Polish State Railways
Encyclopedia
is the dominant railway operator in Poland
.
The company was founded when the former state-owned operator was divided into several units based on the requirements laid down by the European Union
. PKP SA is the dominant company in PKP Group
collective that resulted from the split, and maintains in 100 % share control, being fully responsible for management of all of the other PKP Group component companies. The group's organisations are dependent upon PKP SA, but proposals for privatisation have been made.
In Poland there are 23429 kilometres (14,558 mi) of railway tracks managed by PKP SA and owned by the state.
– Vilnius
, a global pricing system is in use which requires one to buy two separate tickets (one in each direction) in place of a single consolidated return ticket. The long distance and local trains' pricing systems are separated from each other in entirety and thus tickets issued by local train operators cannot be used on long distance services; with the opposite also being just as true, international tickets, however, are valid on all services upon which one is required to travel on order to reach the final destination stated on the ticket (unless a specific routing is stipulated in the conditions terms of use).
–Łódź–Kalisz
, and then split into two branches, one to Wrocław and another to Poznań
. The geometric layout of the line will be designed to permit speeds of 360 km/h. Construction is planned to begin around 2014 and finish in 2019. In April 2010, the tender for a feasibility study was awarded to a consortium led by Spanish company Ingenieria IDOM. The feasibility study has been granted €80 million in subsidy from the European Union
. The total cost of the line including construction and train sets has been estimated at €6.9 billion and is planned to be financed partially by EU subsidies. In September 2010, Alstom was revealed to have been the sole bidder on a tender for high speed trainsets; Alstom will supply 20 New Pendolino
trains to PKP Intercity
; they will be capable of running international services to Germany
, Austria
, and the Czech Republic
. The contract for Alstom to then supply and maintain these trains for PKP Intercity was signed on 30 May 2011. As part of the deal, Alstom
will construct a new rolling stock maintenance facility in the vicinity of Warsaw
.
In the center of the city of Łódź the "Y" line will travel through an underground tunnel which would link two existing railway stations. One of them: Łódź Fabryczna would be reconstructed as an underground station (reconstruction scheduled to start July 2010).
Since 2009 PKP's subdivision Polskie Linie Kolejowe (Polish Railway Lines) has being using the new 'Dworzec Polski' (Polish Station) brand. This branding and its corresponding PR campaign 'ROBI SIĘ!' (IT'S GETTING READY!) was developed in order to shed more light on station redevelopments all around the country. The ethos of the brand essentially requires that the station in question be completely transformed to meet the highest modern standards of comfort and technical service before being allowed to become a member of the 'Dworzec Polski' network. Currently there are 77 stations taking part in the 'ROBI SIĘ!' program, amongst which are included the main stations of Warsaw, Katowice
, Kraków, Wrocław, and Gdynia.
n sectors from military railways. The Railway Department in the Ministry of Communication was created and the Polish railways were officially named Polskie Koleje Państwowe
.
In December 1918, the Great Poland Uprising
started. The rebels took over the former Prussia
n sector of railways. One year later, the fights for Lwów
were over and the former Austrian railway directorate was taken over by Poland. Taking over the railways from Prussians lasted until 1921.
After the victory over the Red Army
in the Polish-Bolshevik War (1920), a great deal of damage in railway structure was discovered on the route along which the communists were retreating. At the same time, the tense relations with Lithuania
led the railways around Wilno and Minsk
to a partial desintegration and stagnation. The Libau-Romny railroad was not recovered.
Polish railways administration finally took over the railways in Upper Silesia
in 1922. That same year, a decision was made to divide railways in Poland into nine administrative districts.
An economic crisis in 1930s forced the state to cut back its budget for railway investment. Profit decreased by 50% compared to 1929. The next year, over 23,000 PKP employees had been dismissed and protests and strikes causes authorities to try to find a solution. The end of the crisis and an increase of cargo transport and income came in 1937.
On 1 September 1939, railwaymen of Szymankowo stopped a German armoured train
before its arrival on the bridge over the Vistula River and blew up the bridge. After the Soviet invasion of eastern Poland on 17 September 1939, most Polish rolling stock fell into Soviet hands.
The Polish railways in Silesia, Wielkopolska and Pomorze were adopted by German railways Deutsche Reichsbahn
on 25 September.
Until the last moment before the German attack on the Soviet Union in 1941, cargo trains transported goods from the Soviet Union to Germany. The beginning of German attacks on the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941 resulted in the possession of railway and rolling stock by the Ostbahn and the possession of PKP rolling stock
with broad gauge
track and reconstruction to standard gauge. The beginning of organized sabotage
by the Polish
resistance movement on railways took place about the same time.
In 1942, production of simple military-use DR Kriegslok BR52 (PKP class Ty2
) steam locomotives, began in Poznań and Chrzanów
; the steam boilers for these locomotives were produced in Sosnowiec
.
The Warsaw Uprising
caused widespread damage of Warsaw rolling stock, network and electric traction; both bridges over the Vistula
River and the underground tunnel on the Warsaw Cross-City Line
were destroyed.
At the beginning of 1945, the Ministry of Transport was created, as well as the Regional Directorate of National Railways. Many pre-war locomotives were sent to the Soviet Union
. Poland
received many German locomotives as a compensation for war losses. In June, the rail connection with Warsaw was opened, using a temporary railway station made of warehouses. On 15 September 1945, PKP took over management of all railway lines on new Polish
territory from the Soviet Union. Most of these lines were either destroyed or inaccessible. The railways in the country were divided into 10 districts.
During the mid to late communist era, the state of the Polish railways deteriorated to a large extent. Once a large and profitable network, the systemic lack of funding and failure to acquire new rolling stock left PKP far behind the railway operators of Western Europe in terms of technical advances and passenger comfort. In addition to this, the poor state of many rail lines throughout the country led to ever-increasing journey times for passengers, and resultantly left the railways far less able to compete with intercity bus and air services. During the entire communist period only one major infrastructural project relating to the railways was completed. This, the Central Trunk Line, was a prestige project completed in 1976 and intended mainly for the use of passenger services, which for the first time allowed passengers to travel in comfort and at relatively high speed from Kraków
, Katowice
, and other cities of the Silesian and Lesser Poland conurbations, to Warsaw
. However, despite the successful completion of the section from southern to central Poland, the planned extension to Gdańsk
and the country's Baltic ports was never realised, and thus significantly curtailed both the usefulness and potential of the line.
Since Poland's return to liberal democracy in the early 90s, the Polish State Railways have faced ever increasing competition from private automotive transport and the country's rapidly expanding network of motorways and express roads
. However, ever decreasing journey times, better schedules which allow for well-coordinated connections, the rise of private operators and large-scale investment in infrastructure as well as new rolling stock is slowly enticing people back onto the railways.
, the Polish State Railways were reorganised into a number of independent operating companies under the unified direction of the PKP Group
.
PKP Intercity operates all InterCity trains in Poland as well as most of the country's EuroCity services throughout Europe. Although competition is rising in the long-distance rail travel market in Poland, PKP Intercity still holds a de-facto monopoly in the industry, as its current market share represents almost 100% of the segment.
PKP Intercity's trains are currently operated under the following brands:
In December 2009 the EIC brand was introduced, as a result the train categories EX and IC were phased out.
The company was founded after dividing Polskie Koleje Państwowe (all-national rail operator) into several dozens companies to meet European Union Standards.
PKP Group plans to privatise PKP Cargo in 2011.PKP Group plans to privatise PKP Cargo in 2011.
's Tricity area (Gdynia
, Sopot
and Gdańsk
). The system has since grown to cover a longer route, reaching towns like Słupsk, Lębork
and Wejherowo
.
It is serviced by electric multiple unit
cars at a frequency of 6 minutes to half an hour between trains (depending on the time of day). It is comparable to subway service or light rail in other European cities. The Tricity area is uniquely suited for this mode of transport, as it's shaped in a relatively narrow north-south corridor between the Gdańsk Bay
and the Tricity Landscape Park
.
responsible for infrastructure operation and freight transport on the Broad Gauge Metallurgy Line. The line runs for about 400 km from the Polish
-Ukrainian
border in Izow-Hrubieszów to Sławków Południowy (near Katowice
).
The line was opened in 1979 and was used to import iron ore from the USSR, as well as to export coal and sulphur from Poland.
After the fall of communism and the economic changes of 1989 traffic on the line has much diminished. At present various schemes are being tried to increase its profitability.
This line runs as a single track line for almost 400 km, from the Polish-Ukrainian
border crossing just east of Hrubieszów
to Sławków Południowy (near Katowice
). It is used only for freight traffic, mainly iron ore and coal. It is the westernmost broad gauge railway line in Europe that is connected to the broad gauge rail system of the countries which before 1991 constituted the Soviet Union
.
; after that date all of its shares have been transferred to Poland's 16 regional
governments. Thus, the company is no longer part of the PKP Group and on interregional routes its InterRegio trains are competing with PKP Intercity
TLK trains. This was done in order to increase competition amongst operators on the Polish rail network. The company finally changed its name from PKP Przewozy Regionalne to Przewozy Regionalne on December 8th, 2009.
Przewozy Regionalne now operates a large range of domestic rail services under the following brands: Regio (local passenger services which stop at all stations), RegioPlus (semi-fast local passenger services which stop at a lesser number of stops than Regio but for which tickets do not cost more), InterRegio (low-cost, fast inter-regional services with 2nd class only and which stop at medium and major stations only) and RegioEkspres (fast trains on international/inter-regional routes with both 1st and 2nd class).
For domestic routes InterRegio and RegioEkspres trains share the same fare for the 2nd class (meaning you can board an RE train with an IR ticket and vice versa). With the exception of the Szczecin
-Warsaw
and Poznań
-Warsaw RegioEkspres trains, there is no reservation required in any of Przewozy Regionalne's trains.
Until December 1st, 2008 the company also used to run over 300 interregional and international fast trains (), but per the government's decision, all its interregional and international fast train services were transferred back to its then-sister company, PKP Intercity
S.A. and rebranded to 'Tanie Linie Kolejowe' (Cheap Railway Lines), this was then itself renamed in 2010 to 'Twoje Linie Kolejowe' (Your Railway Lines).
s. Most substations are fed with voltages between 15 and 30 kV. Where lines have heavy traffic and higher speed, the substations are fed from the 110 kV-grid.
The switchyard of substations fed from voltages below 30 kV is indoors, outdoor switchgear is used at 110 kV. The distance between substations is between 15 and 28 kilometres. For reliability of supply, substations are usually fed by at least two powerlines. Each substation normally feeds two segments of the overhead wire, which are separated by a switch. As is common with DC systems, the negative pole is grounded.
Half-way between two substations, there is a switch, which can be used to connect the overhead wires together. At some lines a three-phase AC line operated with 6 kV, 15 kV or 20 kV runs parallel to the railway line, either on the poles of the overhead wire or on separate poles. It is used for power supply of signals, level crossing
equipment and other devices requiring electric power
used for the rail. This line can be also used for emergency power supply of substations.
, particularly in and around the town of Zakopane
.
company responsible for maintanace of rail tracks, conducting trains across country, scheduling trains' timetables and management of railway property such as lines and stations.
, responsible for supplying Polish
railroad operators with electric energy.
PKP Energetyka
was founded after dividing PKP into a group of several dozen independent companies to meet European Union
Standards.
PKP Group plans to privatise PKP Energetyka in 2011.
and their partners.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
.
The company was founded when the former state-owned operator was divided into several units based on the requirements laid down by the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
. PKP SA is the dominant company in PKP Group
PKP Group
PKP Group is a Polish conglomerate founded in 2001 from the former single national rail operator, Polskie Koleje Państwowe. The purpose of this change was to match European Union directives of dividing transport service from rail system management and founding separate companies able to sell their...
collective that resulted from the split, and maintains in 100 % share control, being fully responsible for management of all of the other PKP Group component companies. The group's organisations are dependent upon PKP SA, but proposals for privatisation have been made.
In Poland there are 23429 kilometres (14,558 mi) of railway tracks managed by PKP SA and owned by the state.
Pricing system
The pricing system currently employed by PKP is highly regressive. On international routes such as, for example, the Berlin-Warszawa Express and the IC-Nightbus WarsawWarsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
– Vilnius
Vilnius
Vilnius is the capital of Lithuania, and its largest city, with a population of 560,190 as of 2010. It is the seat of the Vilnius city municipality and of the Vilnius district municipality. It is also the capital of Vilnius County...
, a global pricing system is in use which requires one to buy two separate tickets (one in each direction) in place of a single consolidated return ticket. The long distance and local trains' pricing systems are separated from each other in entirety and thus tickets issued by local train operators cannot be used on long distance services; with the opposite also being just as true, international tickets, however, are valid on all services upon which one is required to travel on order to reach the final destination stated on the ticket (unless a specific routing is stipulated in the conditions terms of use).
Development of current services, infrastructure and high-speed rail
PKP's current plans to develop high speed rail in Poland call for a "Y" line that will connect WarsawWarsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
–Łódź–Kalisz
Kalisz
Kalisz is a city in central Poland with 106,857 inhabitants , the capital city of the Kalisz Region. Situated on the Prosna river in the southeastern part of the Greater Poland Voivodeship, the city forms a conurbation with the nearby towns of Ostrów Wielkopolski and Nowe Skalmierzyce...
, and then split into two branches, one to Wrocław and another to Poznań
Poznan
Poznań is a city on the Warta river in west-central Poland, with a population of 556,022 in June 2009. It is among the oldest cities in Poland, and was one of the most important centres in the early Polish state, whose first rulers were buried at Poznań's cathedral. It is sometimes claimed to be...
. The geometric layout of the line will be designed to permit speeds of 360 km/h. Construction is planned to begin around 2014 and finish in 2019. In April 2010, the tender for a feasibility study was awarded to a consortium led by Spanish company Ingenieria IDOM. The feasibility study has been granted €80 million in subsidy from the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
. The total cost of the line including construction and train sets has been estimated at €6.9 billion and is planned to be financed partially by EU subsidies. In September 2010, Alstom was revealed to have been the sole bidder on a tender for high speed trainsets; Alstom will supply 20 New Pendolino
New Pendolino
The New Pendolino is a class of high-speed tilting trains built by Alstom Ferroviaria for Trenitalia and the swiss Railway SBB CFF FFS, known as the ETR 600 and ETR 610, respectively...
trains to PKP Intercity
PKP Intercity
PKP Intercity is a company of PKP Group responsible for long-distance passenger transport. It runs about 350 trains daily, connecting mainly large aglomerations and smaller towns, also servicing most of the international trains....
; they will be capable of running international services to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, and the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
. The contract for Alstom to then supply and maintain these trains for PKP Intercity was signed on 30 May 2011. As part of the deal, Alstom
Alstom
Alstom is a large multinational conglomerate which holds interests in the power generation and transport markets. According to the company website, in the years 2010-2011 Alstom had annual sales of over €20.9 billion, and employed more than 85,000 people in 70 countries. Alstom's headquarters are...
will construct a new rolling stock maintenance facility in the vicinity of Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
.
In the center of the city of Łódź the "Y" line will travel through an underground tunnel which would link two existing railway stations. One of them: Łódź Fabryczna would be reconstructed as an underground station (reconstruction scheduled to start July 2010).
Since 2009 PKP's subdivision Polskie Linie Kolejowe (Polish Railway Lines) has being using the new 'Dworzec Polski' (Polish Station) brand. This branding and its corresponding PR campaign 'ROBI SIĘ!' (IT'S GETTING READY!) was developed in order to shed more light on station redevelopments all around the country. The ethos of the brand essentially requires that the station in question be completely transformed to meet the highest modern standards of comfort and technical service before being allowed to become a member of the 'Dworzec Polski' network. Currently there are 77 stations taking part in the 'ROBI SIĘ!' program, amongst which are included the main stations of Warsaw, Katowice
Katowice Central Station
Katowice railway station is a railway station in Katowice, Silesia, Poland and is the biggest and most important railway station in the Górnośląski Okręg Przemysłowy area. Both the domestic and the international connections run from there to almost every major city in Poland and Europe. The...
, Kraków, Wrocław, and Gdynia.
History
Gaining independence on 11 November 1918 allowed Poland to reclaim the former Russian and AustriaAustria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n sectors from military railways. The Railway Department in the Ministry of Communication was created and the Polish railways were officially named Polskie Koleje Państwowe
Polskie Koleje Panstwowe
is the dominant railway operator in Poland.The company was founded when the former state-owned operator was divided into several units based on the requirements laid down by the European Union...
.
In December 1918, the Great Poland Uprising
Greater Poland Uprising (1918–1919)
The Greater Poland Uprising of 1918–1919, or Wielkopolska Uprising of 1918–1919 or Posnanian War was a military insurrection of Poles in the Greater Poland region against Germany...
started. The rebels took over the former Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
n sector of railways. One year later, the fights for Lwów
Polish-Ukrainian War
The Polish–Ukrainian War of 1918 and 1919 was a conflict between the forces of the Second Polish Republic and West Ukrainian People's Republic for the control over Eastern Galicia after the dissolution of Austria-Hungary.-Background:...
were over and the former Austrian railway directorate was taken over by Poland. Taking over the railways from Prussians lasted until 1921.
After the victory over the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
in the Polish-Bolshevik War (1920), a great deal of damage in railway structure was discovered on the route along which the communists were retreating. At the same time, the tense relations with Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
led the railways around Wilno and Minsk
Minsk
- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
to a partial desintegration and stagnation. The Libau-Romny railroad was not recovered.
Polish railways administration finally took over the railways in Upper Silesia
Upper Silesia
Upper Silesia is the southeastern part of the historical and geographical region of Silesia. Since the 9th century, Upper Silesia has been part of Greater Moravia, the Duchy of Bohemia, the Piast Kingdom of Poland, again of the Lands of the Bohemian Crown and the Holy Roman Empire, as well as of...
in 1922. That same year, a decision was made to divide railways in Poland into nine administrative districts.
An economic crisis in 1930s forced the state to cut back its budget for railway investment. Profit decreased by 50% compared to 1929. The next year, over 23,000 PKP employees had been dismissed and protests and strikes causes authorities to try to find a solution. The end of the crisis and an increase of cargo transport and income came in 1937.
On 1 September 1939, railwaymen of Szymankowo stopped a German armoured train
Armoured train
An armoured train is a train protected with armour. They are usually equipped with railroad cars armed with artillery and machine guns. They were mostly used during the late 19th and early 20th century, when they offered an innovative way to quickly move large amounts of firepower...
before its arrival on the bridge over the Vistula River and blew up the bridge. After the Soviet invasion of eastern Poland on 17 September 1939, most Polish rolling stock fell into Soviet hands.
The Polish railways in Silesia, Wielkopolska and Pomorze were adopted by German railways Deutsche Reichsbahn
Deutsche Reichsbahn-Gesellschaft
The Deutsche Reichsbahn – was the name of the German national railway created from the railways of the individual states of the German Empire following the end of World War I....
on 25 September.
Until the last moment before the German attack on the Soviet Union in 1941, cargo trains transported goods from the Soviet Union to Germany. The beginning of German attacks on the Soviet Union on 22 June 1941 resulted in the possession of railway and rolling stock by the Ostbahn and the possession of PKP rolling stock
Rolling stock
Rolling stock comprises all the vehicles that move on a railway. It usually includes both powered and unpowered vehicles, for example locomotives, railroad cars, coaches and wagons...
with broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
track and reconstruction to standard gauge. The beginning of organized sabotage
Sabotage
Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening another entity through subversion, obstruction, disruption, or destruction. In a workplace setting, sabotage is the conscious withdrawal of efficiency generally directed at causing some change in workplace conditions. One who engages in sabotage is...
by the Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
resistance movement on railways took place about the same time.
In 1942, production of simple military-use DR Kriegslok BR52 (PKP class Ty2
PKP class Ty2
Ty2/Ty42 - freight locomotive the construction of the German , massively built factories in many European countries in 1942-1945, also known as German locomotive Kriegslokomotive war....
) steam locomotives, began in Poznań and Chrzanów
Chrzanów
Chrzanów is a town in south Poland with 39,704 inhabitants . It is situated in the Lesser Poland Voivodeship and is the capital of Chrzanów County.- To 1809:...
; the steam boilers for these locomotives were produced in Sosnowiec
Sosnowiec
Sosnowiec is a city in Zagłębie Dąbrowskie in southern Poland, near Katowice. It is one of the central districts of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union - a metropolis with a combined population of over two million people located in the Silesian Highlands, on the Brynica river .It is situated in...
.
The Warsaw Uprising
Warsaw Uprising
The Warsaw Uprising was a major World War II operation by the Polish resistance Home Army , to liberate Warsaw from Nazi Germany. The rebellion was timed to coincide with the Soviet Union's Red Army approaching the eastern suburbs of the city and the retreat of German forces...
caused widespread damage of Warsaw rolling stock, network and electric traction; both bridges over the Vistula
Vistula
The Vistula is the longest and the most important river in Poland, at 1,047 km in length. The watershed area of the Vistula is , of which lies within Poland ....
River and the underground tunnel on the Warsaw Cross-City Line
Warsaw Cross-City Line
Warsaw cross-city line is a 7 km railway line crossing downtown Warsaw in the East-West direction. Opened in 1933 and electrified in 1936, it initially had two tracks, with additional two added in 1949...
were destroyed.
At the beginning of 1945, the Ministry of Transport was created, as well as the Regional Directorate of National Railways. Many pre-war locomotives were sent to the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
. Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
received many German locomotives as a compensation for war losses. In June, the rail connection with Warsaw was opened, using a temporary railway station made of warehouses. On 15 September 1945, PKP took over management of all railway lines on new Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
territory from the Soviet Union. Most of these lines were either destroyed or inaccessible. The railways in the country were divided into 10 districts.
During the mid to late communist era, the state of the Polish railways deteriorated to a large extent. Once a large and profitable network, the systemic lack of funding and failure to acquire new rolling stock left PKP far behind the railway operators of Western Europe in terms of technical advances and passenger comfort. In addition to this, the poor state of many rail lines throughout the country led to ever-increasing journey times for passengers, and resultantly left the railways far less able to compete with intercity bus and air services. During the entire communist period only one major infrastructural project relating to the railways was completed. This, the Central Trunk Line, was a prestige project completed in 1976 and intended mainly for the use of passenger services, which for the first time allowed passengers to travel in comfort and at relatively high speed from Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, Katowice
Katowice
Katowice is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, on the Kłodnica and Rawa rivers . Katowice is located in the Silesian Highlands, about north of the Silesian Beskids and about southeast of the Sudetes Mountains.It is the central district of the Upper Silesian Metropolis, with a population of 2...
, and other cities of the Silesian and Lesser Poland conurbations, to Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
. However, despite the successful completion of the section from southern to central Poland, the planned extension to Gdańsk
Gdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
and the country's Baltic ports was never realised, and thus significantly curtailed both the usefulness and potential of the line.
Since Poland's return to liberal democracy in the early 90s, the Polish State Railways have faced ever increasing competition from private automotive transport and the country's rapidly expanding network of motorways and express roads
Roads and expressways in Poland
The highways in Poland are divided into motorways and expressways. As of November 2011, there are of motorways and of expressways ....
. However, ever decreasing journey times, better schedules which allow for well-coordinated connections, the rise of private operators and large-scale investment in infrastructure as well as new rolling stock is slowly enticing people back onto the railways.
PKP Intercity
PKP Intercity is a semi-independent division of PKP that operates long-distance passenger trains in Poland. It was founded in 2001 when, in preparation for joining the European UnionEuropean Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
, the Polish State Railways were reorganised into a number of independent operating companies under the unified direction of the PKP Group
PKP Group
PKP Group is a Polish conglomerate founded in 2001 from the former single national rail operator, Polskie Koleje Państwowe. The purpose of this change was to match European Union directives of dividing transport service from rail system management and founding separate companies able to sell their...
.
PKP Intercity operates all InterCity trains in Poland as well as most of the country's EuroCity services throughout Europe. Although competition is rising in the long-distance rail travel market in Poland, PKP Intercity still holds a de-facto monopoly in the industry, as its current market share represents almost 100% of the segment.
PKP Intercity's trains are currently operated under the following brands:
- EuroCity (EC): International trains which operate major routes and require a travel reservation in advance,
- Express InterCity (EIC): Trains which operate on the most important domestic routes and require a travel reservation in advance,
- Tanie Linie Kolejowe (TLK): Low cost, long-distance trains (advance reservations possible in first class).
In December 2009 the EIC brand was introduced, as a result the train categories EX and IC were phased out.
PKP Cargo
PKP Cargo, founded in 2001 so as to satisfy a European Court ruling on the required restructuring of the Polish State Railways prior to joining the EU, is the PKP group company responsible for freight transport operations. It is currently the largest railway cargo carrier in Poland, and second largest in the European Union.The company was founded after dividing Polskie Koleje Państwowe (all-national rail operator) into several dozens companies to meet European Union Standards.
PKP Group plans to privatise PKP Cargo in 2011.PKP Group plans to privatise PKP Cargo in 2011.
PKP Szybka Kolej Miejska
a railway transportation service that originally functioned in PolandPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
's Tricity area (Gdynia
Gdynia
Gdynia is a city in the Pomeranian Voivodeship of Poland and an important seaport of Gdańsk Bay on the south coast of the Baltic Sea.Located in Kashubia in Eastern Pomerania, Gdynia is part of a conurbation with the spa town of Sopot, the city of Gdańsk and suburban communities, which together...
, Sopot
Sopot
Sopot is a seaside town in Eastern Pomerania on the southern coast of the Baltic Sea in northern Poland, with a population of approximately 40,000....
and Gdańsk
Gdansk
Gdańsk is a Polish city on the Baltic coast, at the centre of the country's fourth-largest metropolitan area.The city lies on the southern edge of Gdańsk Bay , in a conurbation with the city of Gdynia, spa town of Sopot, and suburban communities, which together form a metropolitan area called the...
). The system has since grown to cover a longer route, reaching towns like Słupsk, Lębork
Lebork
Lębork is a town on the Łeba and Okalica rivers in Middle Pomerania region, north-western Poland with some 37,000 inhabitants.Lębork is also the capital of Lębork County in Pomeranian Voivodeship since 1999, formerly in Słupsk Voivodeship ....
and Wejherowo
Wejherowo
Wejherowo is a town in Gdańsk Pomerania, northern Poland, with 47,435 inhabitants . It has been the capital of Wejherowo County in Pomeranian Voivodeship since 1999; previously, it was a town in Gdańsk Voivodeship .-History:...
.
It is serviced by electric multiple unit
Electric multiple unit
An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages, using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number of the carriages...
cars at a frequency of 6 minutes to half an hour between trains (depending on the time of day). It is comparable to subway service or light rail in other European cities. The Tricity area is uniquely suited for this mode of transport, as it's shaped in a relatively narrow north-south corridor between the Gdańsk Bay
Gdansk Bay
Gdańsk Bay or the Bay of Gdańsk or Danzig Bay is a southeastern bay of the Baltic Sea. It is named after the adjacent port city of Gdańsk in Poland and is sometimes referred to as a gulf.-Geography:...
and the Tricity Landscape Park
Tricity Landscape Park
Tricity Landscape Park is a protected area in northern Poland , established in 1979, and covering the area of ....
.
PKP LHS
PKP LHS is a company of the PKP GroupPKP Group
PKP Group is a Polish conglomerate founded in 2001 from the former single national rail operator, Polskie Koleje Państwowe. The purpose of this change was to match European Union directives of dividing transport service from rail system management and founding separate companies able to sell their...
responsible for infrastructure operation and freight transport on the Broad Gauge Metallurgy Line. The line runs for about 400 km from the Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
-Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
border in Izow-Hrubieszów to Sławków Południowy (near Katowice
Katowice
Katowice is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, on the Kłodnica and Rawa rivers . Katowice is located in the Silesian Highlands, about north of the Silesian Beskids and about southeast of the Sudetes Mountains.It is the central district of the Upper Silesian Metropolis, with a population of 2...
).
The line was opened in 1979 and was used to import iron ore from the USSR, as well as to export coal and sulphur from Poland.
After the fall of communism and the economic changes of 1989 traffic on the line has much diminished. At present various schemes are being tried to increase its profitability.
This line runs as a single track line for almost 400 km, from the Polish-Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
border crossing just east of Hrubieszów
Hrubieszów
Hrubieszów is a town in southeastern Poland, with a population of 18,661 . It is the capital of Hrubieszów County. Since 1999 Hrubieszów has been part of Lublin Voivodeship . Earlier, 1975–98, it had been part of Zamość Province...
to Sławków Południowy (near Katowice
Katowice
Katowice is a city in Silesia in southern Poland, on the Kłodnica and Rawa rivers . Katowice is located in the Silesian Highlands, about north of the Silesian Beskids and about southeast of the Sudetes Mountains.It is the central district of the Upper Silesian Metropolis, with a population of 2...
). It is used only for freight traffic, mainly iron ore and coal. It is the westernmost broad gauge railway line in Europe that is connected to the broad gauge rail system of the countries which before 1991 constituted the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
Transfer of regional services to Przewozy Regionalne
Until December 22nd, 2008 Przewozy Regionalne was a wholly owned subsidiary of the PKP GroupPKP Group
PKP Group is a Polish conglomerate founded in 2001 from the former single national rail operator, Polskie Koleje Państwowe. The purpose of this change was to match European Union directives of dividing transport service from rail system management and founding separate companies able to sell their...
; after that date all of its shares have been transferred to Poland's 16 regional
Voivodeships of Poland
The voivodeship, or province, called in Polish województwo , has been a high-level administrative subdivision of Poland since the 14th century....
governments. Thus, the company is no longer part of the PKP Group and on interregional routes its InterRegio trains are competing with PKP Intercity
PKP Intercity
PKP Intercity is a company of PKP Group responsible for long-distance passenger transport. It runs about 350 trains daily, connecting mainly large aglomerations and smaller towns, also servicing most of the international trains....
TLK trains. This was done in order to increase competition amongst operators on the Polish rail network. The company finally changed its name from PKP Przewozy Regionalne to Przewozy Regionalne on December 8th, 2009.
Przewozy Regionalne now operates a large range of domestic rail services under the following brands: Regio (local passenger services which stop at all stations), RegioPlus (semi-fast local passenger services which stop at a lesser number of stops than Regio but for which tickets do not cost more), InterRegio (low-cost, fast inter-regional services with 2nd class only and which stop at medium and major stations only) and RegioEkspres (fast trains on international/inter-regional routes with both 1st and 2nd class).
For domestic routes InterRegio and RegioEkspres trains share the same fare for the 2nd class (meaning you can board an RE train with an IR ticket and vice versa). With the exception of the Szczecin
Szczecin
Szczecin , is the capital city of the West Pomeranian Voivodeship in Poland. It is the country's seventh-largest city and the largest seaport in Poland on the Baltic Sea. As of June 2009 the population was 406,427....
-Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
and Poznań
Poznan
Poznań is a city on the Warta river in west-central Poland, with a population of 556,022 in June 2009. It is among the oldest cities in Poland, and was one of the most important centres in the early Polish state, whose first rulers were buried at Poznań's cathedral. It is sometimes claimed to be...
-Warsaw RegioEkspres trains, there is no reservation required in any of Przewozy Regionalne's trains.
Until December 1st, 2008 the company also used to run over 300 interregional and international fast trains (), but per the government's decision, all its interregional and international fast train services were transferred back to its then-sister company, PKP Intercity
PKP Intercity
PKP Intercity is a company of PKP Group responsible for long-distance passenger transport. It runs about 350 trains daily, connecting mainly large aglomerations and smaller towns, also servicing most of the international trains....
S.A. and rebranded to 'Tanie Linie Kolejowe' (Cheap Railway Lines), this was then itself renamed in 2010 to 'Twoje Linie Kolejowe' (Your Railway Lines).
Power supply
The electric power supply of Polish State Railways is an example of a power supply system used for a railway system operated at 3 kV. In this system all power is taken from the public grid and rectified in substationSubstation
Substation can refer to:*Electrical substation*Police substation, a mini police station with limited services*The Substation, a Singaporean contemporary arts centre*SubStation Alpha, a subtitle file format...
s. Most substations are fed with voltages between 15 and 30 kV. Where lines have heavy traffic and higher speed, the substations are fed from the 110 kV-grid.
The switchyard of substations fed from voltages below 30 kV is indoors, outdoor switchgear is used at 110 kV. The distance between substations is between 15 and 28 kilometres. For reliability of supply, substations are usually fed by at least two powerlines. Each substation normally feeds two segments of the overhead wire, which are separated by a switch. As is common with DC systems, the negative pole is grounded.
Half-way between two substations, there is a switch, which can be used to connect the overhead wires together. At some lines a three-phase AC line operated with 6 kV, 15 kV or 20 kV runs parallel to the railway line, either on the poles of the overhead wire or on separate poles. It is used for power supply of signals, level crossing
Level crossing
A level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
equipment and other devices requiring electric power
Electric power
Electric power is the rate at which electric energy is transferred by an electric circuit. The SI unit of power is the watt.-Circuits:Electric power, like mechanical power, is represented by the letter P in electrical equations...
used for the rail. This line can be also used for emergency power supply of substations.
Other PKP subsidiary companies
Polskie Koleje Linowe
A cable-car and mountain railway operating company which operates in southern Poland's Tatra Mountains RangeTatra Mountains
The Tatra Mountains, Tatras or Tatra , are a mountain range which forms a natural border between Slovakia and Poland, and are the highest mountain range in the Carpathian Mountains...
, particularly in and around the town of Zakopane
Zakopane
Zakopane , is a town in southern Poland. It lies in the southern part of the Podhale region at the foot of the Tatra Mountains. From 1975 to 1998 it was in of Nowy Sącz Province, but since 1999 it has been in Lesser Poland Province. It had a population of about 28,000 as of 2004. Zakopane is a...
.
Polskie Linie Kolejowe
The PKP GroupPKP Group
PKP Group is a Polish conglomerate founded in 2001 from the former single national rail operator, Polskie Koleje Państwowe. The purpose of this change was to match European Union directives of dividing transport service from rail system management and founding separate companies able to sell their...
company responsible for maintanace of rail tracks, conducting trains across country, scheduling trains' timetables and management of railway property such as lines and stations.
PKP Energetyka
A company of PKP GroupPKP Group
PKP Group is a Polish conglomerate founded in 2001 from the former single national rail operator, Polskie Koleje Państwowe. The purpose of this change was to match European Union directives of dividing transport service from rail system management and founding separate companies able to sell their...
, responsible for supplying Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
railroad operators with electric energy.
PKP Energetyka
PKP Energetyka
PKP Energetyka is a company of PKP Group responsible for supplying Polish railroad operators with electric energy.Was founded after dividing Polskie Koleje Państwowe into several dozens companies to meet European Union Standards....
was founded after dividing PKP into a group of several dozen independent companies to meet European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
Standards.
PKP Group plans to privatise PKP Energetyka in 2011.
WARS S.A.
WARS is the PKP subsidiary responsible for the servicing of restaurant and sleeper cars on long-distance and international trains operated by PKP IntercityPKP Intercity
PKP Intercity is a company of PKP Group responsible for long-distance passenger transport. It runs about 350 trains daily, connecting mainly large aglomerations and smaller towns, also servicing most of the international trains....
and their partners.
See also
- History of rail transport in PolandHistory of rail transport in PolandThe history of rail transport in Poland dates back to the first half of the 19th century when railways were built under Prussian, Russian, and Austrian rule. Of course, "divided Poland" in 19th century was the territory of the former Commonwealth of Poland and not that one of today's Republic of...
- Transportation in Poland
- List of railway companies
- PKP classification systemPKP classification systemPKP classification system is a system of assigning letters and numbers to series and individual locomotives used by the PKP - Polish national railroad operator....
- PKP GroupPKP GroupPKP Group is a Polish conglomerate founded in 2001 from the former single national rail operator, Polskie Koleje Państwowe. The purpose of this change was to match European Union directives of dividing transport service from rail system management and founding separate companies able to sell their...
- Polish National Railroads Summer 1939Polish National Railroads Summer 1939In the summer of 1939, the map of both Europe and Poland looked very different from today. Obviously, the railway network of interwar Poland was also different from the present one, and also slightly different from the German, Austrian and Russian networks the Second Polish Republic had partially...
- Electric power supply of Polish State Railways
External links
- Online timetable
- PKP - Polish State Railways