The Railway Union of the Shafterlands strongly encourages member firms to use their common classification number so that in the event of an emergency, other companies can help to maintain the rolling stock. This proved to be useful in 2005 when Fresbury was crippled by the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami, and Fresbury Metro lost the Line 4 depot and most Line 4 train cars. The remaining cars in semi-working condition were sent to depots operated by North Eastern Railway and South Eastern Railway to be repaired.
Carriage numbers come in the form L(XXX) NN(NN), where L is a letter representing the type of railcar, XXX is the class number made up of 0 to 3 digits, and NNNN is the carriage number made up of 2 to 4 digits.
Railcar types (Current Classification)
| Letter | Description |
|---|---|
| A | Steam-powered railcars |
| B | Diesel multiple units |
| C | Electric multiple units |
| D | Odd-gauge railcars ("gauge" here refers to loading gauge) |
| E | Limited speed trains |
| F | Flat cars |
| G | Well cars |
| H | Other power Multiple Units (Hydrogen Fuel Cell, Solar Power) |
| J | Brake vans (hypothetical classification, pneumatic brakes were installed since the very first train in the Shafterlands) |
| K | Diesel locomotives |
| L | Electric locomotives |
| M | Maglev trains |
| N | Tank cars |
| 0 (zero) | Extra trailer cars (for multiple units) |
| P | Open wagon/hopper car |
| Q | Bulletproof cars (usually for the Emperor or the Prime Minister) |
| R | Trailer cars (for locomotives) |
| S | High-speed trains |
| T | Trams |
Locomotive Axle Counts
In addition, locomotives carry extra letters between the classification number and unit number denoting the number and arrangement of axles.
Multiple Unit Traction Methods
The first digit of a 2- or 3-digit classification number in "normal" powered vehicles (B, C, D, K and L types) is used to represent the power type. (High-speed, maglev and limited-speed trains use an arbitrary number) Do note that many train companies break this rule and instead follow a "continuity" rule whereby train series numbers are simply the number after the existing one. This is especially true with trains that were renumbered in the 1958 renumbering directive, as the methods for extra classification was only introduced n 1994.
C and L types
| 1-2 | DC trains, bottom contact third rail powered |
| 3-4 | DC trains, overhead wire powered |
| 5-6 | AC/DC trains |
| 7-8 | AC trains |
| 9 | Experimental trains |
B and K types
| 1-2 | Non-hydraulic trains |
| 3-4 | Single engine hydraulic trains |
| 5-6 | Double engine hydraulic trains |
| 7-8 | Gas turbine trains |
| 9 | Experimental trains |
D type (letter suffixes are either placed between the class and carriage number, or at the end of the number string)
| 1 | DMUs with electric transmission |
| 2 | DC DEMUs |
| 3 | BEMUs |
| 4 | DC EMUs |
| 5 | Hydraulic DMU |
| 6 | Gas turbine DMU |
| 7 | AC EMU |
| 8 | AC/DC DEMUs |
| 9 | Experimental trains |
R type
| 1 | 1st class seats |
| 2 | 2nd class seats |
| 3 | 3rd class seats |
| 4 | Baggage and mail car |
| 5 | 1st class sleeper |
| 6 | 2nd class sleeper |
| 7 | Dining car |
| 8 | Hospital car (wartime) |
| 9 | Other |
Since most trains owned by RUS companies are C-type trains, the letter "C" is often omitted in the classification number. E.g. C29 222 becomes 29 222
In multiple units (B, C, D, E, S types), the last digit of the carriage number is usually used to represent the carriage type. If there are 5 or fewer carriages in a trainset, multiple numbers can be used to represent the same carriage type. E.g. Class C4 has 3 cars per trainset, so 4001, 4004 and 4007 belong to different trainsets but are of the same carriage type (in this case, a driving trailer)
Similarly, if there are more than 10 carriages in a trainset, 2 trainset numbers or even 2 classes can be used to represent the same class of train. E.g. Class C32 has 12 cars per trainset, so 32 05x and 32 06x are the same trainset.
Since leading zeros always represent extra trailer cars, in the event that a class of train uses more than 100 trainset numbers (e.g. C69 runs from 69 0011 to 69 2547), future 3-digit class numbers that coincide with the leading 3 digits of these classes will not be allowed to carry 3-digit carriage numbers. C41 runs from 41 0010 to 41 1299, and as such, classes C410 and C411 must have 4 digit carriage numbers. In fact, C411 runs from 411 0001 to 411 0012, and despite only having 12 railcars, requires a 4-digit carriage number.
Pre-1954 Classification
Before 1954, a much simpler classification system was used.
| Letter/Number | Description |
|---|---|
| A | Steam-powered railcars |
| B | Railcars powered by external power (e.g. electricity, cable etc.) |
| C | Railcars powered by internal combustion engines (e.g. diesel, gasoline etc.) |
| 1 | First class unpowered passenger carriages |
| 2 | Second class unpowered passenger carriages |
| 3 | Third class unpowered passenger carriages |
| 4 | Baggage and mail car, and cars for small goods or farm animals |
| 5 | Dining Car, buffet car, anything that serves food |
| 6 | Flat Car |
| 7 | Tank Car |
| 8 | Hopper car |
| 9 | Other |
Railcars using the pre-1954 classification system had no class number; instead, they used a series number that can overflow. For example, what is usually known as "B Stock" on the Fresbury Metro refers to the 160 'B' series vehicles B-113-31 to B-114-90 and the 80 trailers 3-378-00 to 3-378-80, forming a total of 40 four-motor-car and two-trailer multiple units. (The trains that predate the B stock were steam locomotives that garnered the nickname "Steamers", thus there was never an "A stock", although the term "A stock" could be used to refer to any RUS company-owned steam locomotive.)
Following the 1958 directive to renumber all existing trains not due to be scrapped before 1964, all trains have been renumbered in the x5x to x2xx series. Therefore, old series numbers are usually only used to refer to trains introduced before 1954 and scrapped before 1964.