‘Place railways at the heart of the recovery of European mobility’

The Polish railway undertaking PKP SA has appealed the European Commission to support railway investments that will effectively help stimulate the EU economic recovery plan. CEO Krzysztof Mamiński called for special priority for railway support and emphasised that grants are the optimal mechanism for financing railway investments.

The appeal was made in a recent meeting with the Vice-President of the European Commission Frans Timmermans on the role of railways in economic stabilisation after recovering from the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the European Commission the reconstruction instrument is to support immediate actions in the form of grants, loans and financial guarantees. Nevertheless, the accurate mechanism, direction, scope and proportions of financial instruments are not known yet.

Weakened ability to invest

Railway undertakings and infrastructure managers have suffered significant financial losses as a result of the pandemic. This has weakened their ability to provide their own financial contribution to launch future investments that will speed up the economy during the crisis, Mamiński argues. “I welcome all proposals for stimulating the economy, its growth and stabilisation with great expectations and hope”, said the head of the PKP Group.

“As PKP Group, we are ambitious in the realisation of railway investments, and at the same time we expect support for the railway sector from the European Commission”, said the CEO. “Talks with the commission should lead not only to prioritisation of the railway sector within the EU recovery plan, but also to place railways and other sustainable forms of transport at the heart of the recovery and renewal of European mobility”, he added.