centre sill, tank cars without centre sill, top-discharge tank cars, bottom-discharge tank cars, etc.

2.44 Cement car

A vehicle used to carry bulk cement.

By unloading method, cement cars are divided into top-discharge cement cars and bottom-discharge cement cars, etc.

2.45 Coal car

A vehicle used to carry coal. It usually has fixed side walls and special doors for unloading.

2.46 Gravel car

A vehicle used to carry sand and crushed stone. Its end walls and side walls are very low, generally below 0.8 m in height, so it is also called a low-side car.

2.47 Ore car

A vehicle used to carry ore.

2.48 Hopper car

A vehicle fitted with one or more hoppers, with or without covers, having a certain slope. The goods are usually discharged through the hopper outlets by their own weight.

By the goods carried, hopper cars are divided into coal, ore, ballast, grain, salt and limestone hopper cars, etc.

By construction, they are divided into covered hopper cars and open hopper cars.

2.49 Isothermal car

A vehicle whose car body is fitted with a thermal insulation layer that reduces heat exchange between the inside and the outside of the car, used to carry perishable goods or goods with special temperature requirements.