In 2030, the number of passengers carried by PKP Intercity is expected to reach 88 million and may exceed this figure in the following years. The Polish national carrier intends to run 800 trains a day, which will travel at speeds of 160-250 km/h. This will significantly reduce journey times.
By 2030, PKP Intercity will have earmarked PLN 27 billion for the purchase or modernisation of carriages and locomotives as well as stabling stations. This is a very ambitious task, but Andrzej Bittel, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Infrastructure, reassures that the investments are not at risk.
“We have no doubt that the ambitious strategy for the development of railways in Poland will be realised. This process is already underway. We started from a really low level. Just a few years ago, passengers rarely chose rail, and today we are breaking transport records. The key to further development is to work successively on the development of the offer”, says the minister.
The largest investment programme in the history of PKP Intercity is expected to make long-distance transport the most modern in Europe in less than a decade. The railways also face many challenges – further technological development or staff training to fill the generation gap. These are the main conclusions of the PKP Intercity debate organised during the 15th TRAKO International Railway Fair in Gdańsk.
According to Tomasz Gontarz, Vice-President of the Management Board of PKP Intercity, in 2030 the company will be a European flagship of the railway sector.
“We are at the best moment in the company’s history. We are breaking new transport records and overcoming the imposibilism which prevailed on the railway until recently. After 2030, we want to transport up to 88 million travellers a year. Our entire rolling stock will be new or modernised and we will have up to 800 trains a day, twice as many as today. Our investments, on an unprecedented scale (PLN 24.5 billion for new rolling stock), will allow us to revolutionise the Polish railway”, the vice-president announced.
Arkadiusz Słomczyński