In the modern world, train travel remains relevant, although more and more modes of transport are being improved, new opportunities are appearing, so trains gradually recede into the background. However, it should be noted that this happens mainly in the West - in Russia, this vehicle is used everywhere both for transporting passengers and for transporting a variety of goods.
Railroad Myths
Despite the fact that trains have existed for a very long time, there are still certain myths that cannot be completely dispelled. For example, many people still puzzle over how the ZL and ZU cars differ. What it is? In this article you will find a detailed analysis of this issue, which torments many travelers. How is this known? It is enough to search the Internet for these abbreviations - and you will find many questions about how the ZL and ZU cars differ, what these designations are, and so on. So this material is intended to remove the veils of secrecy from these cars and explain to you what the difference is all the same.
The riddle of two designations
This is not the first year that people have been wondering: how are the ZL and ZU cars different? What is the difference that forces putting different signs on two cars? Are they really not at all alike? In fact, the problem lies precisely in the fact that these cars are actually twins - you will read more about them later. And that is why the question is raised - what is the difference? If they are so similar to each other, then why use different labels? Isn't it easier to combine all ZL and ZU cars into one? What is this insidious conspiracy that makes travelers puzzle over buying a ticket, since they do not understand what is the difference between these two markings? Well, now, step by step, this riddle will be solved, so that in the end you can understand why this marking is placed on the cars.
How are wagons labeled?
To understand what the ZL and ZU car means, you need to first of all understand what the system of marking cars is in general. First of all, you need to understand what a type of car is, and what a class of service is. In this particular paragraph, we are talking about the types of cars, that is, this marking indicates whether the car is seated, compartment, reserved, sleeping, and so on. Thus, a wagon type marking can tell how exactly the seats are located there, in what conditions the passenger will travel, and so on.
However, this is not all the information that you can remove from the labeling. Moreover, if you look through all types of cars, you will not find the designations mentioned above that are the main characters of this article. PL, KB, CB and so on - this is how this marking looks, and it is decrypted quite simply. A submarine is a reserved seat car, a design bureau is a compartment car with a buffet, and a CB is a sleeping car.
However, since there are no required designations here, then it is not worthwhile to linger on this classification. It's time to move on to the class of service designations. Maybe there it will turn out to find the answer to the question of what the wagon ZL and ZU.
Classes of Service Designations
If you look at the service classes, you can immediately notice the designation of ZU and ZL cars there. Well, since they are there, the investigation is on the right track. However, do not rush and run ahead - it is better to move gradually to understand the essence of these signs and the difference between the two cars in question as accurately as possible. So what are class notation? If you look closely, you can see that they are all united by one pattern - the designation always consists of a number and a letter: 1A, 2B, 3L and so on. But what do these reductions mean? Is there any meaning behind them? And will this meaning help to solve the riddle that the car of memory and illumination poses in front of people - what is the difference?
Numeral
So, you are faced with a choice of different options for service classes, and you are interested in ZU and ZL cars. What is the difference between these two cars? In order to understand this, you must first understand what exactly the number and letter in the abbreviation mean. In fact, there are no problems with the number at all. Given that the class of service is indicated, you can easily guess what a number can mean. 1 - this means the first, that is, the highest class of service, 2 - the second, and 3 - the third. Number 4 can no longer be found in these notations, so we can conclude that there are only three classes of service, and the third one that interests you is the lowest.
However, this also suggests that the type of car ZU and ZL - the same, that is, in the general level of service the difference is clearly not hidden. Well, in this case, you need to switch attention from a number to a letter - what can it mean?
Letter
As for the letter, which is provided with a figure indicating the general class of service, then everything is not so simple here. It is simply impossible to single out a general scheme, since there is no specific order of letters to appear, in fact, as there are no words that could be hidden behind this letter. Accordingly, she will not be able to help you, as it serves to simply distinguish between different types of cars of the same service class. However, the fact that the ZL and ZU cars are different was originally known - the question was how they differ so much as to separate them into two different classes. Now you know all the details of the classification, so it's time to put an end to this investigation and bring to the surface the truth about the cars ZL, ZU. The difference between them is actually relatively small. What does it mean? Now you will know about it.
What type of cars do they belong to?
To summarize, it is necessary to deal with one more thing - what type of wagons are ZL and ZU? If you look at the relevant documentation, you can quickly find that in the classification of Russian Railways it is these two types of cars that are the only representatives of reserved seats. Accordingly, we can conclude that both there and there are more than fifty places available, each of which is intended for lying. These are open-type cars, so passengers have no way to close the doors, as can be done in a compartment car. As a matter of fact, this information only gives even more data about the objects of the article: a reserved seat car ZU, ZL is exactly the same wagon with the same level of service, with the same layout. So what is the difference? It is not surprising that many people ask this question, because so far the searches have only made it possible to understand that these two types of cars are identical. In this case, since you have already studied what the reserved seat car ZL and ZU means, it is time to figure out what exactly is the difference between them.
Wagon ZL
So, summing up, we can safely say that the ZL wagon is a standard open-type reserved seat wagon with about fifty seats intended for lying down. It operates the third class of service, which is minimal - this means that it does not guarantee any amenities, except for a bed, as well as a common toilet of a standard type and a washbasin. Also, additional services may be provided in this car for an additional fee: sale of drinks and snacks, sale of bed linen and so on. As a matter of fact, this is the whole essence of this car - a budget solution available for every person. But now it's time to talk about another car, with which the ZL is compared, that is, about the memory car.
Storage car
Now you know what the wagon ZL means. The memory adopts absolutely all the characteristics that the first type under consideration has. This means that there is no significant difference between the wagons in terms of service, nor in terms of layout, nor in terms of amenities. So then what is the essence of the division into two types? The fact is that pets are allowed in the storage car. If you want to take your four-legged friend with you on the road, then you should never buy tickets for the ZL car, since you simply will not be allowed to go there with your pet. As you can see, there is still a difference between these cars, although it is simply impossible to notice it at first glance - and it eludes some people for a very long time. But after reading this article, everyone can say what the main difference is between these cars.
Pet Carriage
Thus, the storage cars are designed for those passengers who travel by train, but want to bring their pets with them. However, unlike European trains, here you have to try hard to bring your pet to the train. Firstly, as you already understood, not all cars are designed for this - you need to choose a ticket for that car that will allow you to ride with the animal. In Europe, there is no such rule - you can safely ride with a small animal if you carry it, and if it does not have an unpleasant smell.
Additional payments in a storage car
However, the second difference is even more surprising, because when transporting pets, even in special wagons, you still have to pay for your pet as a passenger - in European trains, for example, there is no charge for transporting animals. So if you are traveling with a pet through the territory of the Russian Federation, you should remember these features.
Common misconception
If you read questions from users on the Web, you may find rather strange answers that do not correspond to what you see in this article. For some reason, very many people believe that the letter "U" in the designation of memory stands for "improved". And on this basis, they say that in the car of the memory, in comparison with the ZL, a wide variety of amenities are available, such as air conditioning, dry closet, video surveillance, sanitary-hygienic kit and so on.
However, this is a big mistake, because in fact in this car there is absolutely nothing of the above. It’s worth starting with the fact that the letter “U” does not mean improved - as you may have noticed earlier, it is not an abbreviation at all, therefore it does not hide a full word. It serves only to distinguish between cars of different types with one level of service. Accordingly, there are no such striking differences that are described in these reviews between the ZL and ZU cars.
TKS carrier features
In some cases, such misconceptions appear simply because of ignorance, and also because of the assumption that the letter "U" means "improved." However, in some cases, they have certain grounds, since they can rely on real facts that simply were incorrectly correlated. It is known that most Russian trains are served by Russian Railways, but there are other trains that are served by other carriers, for example, TKS (TransClassService).
And here there is one little confusion - the fact is that the TKS has its own classification of wagons according to the class of service. And, proceeding from it, the ZU car is an open-type reserved seat car with berths, that is, exactly the same as that of Russian Railways. But the level of service here is very different, and in the storage car there are both air conditioning, dry closets, and even a video surveillance system. In each compartment you can find outlets for personal use, and in the ticket price you will also receive bedding and travel kit. So, as you can see for yourself, one carrier has one level of service in the storage car, and another has a completely different level.
What about the wagon zl? Here, everything is quite simple - the TKS carrier simply does not have this class of wagons in service, reserved seat wagons in such trains all have a single standard. So now you know what ZL and ZU wagons are, how they differ from each other, what explanations this has, what misconceptions exist about this - and even what these misconceptions can have good reasons. Now you can answer anyone the question of which ticket to which car is better to take - ZL or ZU. And you yourself will never again be mistaken if you want to transport your pet across the territory of the Russian Federation.