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EBRD and EU support Krakow Public Transport
New trams and new organisational framework to improve services
In one of the first projects in Poland planned to be co-financed with EU
Structural Funds the EBRD is lender of record for a loan to the Krakow public
transport company MPK for PLN110 million (€25 million equivalent). The loan
will finance the acquisition of new trams and infrastructure improvements.
The EBRD and the City of Krakow have been partners since 1998, when the first
urban transport project was signed to develop a Fast Tram link which was of
high importance in a city with one of the highest public transport market
shares in Poland: 95 per cent of all journeys to the city centre are via
public transport, provided by Miejskie Przedsiebiorstwo Komunikacyjne S.A.
(MPK). This company is the city’s sole public transport operator, with a
network of 119 bus and 23 tram routes and some 314 million passengers in 2003.
With assistance mobilised by the EBRD, the company is now undergoing
modernisation. A new public sector contract will define the rights and
obligations of the City of Krakow and MPK, set objective targets and introduce
a transparent remuneration system to ensure a stable commercial framework for
the company.
The separation of regulatory, operations and infrastructure management will
help to maintain service quality, while increasing efficiency and reducing
operating costs, said Thomas Maier, EBRD Director of Municipal and
Environmental Infrastructure. The selection of a private bus operator to run
part of the bus services, planned for a tender during 2005, will foster
competition.
A priority for MPK is the modernisation of its rolling stock. The company’s
426 trams have an average age of 22 years, and its buses are on average 7.7
years old. The acquisition of 24 new low floor trams with EU and EBRD funds
will represent significant improvement as will the renewal of infrastructure.
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