Railway offense

Warning at the high voltage systems of the ÖBB

In railway law , rail offenses are a collective term that denotes a large number of actions that endanger rail operations and damage railway systems or vehicles or endanger people.

The term, which has largely disappeared from everyday language in Germany, is still used in current railway law in Austria; in 2016 there were 116 acts of the rail offense in Austria.

Röll's Encyclopedia of Railways from 1912 defines railway offenses as any willful or malicious damage to the railway system and its accessories and the objects used for operation, as well as any other action aimed at disrupting regular operation and thereby a danger to railway property or to the bring about physical safety , and also cites examples from German railway law (Section 60 of the German Railway Police Regulations), the Austrian Railway Operating Regulations (Section 98), the Swiss Railway Act (of December 23, 1872) as well as the French and Italian criminal law.

Legal situation in Germany

Today the term is not used in German railway law, but such offenses are still punishable, so u. a. Section 305 (1) StGB ( destruction of buildings ), Section 315 (1) StGB, Section 315a (1) StGB, Section 315d StGB ( dangerous interference in rail, ship and air traffic ).

Individual evidence

^ Railways in Austria. History - vehicles - operation (= train extra. No. 82 = Jg. 17, No. 3). GeraMond-Verlag, Munich 2006, ISBN 3-89724-184-6 , p. 18.
↑ Ordinance of the Federal Minister for Transport, Innovation and Technology on the scope and form of reports of accidents and malfunctions that occur at railway companies to the Federal Accident Investigation Board; Annex 1 to Section 4 of the 1957 Railway Act and Annex 3 to Section 5, Paragraph 1, Item 2 of the 1957 Railway Act (MeldeVO-Eisb 2006) (PDF; 37 kB)
↑ §3, MeldeVO-Eisb 2006
↑ VERSA: Safety report 2016 according to § 19 UUG 2005 p. 29

↑ Def. "Zugehör" in Wissen.de ( Memento from December 15, 2008 in the Internet Archive ), (queried on January 8, 2010)

↑ Railway offense. In: Viktor von Röll (ed.): Encyclopedia of the Railway System . 2nd Edition. Volume 1: Cover - discontinuation of construction . Urban & Schwarzenberg, Berlin / Vienna 1912, pp 380 -381 ..

[1] Railways in Austria. History - vehicles - operation (= train extra. No. 82 = Jg. 17, No. 3). GeraMond-Verlag, Munich 2006, ISBN 3-89724-184-6 , p. 18.

[2] Ordinance of the Federal Minister for Transport, Innovation and Technology on the scope and form of reports of accidents and malfunctions that occur at railway companies to the Federal Accident Investigation Board; Annex 1 to Section 4 of the 1957 Railway Act and Annex 3 to Section 5, Paragraph 1, Item 2 of the 1957 Railway Act (MeldeVO-Eisb 2006) (PDF; 37 kB)

[3] §3, MeldeVO-Eisb 2006

[4] VERSA: Safety report 2016 according to § 19 UUG 2005 p. 29

[5] Def. "Zugehör" in Wissen.de ( Memento from December 15, 2008 in the Internet Archive ), (queried on January 8, 2010)

[6] Railway offense. In: Viktor von Röll (ed.): Encyclopedia of the Railway System . 2nd Edition. Volume 1: Cover - discontinuation of construction . Urban & Schwarzenberg, Berlin / Vienna 1912, pp 380 -381 ..