page_title: Reporting mark
section_title: Europe 1964 to 2005
hierarchical_section_title: Reporting mark / Standard practices / Europe 1964 to 2005
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Zwei BLS-Einheitswagen I in einem Pendelzug, links der B 50 63_20-33 704-7 (SWS 1967, ex 50 63 20-33 833-8, TSI-Nr. 50 85 20-35 463-2) noch mit alter UIC-Nummer und rechts der Steuerwagen Bt 50 85 80-35 951-3 CH-BLS (SWA 1970, ex 50 63 20-33 951-8) mit TSI-konformer Nummer, wie sie im nationalen Fahrzeugregister eingetragen ist.
context_page_description: A reporting mark is an alphabetic code of two to four letters used to identify owners or lessees of rolling stock and other equipment used on certain rail transport networks.
  In North America the mark, which consists of an alphabetic code of one to four letters, is stenciled on each piece of equipment, along with a one- to six-digit number. This information is used to uniquely identify every such rail car or locomotive, thus allowing it to be tracked by the railroad they are traveling over, which shares the information with other railroads and customers.
context_section_description: The UIC introduced a uniform numbering system for their members based on a 12-digit number, largely known as UIC number. The third and fourth digit of the number indicated the owner, or more precisely the keeper of the vehicle. Thus each UIC member got a two-digit owner code. With the introduction of national vehicle registers this code became a country code. Some vehicles had to be renumbered as a consequence. The Swiss company BLS Lötschbergbahn had the owner code 63. When their vehicles were registered, they got numbers with the country code 85 for Switzerland and the VKM BLS. Example for an "Einheitswagen" delivered in 1957:
  delivered as BLS B 831
  renumbered with UIC number 50 63 20-33 801-5
  rebuilt 1991 and renumbered 50 63 20-33 705-4
  registered as 50 85 20-35 451-7 CH-BLS
caption: BLS coaches, on the left still with owner code 63, on the right with country code 85 and VKM BLS
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