Infrastruktura - Środowisko - Energia
Dodatek promocyjno-reklamowy do "RZECZPOSPOLITEJ".
20 grudnia 2006 r.

po polsku

A chance we will not miss

Interview with Jerzy Polaczek, Minister of Transport

It has been a year since you assumed the office of the Minister of Transport. What has changed in the Polish road system since then?

To answer this question we need to look back in time. Over the past 15 much talking has been going on about the motorway system in Poland years and... nothing more than that. This was because, among others, the motorway development programme did not sufficiently secure public interest and was inconsistently implemented. It also lacked real sources of financing. European Union funds for infrastructure development were inefficiently used and, as a result, their absorption was scarce.

When I assumed the office of the Minister of Transport, Poland had used merely 677 401.87 PLN under the Sectoral Operational Programme Transport (SOPT). This accounted for 0.015% of all financial resources envisaged for 2004-2006. The present government decided to change this situation. We know that without good quality roads Poland will not stand chances for quick economic development. By the end of December, we expect the return on infrastructure expenditure under SOPT to reach 180 million euros - which will mean a 100% increase compared with the 2006 expenditure level.

Changes that have taken place in the road system are probably best spotted by motorists who encounter detours and traffic restrictions. This year we have put particular stress on the reconstruction and modernization of national roads. Nearly 2 billion PLN have been spent to rehabilitate around two thousand kilometres of express roads accounting for around 10% of all national roads in Poland. These investments have brought us closer to the standards of other European countries.

If former governments had addressed the issue in a similar way, today we would be opening subsequent sections of motorways and enjoying better quality roads...

What was the reason for such a low level of absorption of EU funds by former governments? Does the Ministry plan to address the problem somehow?

The primary reason was inadequate planning with no financial backing. I want to stress categorically that from 1 January 2007 I will make sure that no road project and no investment task will be included in the Schedule of Works and Expenditures under the National Road Fund or the state budget unless it obtains construction permits by the end of December of the preceding year. This will significantly improve the level of EU funding utilization.

Another problem lied in the inability to cope with the preparation of investment process. Today it is easier to build a road than to prepare an investment project. Construction investments take about 2-3 building seasons to implement, while their preparation usually takes several years. Unfortunately, the former government left behind itself years of neglect rather than prepared investment plans. As a result, in majority of cases we have to start from the scratch. To maximally reduce project preparation period, the present government amended in record time environmental protection regulations, public procurement legislation, the act on specific terms and conditions of infrastructure investments and the act on special purpose vehicle for road projects.

Along with these changes, it also became necessary to facilitate procedures at different administrative levels. All these changes sought to shorten preparation time of road investment projects to the maximum of 2-3 years.

At the last press conference you talked about the immense opportunities that EU funds create for Poland...

That is true. We have prepared a historic budget which envisages allocation of a record amount of 26 billion euros to transport infrastructure projects in 2007-2013 under the Operational Programme "Infrastructure and Environment". Of the total, 19 billion euros will come from EU funds. Our principal task for the coming years will be to use all available resources allocated for infrastructure development to reconstruct the entire transportation system in Poland. For the first time we will integrate all transport branches in one investment programme. Nearly 60% of the resources will be allocated to road investments, 25% to rail investments and 10% to urban transport.

We are now doing more than just mere talking about the development of the intermodal transportation system in Poland - the mentioned programme will be the first to allocate nearly 109 million euros for this purpose. We will simultaneously develop air transport, inland navigation and intelligent transport systems.

When will we see the first results EU co-funded projects?

Thanks to EU funding, by 2010 we will complete the A1 motorway from Gdańsk to the Polish-Czech border in the South and the A2 motorway from the German-Polish border to Warsaw. By 2013, the A4 and A2 motorways will reach the eastern border of Poland. The S3 express road, which is scheduled to be completed by 2013, will connect harbours in Szczecin and Świnoujście with South Poland, including the A4 motorway in Legnica. The S7 express road will link Gdańsk with Rabka and the S8 express road will connect Wrocław with Augustów and Budzisk, located on the Polish-Belarus border. By that time, works on the S19 route along the eastern border of Poland will be well advanced.

At the same time we will maintain the annual 10% level of national road modernization achieved in 2006 to ensure convenient access to express roads and motorways in every part of the country.

Who will build the motorways?

As a Minister of Transport, I follow common sense and shake off dogmas according to which development of motorways lies in the domain of concessionaires. The state will pursue motorway expansion but will invite investors to enter public-private partnerships where it is economically justified. We hope that the cooperation between public bodies and future concessionaires will develop on a partnership basis.

I would like to use this opportunity to wish all readers of "Rzeczpospolita" the Merriest Christmas and all the happiness they could wish for.

TJ

www.mt.gov.pl