33 New Railway Standards Take Effect Today: Full Generational Replacement of OCS Conductor Standards

In accordance with Announcements No. 5, No. 7 and No. 8 of 2026 issued by the National Railway Administration, 33 railway industry standards previously approved and issued by the Administration formally take effect from 1 September 2026. The change drawing most attention from electrified railway practitioners is a generational replacement of standards of unprecedented scope in the OCS conductor field: 4 OCS product standards, including “Electrified Railway OCS: Copper-Alloy Contact Wire” and “Electrified Railway OCS: Stranded Conductors”, have been updated together, and the 1998 edition of the old standard for aluminium conductors with aluminium-clad steel core has come to an end; at the same time, 23 rolling stock maintenance standards establish a “three-level maintenance” system for the first time, while anti-vessel-collision devices for railway bridges and health examinations for plateau workers each gain their first dedicated standard.

The 33 standards implemented in this batch belong to three announcements: Equipment Technical Standards 2026 Batch 2 (9 standards, Announcement No. 7 of 2026), Transport Service Standards 2026 Batch 1 (23 standards, Announcement No. 5 of 2026) and Transport Service Standards 2026 Batch 3 (1 standard, Announcement No. 8 of 2026). All the standards in these three announcements were approved and issued by the National Railway Administration on 27 February 2026 and take effect uniformly from today, with the corresponding previous editions abolished on the same day.

Generational replacement of OCS conductor standards: copper-chromium-zirconium alloy included for the first time

Cantilever support assembly with messenger wire and contact wire. The implementation of these 4 OCS conductor standards will directly affect OCS design selection and material procurement. (Illustration generated by AI)

For traction power supply systems, the most central change in this batch is the overall generational replacement of OCS conductor product standards. The revised “Electrified Railway OCS: Copper-Alloy Contact Wire” (TB/T 2809-2026) replaces TB/T 2809-2017; its title has been changed from “Copper and Copper-Alloy Contact Wire for Electrified Railway” and its scope further focused. According to the draft for comment, this revision deletes the pure copper contact wire variety, modifies the copper-tin and copper-magnesium alloy contact wire varieties, and adds a copper-chromium-zirconium alloy contact wire variety — a high-strength, high-conductivity alloy better suited to the large tension and high reliability demanded by the new generation of OCS. At the same time, a reference unit weight requirement for contact wire has been added, the vibration and fatigue test requirements have been changed with a recommended test tension specified, and the indoor current-carrying capacity technical requirements and inspection rules have been adjusted accordingly.

The revised “Electrified Railway OCS: Stranded Conductors” is now issued in two parts: Part 1, “Copper and Copper-Alloy Stranded Conductors” (TB/T 3111.1-2026), replaces TB/T 3111-2017; Part 2, “Aluminium Conductors with Aluminium-Clad Steel Core” (TB/T 3111.2-2026), replaces TB/T 2937-1998, which had been in use for 28 years. In this merged revision the copper-magnesium alloy stranded conductor varieties have been adjusted, copper-chromium-zirconium alloy stranded conductors have been added as a new variety, the variety structure and technical parameters of aluminium conductors with aluminium-clad steel core have been fully updated, and the joint requirements and current-carrying capacity test methods have also been modified and improved.

On the component side, “Electrified Railway OCS Components, Part 24: Preformed Fittings” (TB/T 2075.24-2026) replaces the 2020 edition, and the English title has likewise been updated from “Helical fittings” to “Preformed fittings”, reflecting the further standardisation of these tension, suspension and conductor-protection fittings formed from preformed helical wires in OCS applications.

▎ Table: OCS-related standards taking effect today

23 maintenance standards: a “three-level maintenance” system covering the whole rolling stock life cycle

The 23 standards issued in Transport Service Standards 2026 Batch 1 form six series, TB/T 30013 to 30018, covering maintenance technical requirements for railway locomotives, passenger cars, freight cars, EMUs, infrastructure inspection and repair equipment, and rescue cranes. Each equipment category is structured in four parts — general provisions, day-to-day maintenance, functional restoration maintenance and performance restoration maintenance (the rescue crane series has the first three) — systematically setting out the technical requirements of the three maintenance levels. This is an important part of the railway operational safety standards system, and will provide a direct basis for transport operators carrying out maintenance work, for railway maintenance licence approval and for equipment quality and safety supervision.

The other 5 standards in Equipment Technical Standards Batch 2 carry equal weight: TB/T 3620-2026 for the first time unifies the structural form, collision resistance class, vessel impact force reduction rate and durability requirements for anti-vessel-collision devices on railway bridges, institutionalising the identification and treatment of vessel collision risks to railway bridges; TB/T 3622-2026 specifies the monitoring units, on-site acquisition equipment and test and inspection requirements for wind, rain and snow on-site monitoring equipment in railway disaster monitoring systems; TB/T 3213-2026 updates the general technical conditions for electrical and electronic products of plateau rolling stock; TB/T 3621-2026 establishes a new product standard for DC600V power supply units of railway passenger cars; and TB/T 2033-2026 consolidates and replaces three old standards in the rail flat wagon field (TB/T 2033-2003, TB/T 3194-2008 and TB/T 3564-2020).

Anti-vessel-collision devices fitted to the piers of a river-crossing railway bridge (schematic). TB/T 3620-2026 unifies the structural form, collision resistance class and vessel impact force reduction rate of such devices in the form of an industry standard for the first time. (Illustration generated by AI)

Serving the Sichuan–Tibet Railway: an industry standard for health examinations of plateau workers

“Railway Plateau Worker Health Examination Specification” (TB/T 30073-2026), issued in Transport Service Standards 2026 Batch 3, is an important support for the construction of the Sichuan–Tibet Railway and other plateau railways. The standard specifies technical requirements for plateau adaptability health examinations of plateau workers, occupational health examinations before taking up a post, during service and on leaving, and emergency health examinations. It was drafted by the Energy Saving, Environmental Protection, Labour and Health Research Institute of the China Academy of Railway Sciences together with the Sichuan–Tibet Railway engineering supervision centre, Sichuan–Tibet Railway Co., Ltd., China Railway Qinghai–Tibet Group and a number of medical institutions, providing standardised protection for the lives and safety of plateau railway workers.

Occupational health examinations for plateau railway workers (schematic). TB/T 30073-2026 specifies technical requirements for five categories of health examination, covering the whole cycle of plateau work. (Illustration generated by AI)

Appendix: full list of the 33 standards taking effect today

▎ Batch 1: Equipment Technical Standards 2026 Batch 2 (Announcement No. 7 of 2026, 9 standards)

▎ Batch 2: Transport Service Standards 2026 Batch 1 (Announcement No. 5 of 2026, 23 standards)

▎ Batch 3: Transport Service Standards 2026 Batch 3 (Announcement No. 8 of 2026, 1 standard)

Impact of the standards replacement on procurement and supply

The product standards above mainly address the procurement, manufacturing and inspection of new and in-service equipment; equipment already in service remains designed and manufactured to the previous standards and does not need immediate replacement. Design codes such as the “Code for Design of Railway Electric Traction Power Supply” (TB 10009-2016) remain the current valid versions, and there is for now no simultaneous change on the design side. As for the standards cited in OCS equipment tender documents, it is recommended to check and update them to the 2026 editions with immediate effect.

Further reading: Our Contact Wire and Messenger Wire section supplies a full range of OCS conductors all year round, among them CTM/CTMH series copper-magnesium alloy contact wire and CTS series copper-tin alloy contact wire, which correspond to the TB/T 2809 standard system replaced in this round, and JTM/JTMH series copper-magnesium alloy stranded wire together with LBGLJ aluminium conductor with aluminium-clad steel core, which correspond to the TB/T 3111 standard system (formerly TB/T 3111 and TB/T 2937). For OCS component products please see the Products section, and for more industry developments follow the Industry News section.