ZVOLEN, April 15, (WEBNOVINY) — Transit truck transport on second and third category roads should be forbidden in the near future, stated Transport Minister Jan Figel at Friday’s meeting of employees and management of railway companies with representatives of the Transport Ministry, whose point of interest was revitalization of the railway companies. A ban of trucks from second and third category roads is one of the prepared measures to redirect cargo transport from overloaded roads to railways.
The minister went on to say that Slovak railway companies face tough competition in a liberalized market environment, but it still offers possibilities to expand. Figel pointed out that the railway firms could do better, win larger contracts, increase the volume of cargo transport. “Many routes are bypassing us, even routes from Hungary to Poland,” the minister complained.
According to head of the railway section at the Transport Ministry Jiri Kubacek, the railway sector is in a catastrophic condition owing to three reasons. According to him, the state has left coordination of railway and road transport to develop by itself, the state has not paid to the full extent for ordered services, and railway companies have not been effectively managing their assets. Correction of this state requires an immediate halt to growing indebtedness of the firms, preparation of the freight transport company Cargo Slovakia for entry of a strategic investor and reaching balanced results in the national railway network operator ZSR and passenger railway company ZSSK. The ministry is preparing a draft bill on public passenger transport as a legislative means to coordinate, integrate, and harmonize transport on the road and railway networks.
The meeting with the ministry’s representatives attracted a high number of employees of the railway firms. Their questions concerned in particular the planned layoffs. Minister Figel stated that the railway companies cannot be social companies, and have to compete well on the common EU market, which continues to grow.
SITA