Infrastructure & institutions

Bahnen der Stadt Monheim

Bahnen der Stadt Monheim is a municipal transport company in the Rhineland – in railway terms mainly an infrastructure manager. There are hundreds of such small companies in Germany, and they explain why not every track belongs to DB by a long way.

DB InfraGO

founded 2024

DB InfraGO has been Deutsche Bahn's infrastructure company since 2024: network and stations under one roof, oriented towards the public good. It doesn't run any trains – but it decides where you're allowed to stand and which line is currently closed.

Eisenbahn-Bundesamt (EBA)

founded 1994

The Eisenbahn-Bundesamt is a public authority, not a railway company. It authorises vehicles, issues safety certificates and supervises the federal railways. It owns no track, runs no trains – and it's the wrong address for photo permits.

Eisenbahnnetzwerk Bremen/Niedersachsen (EBN)

Between the Weser, Elbe and Ems lies a second rail network: regional railway infrastructure that doesn't belong to the federal government. The EBN stands for this layer – track without trains of its own, shaped by seaport hinterland traffic, private sidings and its own set of rules.

Erms-Neckar-Bahn Eisenbahninfrastruktur AG (ENAG)

The ENAG owns the Ermstalbahn between Metzingen and Bad Urach – a short branch line at the foot of the Swabian Jura. It doesn't run any trains itself. This one line is a particularly clear example of just how many parties are actually involved in a railway.

Karlsruher Verkehrsverbund (KVV)

founded 1994

The Karlsruher Verkehrsverbund doesn't run a single train. It bundles fares, line numbers and livery – the actual driving is done by several companies. And this is exactly where the Karlsruhe Model was born, letting a tram switch onto the main railway line mid-journey.

Nahverkehrsgesellschaft Baden-Württemberg (NVBW)

The NVBW is a company owned by the state of Baden-Württemberg. It owns no lines and runs no trains, but shapes the appearance of almost every regional train in the south-west. Anyone who takes bwegt colours for an operator is misfiling their sighting.

Netzwerk Privatbahnen

Netzwerk Privatbahnen runs no train and owns no track. It's the trade association of Germany's non-federal railways – and the reason a dozen different companies' locomotives stand at a freight hub today instead of just red ones.

Regio Infra Service Sachsen

Regio Infra Service Sachsen operates railway infrastructure away from the federally owned network. The company runs no passenger trains, but it decides who's allowed to run on its tracks – and who's allowed to be on its premises.

RP Eisenbahn

RP Eisenbahn is one of the small railway infrastructure and service companies working alongside the federally owned network. Knowing them explains why some tracks have different signs, different rules and different contacts.

Verband Deutscher Museums- und Touristikbahnen (VDMT)

The VDMT is the umbrella association of heritage and tourist railways in Germany. It doesn't run any trains itself, but ensures that volunteer-run railways meet the requirements without which no historic train would ever get a path.

Verband Deutscher Verkehrsunternehmen (VDV)

founded 1991

The VDV is the trade association of transport operators in Germany. It doesn't run a single service or own a single vehicle, but through its technical codes and data standards it shapes how vehicles are built, how tickets are read and how departure times are transmitted.

Verkehrsverbund Oberlausitz-Niederschlesien (ZVON)

The ZVON organises local transport in the eastern Oberlausitz – a region with two national borders in sight of each other. It runs nothing itself, but commissions services that touch on no fewer than three national railway systems.

Zweckverband für den Nahverkehrsraum Leipzig (ZVNL)

The ZVNL is the responsible transport authority for rail-based local transport in the Leipzig area. It doesn't run any trains, but by commissioning the S-Bahn Mitteldeutschland it has created a network that touches three federal states and relieves pressure on the main station.

Zweckverband ÖPNV im Ammertal (Ammertalbahn)

The Ammertalbahn between Tübingen and Herrenberg doesn't belong to a large group, but to a municipal special-purpose association. It owns the line but doesn't run any trains – a textbook case of the split between infrastructure and operations, in miniature.

ÖBB-Infrastruktur

ÖBB-Infrastruktur owns the tracks, points, signals and most stations in Austria – but not a single train in the timetable. That's exactly why locomotives from companies with no connection to ÖBB roll over the Brenner, Semmering and Tauern lines.

SBB Infrastruktur

SBB Infrastruktur isn't a separate company, but a division of SBB with separate accounts. It maintains most of the Swiss standard-gauge network – but not all of it: BLS, RhB, MGB and SOB have their own tracks, their own rules and their own rolling stock.

ProRail

founded 2003

ProRail manages the tracks, points, signals and platforms in the Netherlands, but doesn't run trains itself. The distinctive feature: the platform and the station building don't belong to the same company. For spotters, that's exactly where the house rules change.

Infrabel

founded 2005

Infrabel is Belgium's infrastructure manager: track, signalling, signal boxes and path allocation sit with it, while train operation belongs to the SNCB/NMBS and dozens of private freight operators. For spotters that means a dense network with three electrification systems and two official languages.

FACS-UNECTO

FACS-UNECTO is an umbrella body for French heritage and tourist railways – not an operator. The federation represents interests and pools knowledge; the individual associations run the trains. For spotters, one thing matters most: these lines mostly lie outside the state network.

SNCF Réseau

founded 2015

SNCF Réseau manages France's rail network, from branch lines to the LGV high-speed lines – and runs not a single train itself. Anyone spotting in France constantly runs into this split: track, station and train belong to three different companies within the same group.

Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI)

founded 2001

Rete Ferroviaria Italiana owns Italy's state rail network and most of its stations – it runs no trains itself. Alongside it, regional concession networks exist with their own operators. Confuse the two, and you'll reliably misfile Italian sightings.

Adif

founded 2005

Adif manages Spain's rail network, stations and signalling – and doesn't run a single train itself. The peculiarity: the conventional network runs on Iberian broad gauge, while the high-speed lines run on standard gauge. Anyone who doesn't separate the two gets almost everything wrong when identifying trains in Spain.

PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe

founded 2001

PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe holds Poland's tracks, points and platforms – the company runs no trains itself. The station building, though, belongs to a different company in the same group. Anyone who keeps the two apart understands Polish sightings much faster.

Správa železnic

founded 2003

Správa železnic manages the Czech state railway network – separate from České dráhy, which is just one of several train operators there. The result is a country with unusually strong competition in long-distance services and two electrification systems on one network.

Banedanmark

Banedanmark operates the state rail network in Denmark. The company runs no trains itself, but decides on the electrification system, signalling technology and access – and so on which vehicles even make it as far as Copenhagen.

Banverket

founded 1988

Banverket managed Sweden's rail network from 1988 to 2010 and was one of the first organisations in Europe to consistently separate infrastructure from train operation. The authority no longer exists – but its name is still visible on lineside equipment to this day.

Trafikverket

founded 2010

Trafikverket isn't a railway company but a state transport authority for both rail and road at once. It owns the network, even commissions some services itself – and yet doesn't run a single train. Hardly any other country has quite this dual role.

Bane NOR

founded 2017

Bane NOR owns Norway's rail network and stations, but doesn't run any trains itself. Services are commissioned by a state directorate and operated by several companies. Three layers that regularly get mixed up in Norwegian sighting logs.