Koleje Dolnośląskie are on track to break another record. Let us recall that more than 19 million people used their services throughout 2023. Given the latest data, the number of passengers carried this year may be significantly higher.
– We knew that travel with Koleje Dolnośląskie was becoming increasingly popular, but the latest figures exceeded our wildest expectations. Nearly 1.9 million people used KD trains in January this year. Never before have we carried so many passengers in a single month – says Damian Stawikowski, president of Koleje Dolnośląskie. – Compared with January 2023, this represents an increase in the number of passengers of as much as 22.6% – he adds.
Other regional operators are also breaking records. Koleje Wielkopolskie announced that 1.65 million passengers travelled on its trains in January 2024. For the first time in the history of the Wielkopolskie carrier, more than one and a half million passengers used the company’s services in a single month.
– 2023 was a record year for Koleje Wielkopolskie, with nearly 17 million passengers using our services. We are also starting 2024 with a significant increase in the number of people travelling with Koleje Wielkopolskie. In January, we carried 1,657,253 passengers. We are proud that our offer is attracting more and more travellers, but we also appreciate our regular passengers – says Marek Nitkowski, president of the management board of Koleje Wielkopolskie.
Both Koleje Dolnośląskie and Koleje Wielkopolskie are carriers owned by the regional government.
The development of railways in Lower Silesia has meant that, over the past five years, rail connections have returned to towns inhabited by nearly 200,000 Lower Silesians.
– Rail connections have returned, among other places, to Lubin, Bielawa, Chocianów, Sobótka and Świeradów-Zdrój. We are the province conducting a pilot programme for the revitalisation of railway lines using our own funds – says Tymoteusz Myrda, a member of the management board of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship responsible for railways.
In passenger surveys, rail travel in Lower Silesia was rated the best regional railway service in Poland, with a score of 6.57 on a 10-point scale. The Wielkopolskie Voivodeship is also rated very highly by travellers, who gave it 5.90 points. The surveys were conducted by the Transport Economics Association.