Poland ranks poorly in European public transport: Analysis reveals
Greenpeace has released a report ranking public transport in Europe. Warsaw fared better than the rest of Poland.
In 2023, the non-governmental organisation Greenpeace released a report that compared public transportation in 30 European countries and their respective capitals. The report evaluated national and urban transportation based on four criteria: the ease of use of the ticketing system, the affordability of long-distance tickets, discounts for underprivileged social groups, and a low value-added tax rate (VAT).
Direct comparisons were made of prices without considering factors such as the residents' earnings. Hence, if Warsaw is ranked lower than Vienna, it means that Vienna has cheaper public transport.
Luxembourg, Malta, and Austria occupied the top three positions in the country rankings. Luxembourg, which introduced completely free public transport, including urban and rail transport, in 2020, was the only country to receive a perfect score of 100. Malta scored 88, while Austria scored 81.
Poland received only seven points, all of which were for having the lowest VAT in Europe (8%). Our country lacks a unified ticket system for inter-city transport and inexpensive long-term tickets. Moreover, discounts available on trains are much lower than those offered in many other European countries. For example, in Romania, pupils travel for free on trains, and students receive a 90% discount.
Poland and Lithuania both ranked 19th in the country ranking. This was because Bulgaria scored no points, while Croatia and Greece only received two points each.
Warsaw, on the other hand, performed better than the rest of the country compared to other European capitals. It ranked 12th with a score of 82.7 out of 100 points. Polandās capital received points for its affordable season tickets, as well as discounts for senior citizens, students, and individuals with disabilities. The top three cities on the list were Tallinn, Luxembourg, and Valetta, each receiving a perfect score of 100 points.
On the other hand, Zagreb, Copenhagen, and Berlin performed the worst in terms of public transport in their capital cities. Transportation in these cities is the most expensive in Europe, and discounts either do not exist or are insufficient to compensate for the high ticket prices.
