We are publicizing the matter at the request of one of our Readers. In an email to the editorial office, he wrote: “For over a month, there has been no MZK stop at the square on Zgorzelecka, where minibuses stop. Municipal buses do stop there anyway, but there is neither a timetable nor even a bus-stop pole!”
There is no pole with a timetable because the bus stop has been eliminated. The decision was made on November 25 last year at a meeting attended by district governor Cezary Przybylski, head of the District Roads Authority Roman Palczewski, head of the District Office’s Transport and Communications Department Żaneta Stefańska, as well as representatives of the District Police Headquarters and transport companies.
The District Office terminated the bus-stop agreements with all carriers. The decision took effect on January 15 this year. “I appealed against it,” says Andrzej Jagiera, president of the Municipal Transport Company. “I believe that removing our stop was a mistake.”
The MZK stop on Zgorzelecka had operated for 28 years. Problems began when stops for private carriers also appeared there. “For Municipal Transport Company buses, it was merely an intermediate stop. We have an extensive ticket-sales network. Only a few passengers bought tickets from the driver,” Jagiera points out.
As the head of MZK says, the situation was completely different for private transport companies. “For them, the stops on Zgorzelecka Street were the beginning and end of the route. Their passengers bought tickets from the driver,” Jagiera explains.
It took some time for all this to develop. MZK buses began having trouble reaching their own stop, especially during rush hour. Vehicles belonging to other carriers blocked the way for city buses.
The situation on Zgorzelecka did not escape the police officers’ attention. “The Bolesławiec district governor issued the decision to terminate the bus-stop agreements at the police’s request,” explains Majka Nowak, spokesperson for the District Office. “The officers found that it was dangerous there and that visibility was limited. There is also no suitable infrastructure or space to provide passengers with decent conditions.”
“In this way, everyone was held responsible. The situation caused by the appearance of stops for private carriers had a ricochet effect on us,” says Andrzej Jagiera regretfully.
“If we made an exception for one carrier, the other companies could feel unfairly treated. This decision will not change,” Majka Nowak emphasizes. “The district governor’s primary concern is passenger safety.”
What next?
“We will verify the timetables. Our passengers will have to board either on Sądowa Street or near the Carrefour store,” says the head of MZK. “According to the district governor, the carriers should reach an agreement with PKS. The PKS bus station has both a good location and suitable infrastructure,” Majka Nowak states.
We will return to the matter.
(information ii)