In a week’s time from now, the RailFreight Summit kicks off. On Wednesday 1 September, the international rail freight community gathers in the city of Lodz, Poland. This will be the beginning of a two-day event full of interesting presentations, discussions and site visits.

Is this community gathering for real? Yes, it it is! We are proud to announce that this is the first physical event we may host this year, and this shows in the numbers. Around 200 people have registered for this event, making this the largest edition of the RailFreight Summit Poland so far. However, this also means that the tickets for an actual seat are now almost gone. In order to not miss out on this gathering, it is possible to purchase online tickets too. The online audience will be able to interact from distance too. The registration page shows the various options.

This year in Lodz

The RailFreight Summit in Lodz is already the 4th edition of this industry event. The previous editions took place in Wroclaw, Gdansk and Poznan. The city of Lodz has officially signed as a partnering city of this event. The city has gone through several developments in order to grow as an intermodal and important freight hub. It already has links to many major cities, and it lies at the crossways of main European transportation corridors. It is planning to carve out a much larger space on the logistics map.

A good example is the airport of Lodz. Offering air cargo services as well as possibilities for logistics growth, it is now looking to develop as a logistics cluster. The plans of the airports will be outlined by CEO Anna Mideira. The Deputy Mayor of Lodz, Adam Pustelnik, will tell us more about the city.

The programme

The programme includes more than only the city of Lodz. Poland as an intermodal market, and as a key transit country on the New Silk Road will be discussed in detail.

2021 is the European Year of Rail. This is the year rail transportation is in the spotlight more than ever. What does this mean for rail freight in the CEE region? Has it stimulated a modal shift? Has it improved the infrastructure that so many operators need? In other words, what is the result so far?

Moreover, what has happened on the New Silk Road this year? In Poland, or in the countries around Poland? It was a year full of unexpected events. In a CEO panel, the CEO’s of UTLC, Metrans, DB Cargo Eurasia and FELB will share their experience, while others share their side of the story.

Speakers

There will be some high-level speakers, such as the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Poland and the deputy mayor of Lodz. Of course there are also many speakers representing the market, in Poland and from the region. Large industry players such as DB Cargo and DHL will be present, but also newcomers to the market will have the chance to present their business case.

And, like every year, there are speakers from the wider region, presenting their business case or country development. Ukraine is high on the agenda this year, but we will also hear about Czech Slovakia, for example.