Abstract
Systemic transformation in Polish surface transport: An evaluation. The purpose
of this paper is to provide some insight into the processes of restructuring and privatisation
among rail, road, urban-transport, and inland shipping companies after 1989. Where
freight is concerned, carriage on standard- and broad-gauge railways can be evaluated as partly
deregulated, while where the carriage of passengers is concerned – all carriers up to mid-2005
had originated within the PKP Group. The most common form of transformation of passenger
carriers is communalisation of existing companies. The first private operator (the present-day
Arriva) appeared as late as 2007. The disintegration of national road carrier (PKS) resulted
in the founding of c. 40 new freight firms, the majority of which were closed-down soon. The
most common form of privatisation of the PKS passenger enterprises has involved leasing by
workers. The privatisation has involved not only Polish investors but also foreign ones (Veolia,
later on taken over by Arriva, and Israeli Egged Holding via its affiliate Mobilis). However, the
share of public-capital ownership remains substantial, resulting often in final bankrupcy of
road transport companies. Among the operators in urban transport public owership remains
dominant in various forms (local authorities, municipal, budgetary companies). On the opposite,
in inland shipping small private firms are dominant. Moreover, systemic transformation
plus Poland’s EU accession have given rise to the conditions underpinning the emergence of
Europe’s largest shipowners (OT Logistics).
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