Railway Group Standards

A Railway Group Standards (RGS) is a document produced pursuant to the Railway Group Standards Code (the Code) (or equivalent predecessor documents, including previous versions of the Code) defining mandatory requirements in respect of the mainline railway.

RGSs must be complied with by those infrastructure managers who hold a safety authorisation issued in respect of the GB mainline railway and those railway undertakings who hold a Part B safety certificate issued in respect of the GB mainline railway. In exceptional circumstances the Office of Rail Regulation may impose RGSs on other railway undertakings, in which case it will be set out in their safety certificate.

The purpose of RGSs is to facilitate the management and operation of the shared system that is the mainline railway. This purpose is achieved by defining requirements for assets or processes which involve co-operation between two or more duty holders and assigning responsibility for compliance with these requirements.

RSSB is responsible for publishing the Code and the management of its processes as provided for in the RSSB Constitution Agreement and the Code as authorised. RSSB has integrated the management of RGSs with its work that it does to support the industry on interoperability standards: Technical Specifications for Interoperability. The approach to the management of RGSs to align them with the European standards framework is set out in the Strategy for Standards Management.

RGSs are published on:

• www.rgsonline.co.uk
• RGS Catalogue
• DVD-ROM

The role which standards play in maintaining the overall safety of the railway system has been the cause of considerable debate, with some quite polarised views expressed. The paper below has been developed by the Industry Standards Coordination Committee (ISCC) to provide helpful advice on the principles involved.

Copyright in the Railway Group Standards is owned by Rail Safety and Standards Board Limited. All rights are hereby reserved. No RGS (in whole or in part) may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or means, without the prior written permission of Rail Safety and Standards Board Limited, or as expressly permitted by law. However, RSSB members are granted copyright licence in accordance with RSSB’s Constitution Agreement.

If you have a query about a RGS please contact the enquiry desk on 020 3142 5400.

You may make a proposal for change or if you believe a RGS may involve excessive cost, please contact Marie Marks on 020 3142 5575, who will arrange for a two-week review to take place.