Abilevel car (American English) ordouble-decker coach (British English andCanadian English) is a type ofrail car that has two levels of passenger accommodation as opposed to one, increasing passenger capacity (up to 57% per car in extreme cases).^[1]

The use of double-decker carriages, where feasible, can resolve capacity problems on a railroad, avoiding other options which have an associated infrastructure cost such as longer trains (which require longer station platforms), more trains per hour (which the signalling or safety requirements may not allow) or adding extra tracks besides the existing line.

Double deck trains are claimed to be more energy efficient,^[2] and may have a lower operating cost per passenger.^[3] A bi-level car may carry up to about twice as many as a normal car, ifstructure andloading gauges permit, without requiring double the weight to pull or material to build. However, a bi-level train may take longer to exchange passengers at each station, since more people will enter and exit from each car. The increaseddwell time makes them most popular on long-distance routes which make fewer stops (and may be popular with passengers for offering a better view).^[1]

Double deck cars may not be usable in countries or on older railroad systems with lowloading gauge, most notably the majority of the British railway network. In some countries such as the UK new lines are built to a higher than the existingstructure gauge to allow the use of double-deck trains in future.^[4]

Double deck carriages date to at least as early as the second half of the 19th century. In France several hundredvoitures à impériale with seats on the roof were in use by theChemins de fer de l'Ouest,Chemins de fer de l'Est andChemins de fer du Nord by 1870, having been in use for over 2 decades; the upper deck was open at the sides with a light roof or awning covering the seats. In the 1860s, M.J.B. Vidard introduced two-storied carriages on the Chemins de fer de l'Est, with a full body, windows, and doors; the same design lowered the floor of the lower storey to keep the center of gravity low. Vidard's carriages had a total height of 13 feet 8 inches (4.17 m) with the head height in the lower part of the carriage only 5 feet 5 inches (1.65 m); the carriages had a capacity of 80 persons (third class) in a 2 axle vehicle of 13 tons^[which?] fully loaded.^[5] The first all-steelChemins de fer de l'État bilevels are an early example of split-level cars.

TheChicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad placed bilevelGallery cars incommuter service in the Chicago area in 1950. These were successful, and led to theAtchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway introducing long-distanceHi-Level cars on Chicago–Los AngelesEl Capitan streamliner in 1954.^[6][7]

In 1968, the four experimental double-deck power cars entered service inSydney,Australia,^[8] enabling the first fully double-deckElectric Multiple Unit passenger train in the world.

The double-deck design usually includes lowering the bottom floor to below the top level of the wheels, closer to the rails, and then adding an upper floor above. Such a design will fit under morebridges,tunnels andpower wires (structure gauge). For cost and safety, this design also minimizes car height (loading gauge) and lowers the centre of gravity.

Depending on train station platform heights, three designs can be used for entry – high platforms require use of a "split level" car design, where the doors are located on a middle level, with access into the upper or lower level branching off – with stairs or ramps going both up and down (sometimes this configuration includes a section of seating at the middle level in the entry section, with double levels only in part of the lengths of the car).^[1] For low train station platforms, a "two-floor" design with level entry onto the lower floor is used. Occasionally a third, very tall "two floors over-wheel" design is used. This is a traditional single floor car "with a second story" design which, when using a low platform, requires steps up to a traditional floor height and then internal stairs up to the upper floor.

There are four important height measurements above the railhead:platform height, traditionalfloor height, downstairs floor height and upstairs floor height. Platform height determines the level entry height for wheeled objects, such as luggage, strollers, wheelchairs and bicycles. Platform height is ideally standardized across all stations the train serves. Traditional rail car floor height matters for end doors connecting to existing single floor rail cars. Downstairs or lowest floor height is primarily determined by the thickness of the beams connecting the span between the wheels and bogies (trucks) of a rail car. The upstairs floor or highest floor height is above the lowest floor and must fit under bridges and tunnels. Level entry floor height must match the platform height. Hopefully either the traditional or downstairs floor height already matches the platform height. Despite the name "bilevel" or "double-decker", for maximum compatibility the rail car will have up to four different floor heights. High platform design (Using outside steps to avoid having a level entry from the platform) is troublesome.

Mostlow-platform double-decker trains have level entry onto the lower level of the car, allowing wheelchair access. There are two-floor heights (upstairs and downstairs) in these "bilevel" cars. There is a staircase between floors inside the car.Connecting doors between cars are either at the (higher) upper floor or at an intermediate level over the bogies. In the former case, connecting directly to a single level car causes drag and connecting door problems.

In the western USA, cars are of the upper-level-connection type. They use low-platform stations, because the traditional single floor trains all had exterior entry steps to maximize flexibility (emergency and temporary stops) and minimize infrastructure costs. There are no examples of two-floor platforms, so there are no platform doors on the upper floor. Car roof lines lengthwise are flat for connecting doors to the upstairs of bi-level cars. A Pullman-Standard / Bombardier AmtrakSuperliner car is 16 feet 2 inches (4,928 mm) tall.

There are several very tall bilevel cars (e.g. theColorado Railcar DMU is 19 feet9+1⁄2 inches (6.033 m) tall). They typically are described as a traditional rail car with a second story. Most of these cars serve low platforms so they have exterior steps up to the traditional "over-wheel" floor height e.g. US 51 in (1,295 mm).End doors connect at the traditional height of existing rolling stock. Some cars have upstairs end doors as well. Many of these cars also include outside balconies on either the upper or lower level. Upstairs and downstairs connect by interior stairs. These cars can fit most able people, but lack level entry. On almost all these cars the upper level consists of a full-length glass dome. Some cars are self-propelledmultiple units so using traditional floor heights appears fixed. In towed cars, it is possible to lower the downstairs floor between the wheels/bogies so that level entry is possible with more than500 mm (19+5⁄8 in) of added headroom and interior steps from that floor to the traditional floor.

In 2005,Emprendimientos Ferroviarios (Emfer),Trenes de Buenos Aires (TBA (Trains of Buenos Aires)),National Institute of Industrial Technology and the Argentine National Government subscribed to a framework agreement to start the national designing and construction of bi-level electric trains. This was decided due to the overwhelming and increasing number of passengers using the1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in) gauge urbanSarmiento Line, serving the centre and east ofGreater Buenos Aires. The first prototype was released in 2005, but mass-production only started in mid 2008. In 2013, these coaches were retired from the line and replaced with newCSR Electric Multiple Units, though it remains unclear if the Emfer trains will be moved elsewhere in the country.^[9]

In 2010, Emprendimientos Ferroviarios and Trenes de Buenos Aires presented non-engined double-decker coaches for a 100 km (62 mi) diesel interurban link betweenBuenos Aires andMercedes city. Attending to different technical needs, the new coaches have only two simple non-automatic doors in the ends (instead of the two electric double doors in the middle) and were designed for low platforms.

For 2020, a public tender was launched by Trenes Argentinos to recover these double-decker coaches, for inter-urban and long-distance services, equipping them with reclining seats, USB inputs and other amenities.^[10]

In 1964,Tulloch Limited built thefirst double-decker trailer cars for use inSydney. They ran withsingle deck electric motor cars. After the success of the trailers, Tulloch built four experimentdouble decker power cars in 1968.

From 1972, more double decker multiple units were constructed byComeng andGoninan. These are now known as theS sets. All electric suburban and interurban trains inGreater Sydney are now double deck, though theSydney Metro uses single deck carriages. All double deck carriages have two doors per side per carriage, with avestibule at each end at platform height. The Sydney double deck commuter trains are14 ft4+1⁄2 in (4,382 mm) high.

ThePublic Transport Corporation inMelbourne ordered a prototypeDouble Deck Development and Demonstration train in 1991, a modification of theTangara design used in Sydney. It suffered frequent breakdowns and spent long periods out of use. It was withdrawn in 2002 and scrapped in 2006.

Historically, bilevel cars were implemented in 1873 and were in use untilWorld War I. In 1993, the railway companyGraz-Köflacher Bahn started to use 15 cars for suburban transport around the city ofGraz. In 1997, the national railway companyÖBB ordered 120 bilevel cars for the use in EasternAustria andVienna metropolitan area.

Canada's national passenger railway company,Via Rail, does not currently operate any bilevel coaches in its fleet, apart from thedome cars used on some long-distance services. These coaches include two levels over part of the length of the vehicle.

TheOntario Northland Railway operates a bilevel dome car on itsPolar Bear Express service with two levels along the entire length of the vehicle.

TheBombardier BiLevel Coach was originally designed byHawker-Siddeley Canada for theGO Transit commuter rail network in southernOntario. It is now used by 14 different railway operators across North America, including all three of Canada's commuter rail systems. All train services operated byGO Transit andWest Coast Express useBombardier BiLevel coaches, while Montreal'sExo trains use a mix of Bombardier Bilevel,Bombardier MultiLevel and various single-level coaches.

The private rail tour companyRocky Mountaineer uses bilevel full-length dome cars built by Colorado Railcar.

The first bilevel train forChina Railways was built bySifang in 1958 as Dongfeng diesel multiple unit, consisting of two locomotives and four bilevel coaches. After withdrawing Dongfeng DMU from use in 1982, China Railways redeveloped double-decker trains, the first of which rolled out fromNanjing Puzhen Rolling Stock Works in 1987 as SYZ25 and SRZ25.

The carriage designations of bilevel cars in China start with "S", abbreviating "double-decker" (双层;shuāngcéng) in Chinese. Current models of double decker trains include the25B series [zh],25Z series [zh] and25K series [zh]. Most bilevel cars in China were built byNanjing Puzhen Rolling Stock Works, while some bilevel coaches were built byChangchun Railway Vehicles. The types of bilevel cars including bilevelhard seat (SYZ), bilevel soft seat (SRZ), bilevelhard sleeper (SYW), bilevelsoft sleeper (SRW), Bileveldining car (SCA) and bilevel soft seat-baggagecombine car (SRZXL).

Bilevel coaches are mainly used for regional services in China, likeKunming–Dali–Lijiang intercity trains inYunnan andShijiazhuang–Qinhuangdao express train inHebei. Additionally, a cross-railway bureau double-deck train service is provided betweenTianjin andBaoji (viaBeijing West railway station).

České dráhy operates 83electric multiple units ofClass 471 manufactured by Škoda Vagonka, which was a subsidiary ofŠkoda Transportation and locomotive-hauled trains which was also used on thenon-electrified routes aroundPrague.^[11]

InDenmark,DSB began runningBombardier Double-deck Coaches in 2002. The coaches are used on Regional services onZealand.

InFinland,VR began operating double-deck day cars in 1998. They are Finnish-designed and manufactured byTranstech inKajaani. Each car has two entrances on the lower level of the middle section, allowing level entry from station platforms at the modern Finnish standard height of 550 mm (21.7 in).^[12] The end sections of each car – and the inter-car connections – are at mid-level.

VR introduced its first double-decksleeping cars on 1 February 2006. The two-bed cabins on the upper deck have toilets and showers while cabins on the lower deck use shared ones. Double-deckdriving-trailers were introduced during late 2013 andrestaurant cars in early 2014.

The double-deck cars are designed for running at higher speeds than ordinary passenger cars – up to 200 km/h (124 mph), although the upper limit was later reduced for trains entering tunnels. The cars are frequently operated in all-double-deckInterCity trains (known as IC²) with at-seatpower supply forlaptops and wireless LAN internet connection.

TheChemins de fer de l'État in France ranvoitures à 2 étages split level double-deck suburban coaches from 1933. Its successor, theSNCF, has been running VB2N double-decker coaches since 1975; VB2N were introduced from 1975 as a replacement of the État cars.

SNCF began running double-deckRER trains in 1982, followed byRATP in 1995. And since 1996,SNCF runsdouble-deck TGV cars on heavily usedhigh-speed services, such as on the Paris-Lyon-Marseille line. Manysuburban rail,regional rail and high-speed services are operated by double-deckDMUs,EMUs,coaches and TGV.^{[clarification needed]} TheTGV Duplex are the fastest double-decker trains in the world with a commercial top speed of 320 km/h. Specially tuned trainset 4402 also holds theworld speed record for conventional trains, reaching 574.8 km/h in 2007. The Frenchloading gauge dictates that the double-deck cars have a maximum height of4.32 m (14 ft2+1⁄8 in).

TheEast German railway companyDeutsche Reichsbahn (DR) implemented the first bilevel cars in 1974 for interurban lines. After therevolutions in Eastern Europe, theGerman reunification the new founded national railway companyDeutsche Bahn took over the DR bilevel cars and started to order high numbers of bilevel cars for regional and interurban traffic.

MTRCL and formerlyKCRC operate double-decker carriages with theKTT train sets onits cross-boundary route betweenKowloon andGuangzhou. These cars were manufactured in Japan byKinki Sharyo. The "Ktt" cars were used to serve between theHung Hom andLo Wu stations from January to May 1998, before the electrification ofGuangzhou–Shenzhen railway. The "Ktt" cars have lower bottom floor than the ordinary single-deck cars serving on the same pair of tracks.

InIndia, theSinhagad Express was the first train to operate with double-decker carriages, followed by other trains on theMumbai-Pune route like theDeccan Queen and theDeccan Express, although double-decker service on these routes was later discontinued. In 1979, theFlying Ranee, a passenger train betweenSurat andMumbai Central on theWestern Railway became the first superfast train to use double-deck cars. The first air-conditioned double-decker service was introduced in 2011 on theHowrah–Dhanbad Double Decker Express betweenHowrah station inWest Bengal andDhanbad Junction inJharkhand^[13] which was subsequently followed by Delhi Sarai Rohilla – Jaipur,Ahmedabad–Mumbai Central, Chennai Central – Bangalore, Anand Vihar (New Delhi) – Lucknow, Visakhapatnam–Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam–Tirupati^[14] and Mumbai Lokmanya Tilak Terminus – Madgaon double decker expresses.

Israel Railways began runningBombardier Double-deck Coaches in 2001. The coaches were manufactured inGörlitz, Germany, and form the vast majority of its passenger fleet as of 2021.

Later, aDesiro HC by Siemens has been introduced to Israel Railways. Desiro HC has 2-floor coaches in the middle of the train, while the first and the last coaches are single-floor. The train operates mainly on the Herzlia–Jerusalem electrified line (via Tel Aviv) as of 2022.

In the 1970s, with the rise of mass commuting to the big cities theFerrovie dello Stato have found themselves having to quickly increase the capacity of their services withCarrozze Due Piani Tipo 1979 based on French VB2N (seeit:Carrozza Due Piani). Today, double-decker coaches are also in use by private railway companiesFerrovie Nord Milano andFerrovie del Sud Est. The types of double-decker train is circulating today in Italy are:Rock (Caravaggio), Vivalto,TAF,TSR.

In Japan, double-decker trains are used either to show better scenery, or to increase seat capacity. InTokyo area commuter trains, double-decker cars are generally used asGreen Cars, the cars with better accommodations than the regular commuter cars.

The first Japanese double-decker train appeared in 1904. It was Type 5 train of Osaka City Tram. TheKintetsu Railway 20100 Series EMUs were built in 1962 and designed for school excursion.^[15] Sightseeing trains that feature double-decker carriages include theJR Shikoku 5000 series,Keihan 8000 series, JR Central371 series, andOdakyu 20000 series RSE. The first JNR/JR double-decker trains were 200 series Shinkansen and 100 series Shinkansen, for Shinkansen lines.

JR East introduced the215 series double-deck EMUs forHome Liner services in 1992. JR East also introducedE1 Series Shinkansen andE4 Series Shinkansen for its Shinkansen Lines; the trains are doubled decked to increase their capacities. This includes JR West285 series EMUs forSunrise Izumo/Sunrise Seto and JR East E26 series cars forCassiopeia services.

In 2012, a prototype double-decker rail carriage was made at theTVZ Tver Carriage Building Factory for the RZDRussian Railways company. This prototype carriage is asleeping car with four-berth compartments and a total capacity of 64 passengers.Russian Railways ordered double-decker sleeper carriages fromTransmashholding for the Adler-Moscow train service. As of August 2012^[update] they were expected to be delivered in time for the 2014 winter Olympics inSochi.^[16] RZD offers low platforms for Moscow-Adler route.

On 27 October 2017,Aeroexpress began operatingESH2 motor-car (locomotive-less) high-speed double-decker trains developed by the Swiss company Stadler on the routes Moscow – Domodedovo Airport and Moscow – Vnukovo Airport. From November 2019, the trains were transferred to the Odintsovo – Sheremetyevo Airport route (Odintsovo – Belorussky railway Station in the MDC mode).

ZSSK operates 19electric multiple units of Class 671^[17] and 10push-pull units of Class 951 manufactured byŠkoda Transportation.^[18]

These trains mostly operate services betweenŽilina andKošice (Žilina – Trenčín, Žilina – Košice, Košice –Prešov and some others) and aroundBratislava (betweenKúty andTrnava).

As of 2016 some of units 951, usually with locomotive of class 350 (Škoda 55E), are used at international train service onBratislava (SK) –Břeclav (CZ) main line.

Since 2021 the Bi-Level SNCF High Speed Trains “Ouigo España” operates. There are also some double-decker commuter trains (Class 450) nicknamed Vessels.

SJ AB operates 43 double-decker EMUs built byAlstom and designated classX40. The EMU comes in a two-coach version and a three-coach version. The trains are mainly used in regional trains in the areas around lakeMälaren and in the trains betweenGävle andLinköping. It has a maximum speed of 200 km/h (125 mph) and is equipped withwireless internet.

From 2019 onwards, the bilevelStadler KISS (known as DOSTO in Sweden) has also been used in theMälardalen andUppsala regions of Sweden, and since 2023,Tåg i Bergslagen [sv] has operated the same train sets in theBergslagen region.

Between 1966 and 1990, SJ used DMUs of classY3 with double-decker end cars and normal cars in between. Due to the distinct humps on the endcars, it was nicknamed "the camel".

Double-decker commuter trains are used by theZürich S-Bahn. Three types of trains are used, an older type consisting of an electric locomotive with double-decker cars, andElectric Multiple Units where the motors are on board the car. From 2010 onwards, a third type – theStadler KISS – has entered service.

TheSwiss Federal Railways also operate theIC 2000 double-decker passenger coaches in most of Switzerland for high speedInterCity andInterRegio services. After massive delays, they are introducing theBombardier TWINDEXX from 2019 on.

Both these high speed trains feature passages on the upper level only, which makes them incompatible with single level coaches, IC2000 are however still used in combination with single level coaches during rush hours.

In 2012, as part of preparation forUEFA Euro 2012,Ukrainian Railways bought twoEJ675EMUs manufactured byŠkoda Transportation. These trains are used on inter-regional services. They were discontinued for modernization and redesigning in 2019. The two units were brought back to service in 2022 and currently run on the Kyiv–Lutsk line.^[19]

In theUnited Kingdom, due to the smallloading gauge, the railway system cannot easily accommodate double-deck trains. A modest attempt at double decking was made in 1948 on theSouthern Railway with the two trains of theBulleid 4DD class. Although innovative, with stepped compartments where the bottoms of the upper seats are above the heads of the people on the lower level but the feet of the people above are not,^[20] the loading gauge severely restricted their use and they were removed from service in 1971. Research byDCA concluded that double-decker trains were practical within the UK loading gauge and proposed a design for Crossrail in 2006, however the design was not taken forwards.^[21][22]

Double-decker trams, taller than the railway loading gauge, were common in British cities. When trams were replaced between the 1930s–1960s, their replacement would be double-decker buses.

Bilevel passenger rail cars used in the United States are manufactured byBombardier (nowAlstom),Kawasaki,Colorado Railcar (todayUS Railcar), and several others, with the former two having produced the majority of the high platform "split level" commuter rail cars in use in thenortheastern states.

Colorado Railcar produced bilevel DMUs andUltra Dome passenger cars. Colorado Railcar cars measure19 ft9+1⁄2 in (6,033 mm) in height and have steps that enter to a lower deck that is 51 in (1,295 mm) above the rail.

Other designs, includingrolling stock made byColorado Railcar,Budd,Pullman-Standard,Bombardier and others have an entrance on the lower deck rather than an intermediate level.AmtrakSuperliners are double-decker cars of this variety, with the entrance a step or so up from the loweststation platform level, or at the level of slightly higher platforms, and allow passage from car to car on the upper level.

Some operators in the United States use a specific design of bi-level car known as a "gallery car" (seebelow).

Most ofAmtrak's intercity passenger trains operating to points west of Chicago useSuperliners, as do select trains east of Chicago, like theCapitol Limited andAuto Train. In addition,Alaska Railroad operates passenger trains with a mix of traditional passenger equipment and large fleets ofColorado Railcar Ultra Domes (sometimes as many as 15 in one train) owned by several major cruise ship lines.

Most passenger rail lines in the Northeast have aloading gauge that can only accommodate cars 14 ft 6 in (4,420 mm) or less in height. This is due tostructure gauge restrictions such asbridges andtunnels that are too low, and may also haveelectrified lines overhead.

Nevertheless, commuter railroads such as theLong Island Rail Road,New Jersey Transit,MARC, andMBTA all use bilevel railcars built to unique designs to clear specificstructure gauge problems on those systems.^[23][24] The bilevels used on LIRR, MARC, and MBTA were built byKawasaki Rail Car, Inc., while the bilevel cars used by NJ Transit were built byBombardier.^[25][26] RecentlyHyundai Rotem has built additional new cars of a similar design for MBTA.

In each of these agencies' bilevel cars, two levels are present between the trucks of the car. At each end, stairs lead from both levels to a common floor which is located at standard height over the trucks. AllLIRR bilevel passenger rail cars have two wide quarter-point doors on each side, for high level platforms only. The bilevel cars used by NJ Transit and Exo have four doors on each side, two quarter-point doors at high level platform height and one at each end vestibule, with traps used to reach low level platforms. The bilevel cars used by MBTA have side doors with traps at each end vestibule. MARC operates both of the latter two types of cars.

The Superliners used for many Amtrak intercity services do not fit in these systems. Single-deckViewliners andAmfleet IIs are used instead.

Due to the typically-generous clearances on California railroads due to freight railroads expanding clearances to accommodate double-stacked containers, bilevel cars are common in the state. TheCalifornia Department of Transportation owns 88California Cars, which are based on theSuperliner body shell, but with high-density interiors suitable for corridor trains. These cars, along with 39 owned directly by Amtrak, are dedicated to state-subsidizedAmtrak California routes including theSan Joaquin,Capitol Corridor andPacific Surfliner routes.^[27] TheSurfliner also serves Amtrak's California lines.

Metrolink, which serves Southern California, has 137 activeBombardier BiLevel Coaches (Sentinel Fleet) and 137Hyundai Rotem bi-level cars (Guardian Fleet).^[28]

Caltrain in theBay Area uses both Bombardier BiLevels andNippon Sharyo gallery cars.^[29] From 2024, bilevelStadler KISSelectric multiple units will run on the newly electrified network.

Southeast Florida'sTri-Rail commuter service between Miami and West Palm Beach uses theBombardier BiLevel Coach andRotem Commuter Cars.SunRail, which serves the Greater Orlando area, also uses Bombardier BiLevel coaches.

Metra has a large fleet of gallery cars, andHighliner II galleryelectric multiple units (EMUs).^[30] TheNICTD South Shore Line fleet also includes very similar gallery EMUs. Chicago does not have the loading gauge problems that affect passenger rail lines in most northeastern states because it has very few railroad tunnels for the lines of these passenger trains except for a brief distance in the city.

In January 2021, the Metra board approved the purchase of 200 of a new design of multilevel car fromAlstom, with options for up to 300 more.^[31]

Former Metra coaches were operated by a number of other agencies in the first two decades of the twenty-first century; as of 2021, they are still used forNashville'sWeGo Star (formerly branded as the Music City Star).

TheMBTA is the public agency responsible for operating mostpublic transport services inGreater Boston. ItsMBTA Commuter Rail system currently uses 277 bilevel passenger cars made byKawasaki andHyundai Rotem.^{[citation needed]}

TheNew Mexico Rail Runner Express utilizes Bombardier BiLevel cars on its route fromSanta Fe, New Mexico toBelen, New Mexico.^[32]

Virginia Railway Express operated 13Kawasaki bi-level cars between 1999 and 2008, after which they were sold toMARC (these cars were originally procured as an option on MARC's larger order).^[33][34][35] From 2001, VRE also operated a number of ex-MetraPullman-Standardgallery cars.^[36] These were all gradually replaced by newSumitomo/Nippon Sharyo gallery cars between 2006 and 2018.^[37][38][39]

FrontRunner commuter rail, operated by theUtah Transit Authority to connect multiple cities along theWasatch Front, utilizesBombardier BiLevel Coaches.

InIran, theTehran-Hashtgerd suburban commuter line is served with electric push-pull hauled trainsets with double-decker carriages manufactured byWagon Pars in Iran.

In thePhilippines, bileveltrams ran on theTranvias ofManila. These were push–pull trains carried by lightweight steam locomotives. There were also double-deck sleeping cars used on theBicol Express until 2014.

InSouth Korea, ITX-Cheongchun, the express train ofKorail uses double-decker cars along with single-decker ones.

InVietnam, the train operated byVietnam Railways between Saigon and Phan Thiet occasionally carries double deck carriages to fulfil extra demand.

InGermany,Bombardier's double-deck rail cars are also used extensively on suburban trains by theDB. The same rail cars serve some of the routes on theIsrael Railways network, hauled by diesel locomotives and include electric generators housed in the control car. Belgian latest models (M6 andM7 cars) also belong to the Bombardier double deck family while the older M5 are based on the French VB2N.

In theNetherlands, there are two types of double-deck trains in use, theVIRM and theDDZ. The VIRM, is an example from the Netherlands, of High platform (split level) double-decker multiple units. It is one step up from the station platform to the entrance, and from there seven steps upstairs or four steps downstairs. There are two retired types of double-deck trains, theDDM-1 and theDD-AR who were retired from regular service on 15 December 2019. DDZ trainsets are made of refurbished DD-AR coaches with a six-axle MDDM power car.

InPortugal,CP Urban Services andFertagus use double-deck trains aroundLisbon in commuter rail services.

InSpain, several lines ofCercanías (Renfe's commuter rail service) use double-deck trainsets.

InRomania, some regional trains use bilevel cars.^[40][41] Over 200 bi-level cars were imported fromWaggonbau Görlitz starting with the early 1980s.^[42]

Because the two levels are separate on most bi-level cars, there is a physical limitation on a singleconductor, as it can be difficult for them to check and sell tickets to passengers on the two levels. Gallery cars feature upper levels, which are "mezzanines" or "balconies" running along both sides of the car, with an open area between them.^[43] The split balcony enables conductors walking along on the lower level to easily reach up and punch or validate tickets of the passengers seated on the mezzanine level. Passengers can place their tickets in clips along a lengthwise panel, located slightly above the conductor's head and within easy reach. The conductor can then check all tickets and move to the next car.

Most gallery cars have four separate galleries with four separate stairwells to the main level (one gallery on each side, split in the middle by the central vestibule). These stairwells are adjacent to the central vestibule where the exterior doors are situated.^[44] There is typically a low first step at the vestibule entrance to the car, which is14+5⁄8 inches (371 mm) above the head of the rail. However,Metra Electric Highliner (now retired^[45]) andHighliner II have high-level entrances for the high-level platforms on that line.NICTD South Shore Line Bi-Levels are similar to the Metra Highliner IIs but have entrances at the end of the rail car opposite the cab with a stairwell and trap doors for low-level platforms.

TheChicago, Burlington and Quincy was the first railroad to receive gallery cars, built by theBudd Company in 1950.^[46][47] In total, 141 cars of this design were delivered to the CB&Q (and its successors) between 1950 and 1978. TheMilwaukee Road ordered a revised design of gallery car from Budd in 1961, and production ran until 1980. Over 250 of this design were produced, including a small batch for theRock Island Line. Most of these Budd gallery cars are still in service withMetra.^[30] The design was also licensed toCanadian Vickers, who built 9 cars forCanadian Pacific in 1970 for commuter service inMontreal.^[48]

In 1955, theChicago and North Western ordered 16 gallery cars from theSt. Louis Car Company.^[49] Unlike the stainless steel Budd cars, these cars have smooth, painted steel bodyshells. Further orders were built byPullman-Standard between 1956 and 1970, with minor revisions to the design, including acab car variant from 1960 onwards.^[50][51] Over 250 were built for the C&NW, Rock Island Line and their successors, a small number of which remain in service.^[30] After initial retirement from Metra in the late 1990s, many of these cars were acquired by other commuter rail agencies across the United States, including (among others)UTA FrontRunner,MARC,WeGo Star andVirginia Railway Express.^[52][53][36]Southern Pacific also acquired 46 Pullman-Standard gallery cars for thePeninsula Commute service inSan Francisco in three orders: 1955, 1957 (built byAmerican Car and Foundry to Pullman-Standard designs) and 1968.^[54]

To replace the Southern Pacific gallery cars,Caltrain acquired new gallery cars fromNippon Sharyo in 1985. A second batch followed in 1999-2000.^[29][38] Further orders for this design were placed byMetra andVirginia Railway Express between 2002 and 2008.^{[30][55][56][37]} Follow-on contracts included options for additional cars, the last of which were delivered in 2020.^[57][58]Morrison-Knudsen/Amerail had also built similar gallery cars for Metra between 1992 and 1998, using bodyshells provided by Nippon Sharyo.^[59][60]

The Highliner and Highliner II, along with similar vehicles in theNICTD South Shore Line fleet, are electric multiple units formed of gallery cars. The Highliner I was built by theSt. Louis Car Company in 1971 for theIllinois Central, with additional cars built byBombardier in 1978-1979. These were replaced by Highliner II EMUs built byNippon Sharyo in 2005.^{[citation needed]}

• Autorack
  • Double-stack rail transport
  • Piggyback (transportation)
• Double-decker bus
• Double-decker tram
• Super Dome (railcar)

• Double Deck Train in China