About

Who we are

Founded in 1950, the UIP – International Union of Wagon Keepers, with its seat in Brussels, is the umbrella association of national associations from fourteen European countries, thus representing more than 250 freight wagon keepers and ECMs with more than 238’000 freight wagons, performing 50 % of the rail freight tonne-Kilometres throughout Europe. The UIP represents the members’ concerns at international level. By means of research, lobbying and focused cooperation with all stakeholders and organisations interested in rail freight transportation, the UIP wants to secure on the long term the future of rail freight transport.

What we represent

As the voice for more than 238’000 rail freight wagons, we represent one of the most important resources for rail freight transportation in Europe. At UIP our priority is to support wagon keepers and those who have a role as Entities in Charge of Maintenance in achieving higher economic performance and adapting to modern logistics chain requirements.

In economic terms, UIP stands for:

a 12bn € private investment in existing rolling stock
a yearly 400 – 500mio € private investment in new rolling stock

Private keepers' wagon fleet 2023

Hover over each part of the pie for more details

Private keepers' wagon fleet in numbers

Type of wagon	2021	2022	2023
RID but not class-2	53.921	55.725	55.508
RID class 2	19.373	20.095	19.508
Non-RID	6.803	6.657	6.641
Total tank	80.097	82.477	81.657
Combined	37.540	41.381	45.830
Flat	22.971	25.846	26.211
Total intermodal	60.511	67.277	72.041
Open hopper	16.649	17.125	16.192
Covered hopper	11.362	11.278	11.264
Powder hopper	7.481	7.654	7.332
Total hopper	35.492	36.057	34.788
Covered	16.454	14.976	15.610
Open box	8.135	9.760	10.865
Total conventional	24.589	24.736	26.475
Car-Carrier	11.618	11.874	13.019
Coils	7.455	8.229	7.564
Others	3.715	3.602	3.309
Total special purpose	22.788	23.705	23.892

TOTAL WAGON FLEET	223.477	234.202	238.853

Our strategic objectives

Looking at improving the attractiveness and competitiveness of rail freight services in Europe, we aim to:

increase the awareness among policy and decision makers of the role of the wagon keepers in the railway system and in the logistics supply-chain
develope an economically sound long-term vision for investments in rail freight wagons
ensure fair market conditions between transport modes and fair intramodal competition (freight vs. passenger)
develop a common culture for efficient exchanges of information and relevant data among the actors in the railway system and the supply chain, including freight customers
promote regulatory stability and consistency at EU level to ensure wagon interoperability and safety while respecting the lifecycle of the assets (25-35 years)