Arkadiusz Kołoś

The development of low-emission public urban transport in Poland

Abstract The aim of the paper is to identify the main factors and mechanisms behind the development of low-emission public transport vehicles in Polish cities. This innovation is primarily connected with growing environmental requirements for transport, with the EU environmental and transport policies being the key factors. However, strategies of local governments and municipal transport companies as well as the organization of urban transport - which differs significantly between cities - also play an important role. Three basic types of approach towards low-emission buses can be observed in Polish cities: tests of electric and hybrid vehicles, purchases of small quantities of buses in order to implement new solutions, and finally attempts to replace the majority or even the entire transport fleet with low-emission vehicles. It should be emphasised that an important element which affects the development of low emission public urban transport in Poland is the fact that the country has become one of the main bus producers in Europe - a fact which is a result of both large-scale foreign investments and the success of Polish manufacturers.

European semi-periphery under environmental pressure: the case of urban public bus transportation and private bus-makers in Poland

The authors explore the factors shaping the adoption of low-emission vehicles in urban public transportation in Poland. The country has leapfrogged to a position among European leaders in the manufacturing of hybrid and electric buses within 20 years due to foreign investors (Volvo) and domestic enterprises (Solaris). At the same time, the adoption of new powertrain technologies in urban public transportation has lagged behind Western Europe. Contrary to the hypothesis there is no hierarchical diffusion of hybrid and electric vehicles from major cities to medium-sized and smaller towns in Poland. EU regulations provide a general legal framework for environmentally-friendly public transportation; however, they do not determine the adoption rates of particular low-emissions technologies. The actual pattern of use of hybrid and electric vehicles in urban public transportation in Poland seems to depend on local factors in the main, including institutional arrangements, social and personal characteristics.

Connecting airports with cities. Perspectives of air-rail links development in central Europe

Air travel has increased rapidly in Central Europe in the first decade of the 21st century thanks to the admission of Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia to the European Union and the liberalization of their air travel market. Rapid increase in th