Polish railways culled

Polish railways culled

By Nicholas Walton
in Warsaw

Customers are switching to buses

More than a thousand Polish rail services are being cancelled from Monday after a dramatic cut in government subsidies.

The cuts are a part of a gradual restructuring that critics argue is long overdue.

Critics say the country's debt ridden railways and the rest of the Polish transport system, are in a mess just a year before it becomes a member of the EU.

Poland's railways are an expensive relic of communist days.

The rail company, PKP, employs almost a quarter of a million people and owns a hundred-thousand hectares of land, dotted with employee flats, rundown leisure facilities and even prisons.

Rundown

Its revenues are falling as passengers switch to new bus services and economically troubled companies have fewer goods to transport.

It is a far cry from the lean, efficient network many feel is needed for Poland as it enters the European Union.

In fact it is a massive drain on scarce government money, sucking in millions of dollars in subsidies as losses and debts rise year on year.

Missed opportunities?

Poland has a population of forty million, a strategic position between Germany and Russia, and many natural resources.

But, as EU membership approaches, many feel Poland is not in a position to take advantage of these benefits.

Its road and rail systems are dilapidated and there are few motorways.

Foreign investment is sluggish compared to regional neighbours like Hungary and the Czech Republic.

Poland has much catching up to do, and the 1,050 rail services now being cut are unlikely to be the last.