The top of the list of regions as to the use of railways is occupied by: Pomerania, Mazovia, Lower Silesia and Greater Poland. In these regions there are on average more travels by rail than in the rest of Poland.
An inhabitant of Pomerania has chosen railways more than 20 times a year as his/her means of transport. In that region 93% of travels are regional and agglomeration ones. That is the highest rate in Poland. It shows that everyday commute to work or school defines the strength of railway transport in that region. In Tricity railway is connected with urban transport. It is organised the same way in Mazovia, where there operates an only carrier owned by a city - Szybka Kolej Miejska in Warszawa.
In the report "Railway in the regions", prepared by the Office of Rail Transport, there is also data presented on the changes in the use of railways in all 16 Polish regions. Only in two of them - Mazovia and Lublin - the number of railway travels has slightly dropped. Longlasting repairs of railway tracks between Warszawa and Grodzisk Mazowiecki as well as Warszawa and Lublin are surely to be blamed for in this case.
- There's no doubt that railway as means of transport, the role of which is emphasized in the transport policy of the European Union, should be an important part of transport plans of regional selfgovernments - says Mr. Ignacy Góra, Sc. D., President of the Office of Rail Transport. - In this case it is also of importance to maintain relevant cooperation between the regional authorities and railway carriers, but also to take into consideration the opinions of inhabitants in the regions - he states.
This year's report has been supplemented by presentations of transport policies of individual regions with regard to the use of railways. Whether railways become more significant within local communities depends on the proper preparation and execution of such policy. Of importance is also cooperation between the infrastructure manager and local selfgovernments. This is where most conflicts and misunderstandings arise, leading to the fact that railway travel offer does not remain attractive for inhabitants of the affected regions.