Network access

Vehicle utilisation

In addition to operational authorisation, your vehicles must also undergo a route compatibility check before initial use.

The procedure described below is applicable to the infrastructures of SBB Infrastructure (including Hafenbahn Schweiz (HBS)), BLS Netz AG and Schweizerische Südostbahn (SOB).

The Safety Certificate proves that you have a Safety Management System (SMS) in place and that the requirements for continuous, safe and reliable operation are met. This includes ensuring that the vehicles used are compatible with the route to be operated.

The new Railway Regulation (EBV) came into force on 1 December 2009. It stipulates that it is the sole responsibility of the railway undertaking to assess the technical compatibility of the rolling stock to be used with the routes to be travelled. The previous hearing of the infrastructure managers concerned, followed by a decision by the FOT, will be replaced by an independent assessment based on the Infrastructure Register (RINF), the Route Compatibility Check (RCC). Part B of the safety certificate remains valid, but cannot be extended or renewed. For the new procedure, the FOT will provide an updated version of the guidelines for obtaining network access licences, safety certificates and safety approvals.

However, this independent assessment is not yet technically possible. As an interim solution, the infrastructure managers will continue to use the existing procedure for the RCC by means of a module card and the Excel list "Vehicle/Route Compatibility". For the first use of a vehicle, it is mandatory to obtain the one-off approval of the infrastructure managers concerned. Please use the documents below and send them to the relevant Infrastructure Manager for approval. Please allow ten working days for processing.

The infrastructures of SBB Infrastructure (incl. Sensetalbahn and Hafenbahn Schweiz), BLS Netz AG and Schweizerische Südostbahn are cooperating on the transitional ‘vehicle/route synchronisation’ solution and are making the necessary processes and documents available on the shared platform.