Railway applications — Design for PRM use — Accessibility of persons with reduced mobility to rolling stock — Part 1: Steps for access and egress (series EN 16586-1 to -2)

Scope

The boarding-interface series under the PRM TSI: Part 1 specifies steps for access and egress — geometry, visibility, slip resistance — and Part 2 covers boarding aids for wheelchair users: ramps, lifts and bridging plates, with their loads, gradients, controls and safety devices.

The platform-to-train gap is where accessibility succeeds or fails, and EN 16586 is its dedicated standard: step heights, depths and edge marking for access and egress (Part 1), and the complete requirements for boarding aids — manual and powered ramps, on-board and platform lifts, bridging plates — including safe working loads, maximum gradients, surface properties and operating devices (Part 2). Both parts are OJ-cited in their 2017 and 2025 editions under the Interoperability Directive, so conformity carries the presumption for the TSI PRM boarding clauses they implement. Used by vehicle door-system and boarding-aid suppliers, operators specifying platform interfaces, and NoBos — in combination with the TSI's platform-height specific cases that vary by member state.