Abstract
Transport-based social exclusion is currently a serious social problem in Poland, and one which is apparently most severe at the level of the county (Polish powiat) in the south-east of the country, including the Beskid Niski and Bieszczady Mountains. A deeper illustration of this problem requires both observation of changes in the suburban public-transport network and the identification of areas in which this has deteriorated significantly in quantity and quality. The chosen starting point for the research was therefore 1990, as a year in which — on the one hand — the Polish economy was already shifted to the new free-market principles; while — on the other — state PKS (Przedsiębiorstwo Komunikacji Samochodowej) non-urban bus transport enterprises still dominated public transport. The endpoint of the study is then the beginning of 2019 (the author’s research year). The article introduced here seeks to identify and present cartographically the changes affecting the public-transport network in the study area over the last 30 years, as well as to point to possible consequences of these processes. The background of the described changes is also discussed, as are the observed consequences of what is taking place.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Cavallaro F, Dianin A (2019) Cross-border commuting in Central Europe: features, trends and policies. Transp Policy 78: 86–104. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tranpol.2019.04.008
Church A, Frost M, Sullivan K (2000) Transport and social exclusion in London. Transp Policy 7(3): 195–205. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0967-070X(00)00024-X
Ciechański A (2019) Challenges in the research on suburban bus transport network on the example of poviats of Low Beskids and Bieszczady Mountains. Pr. Kom. Geogr. Komun. PTG (22)2: 74–81. (In Polish) https://doi.org/10.4467/2543859XPKG.19.012.11152
Ciechański A (2020) Non-urban public bus transport against the COVID-19 pandemic — evidence from the Low Beskids and the Bieszczady counties. Pr. Kom. Geogr. Komun. PTG (23)2: 28–34. https://doi.org/10.7366/1509499538103
Currie G (ed.) (2011) New perspectives and methods in transport and social exclusion research. Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Bingley, United Kingdom.
Delbosc A, Currie G (2011) Transport problems that matter-social and psychological links to transport disadvantage. J Transp Geogr 19(1): 170–178. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2010.01.003
Demel G (2016) The ethnic situation in the interwar period], In: Wolski J (ed.), The Western Boyko Region — yesterday, today and tomorrow. Vol. 1. Warszawa, IGiPZ PAN. pp 457–471. (In Polish)
Dodson J, Buchanan N, Gleeson B, Sipe N (2006) Investigating the social dimensions of transport disadvantage—I. Towards new concepts and methods. Urban Policy Res 24(4): 433–453. https://doi.org/10.1080/08111140601035317
Dodson J, Gleeson B, Sipe NG (2004) Transport disadvantage and social status: a review of literature and methods. Urban Policy Program Research Monograph 5. Griffith University, Mount Gravatt, Australia.
Dubicki A (2019) Transport exclusion as heritage of communist period. The example of Poland. Rev Ştiinţe Pol 62: 22–32.
Friedmann J (1967) A general theory of polarized development. Santiago, Ford Foundation, Urban and Regional Development Advisory Program in Chile. p 81.
Friedmann J, Alonso W (1964) Introduction. In: Friedmann J and Alonso W (eds.), Regional Development and Planning. Cambridge, Mass, MIT Press. pp 1–13.
Gaffron P, Hine J, Mitchell F (2001) The Role of transport in social exclusion in urban Scotland. Literature review.: Scottish Executive Central Research Unit, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
Goodall B (1987) The Dictionary of Human Geography. Penguin, London, United Kingdom.
Grosse TG (2007) Selected theoretical concepts and practical experiences concerning the development of peripheral regions. Stud Reg Lok 27(1): 27–49. (In Polish)
Janusz A (2016) The development of entrepreneurship in the times of systemic and economic transformation, In: Wolski J (ed.), The Western Boyko Region — Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. Vol. 2. Warszawa, IGiPZ PAN. pp 433–443. (In Polish)
Jaroš V (2017) Social and transport exclusion. Geogr Pol 90(3): 247–263. https://doi.org/10.7163/GPol.0099
Kaczorowski J (2019) Excluded. On the liquidation of collective transport in villages and small towns. Przeględ Planiasty 4: 11–14. (In Polish)
Kamruzzaman Md, Hine J (2011) Participation index: a measure to identify rural transport disadvantage? J Transp Geogr 19(4): 882–899. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2010.11.004
Kamruzzaman Md, Yigitcanlar T, Yang J, Mohamed MA (2016) Measures of transport-related social exclusion: A critical review of the literature. Sustainability (Basel) 8(7): 696. https://doi.org/10.3390/su8070696
Karamuz P (2011) Social consequences of the liquidation of passenger rail connections in the rural areas of North-Eastern Mazovia. Pr. Kom. Geogr. Komun. PTG 18: 61–81. (In Polish)
Knowles R (1993) Research agendas in transport geography for the 1990s. J Transp Geogr 1(1): 3–11. https://doi.org/10.1016/0966-6923(93)90033-V
Kolodziejczyk K (2017a) Changes in the public transport accessibility of the Klodzko Land in relation to its tourist functions — selected issues. Transport Miejski i Regionalny 4: 18–25. (In Polish)
Kolodziejczyk K (2017b) Influence of changes in the bus transport offer on the accessibility of tourist attractions in the Klodzko land. Transport Miejski i Regionalny 5: 5–11. (In Polish)
Kolodziejczyk K (2020) Cross-border public transport between Poland and the Czech Republic and the development of the tourism functions of the region. Geogr Pol 93(2): 261–285. https://doi.org/GPol.0173
Kondracki J (2000) The regional geography of Poland. Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN Warszawa, Poland. (In Polish)
Kozanecka M (1980) Development trends for bus transport in Poland: a geographical and economic study. Wydawnictwo Naukowe Wyzszej Szkoły Pedagogicznej, Kraków. (In Polish)
Krukar W (2016) Wartime and post-war migrations of the Boyko, In: Wolski J (ed.), The Western Boyko Region — Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. Vol. 2, Warszawa, IGiPZ PAN. pp 17–61. (In Polish)
Lijewski T (1959) The development of the Polish railway network. Dokumentacja Geograficzna. Vol. 5. IG PAN, Warszawa, Poland. (In Polish)
Lijewski T, Koziarski S (1995) Development of the railway network in Poland. Kolejowa Oficyna Wydawnicza, Warszawa, Poland. (In Polish)
Lijewski T, Lenk J, Piotrowska H (1967) Development of railway and bus communication in Poland in the period 1946–1965. Dokumentacja Geograficzna. Vol. 5. IG PAN, Warszawa, Poland. (In Polish)
Lucas K (2012) Transport and social exclusion: Where are we now?. Transp Policy 20: 105–113. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tranpol.2012.01.013
Lucas K (2019) A new evolution for transport-related social exclusion research?. J Transp Geogr 81: 102529. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2019.102529
Lucas K (ed.) (2004) Running on empty: Transport, social exclusion and environmental justice. Policy Press, Bristol, United Kingdom.
Mackett RL, Thoreau R (2015) Transport, social exclusion and health. J Transp Health 2(4): 610–617. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jth.2015.07.006
Making the Connections Transport and Social Exclusion. Interim Findings Social Exclusion Unit (2002). Cabinet Office, London, United Kingdom.
Medeiros E, Ferreira R, Boijmans P, et al. (2021) Boosting cross-border regions through better cross-border transport services. The European case. Case Stud Transp Policy 9(1): 291–301. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cstp.2021.01.006
Męzyk A (2013) Flexible forms of public transport in the transport operating in the region. Studia Ekonomiczne 143: 262–270. (In Polish)
Michniak D, Więckowski M (2021) Changes of Transport in Cross-Border Tourist Regions in the Polish-Slovak Borderland: An (Un)Sustainable Development? In: Zamparini L (ed.), Sustainable Transport and Tourism Destinations. Transport and Sustainability 13. Bingley, Emerald Publishing Limited. pp 11–25. https://doi.org/10.1108/S2044-994120210000013004
Motyka G, Pisuliński JG (2016) Military operations and displacement of the population (1939–1947), In: Wolski J (ed.), The Western Boyko Region — Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. Vol. 1. Warszawa, IGiPZ PAN. pp 473–497. (In Polish)
Oszter V (2020) COVID-19 impacts on passenger rail transport in Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia and Romania. Pr. Kom. Geogr. Komun. PTG 23(2): 7–13. https://doi.org/10.4467/2543859XPKG.20.001.12099
Ranković-Plazinić B, Jović J (2018) Mobility and transport potential of elderly in differently accessible rural areas. J Transp Geogr 68: 169–180. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2018.03.016
Schwanen T, Lucas K, Akyelkena N, et al. (2015) Rethinking the links between social exclusion and transport disadvantage through the lens of social capital. Transp Res Part A Policy Pract 74: 123–135. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tra.2015.02.012
Shergold I, Parkhurst G (2012) Transport-related social exclusion amongst older people in rural Southwest England and Wales. J Rural Stud 28(4): 412–421. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrurstud.2012.01.010
Stanley J, Stanley J, Balbontin C, Hensher D (2019) Social exclusion: the roles of mobility and bridging social capital in regional Australia. Transp Res Part A Policy Pract 125: 223–233. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tra.2018.05.015
Smolarski M (2020) Restrictions on regional passenger transport during epidemiological threat (COVID-19) — an example of the Lower Silesian Voivodship in Poland. Pr. Kom. Geogr. Komun. PTG 23(2): 56–61. https://doi.org/10.4467/2543859XPKG.20.009.12107
Stępniak M, Wiśniewski R, Goliszek S, Marcińczak S (2017) Spatial accessibility to public services in Poland. Prace Geogr. IGiPZ PAN 261. IGiPZ PAN, Warszawa, Poland. (In Polish)
Taczanowski J, Kołoś A (2020) The influence of COVID-19 on regional railway services in Italy and Poland. Pr. Kom. Geogr. Komun. PTG 23(2): 40–45. https://doi.org/10.4467/2543859XPKG.20.006.12104
Taylor Z (1999) Accessibility to facilities versus daily mobility of rural dwellers. Prace Geogr. IGiPZ PAN: 171. IGiPZ PAN, Warszawa, Poland. (In Polish)
Taylor Z (2003) Accessibility to facilities versus daily mobility of rural dwellers: The case of Poland. In: Higgs G (ed.), Rural services and social exclusion, European Research in Regional Science 12: 95–125.
Taylor Z (2006) Railway closures to passenger traffic in Poland and their social consequences. J Transp Geogr 14(2): 135–151. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2005.05.003
Taylor Z (2007) The growth and contraction of the railway network in Poland. Monografie. Vol. 7. IGiPZ PAN, Warszawa, Poland. (In Polish)
Taylor Z, Ciechański A (2008) What happened to the national road carrier in a post-communist country?. Transp Rev 28(5): 619–640. https://doi.org/10.1080/01441640801943018
Taylor Z, Ciechański A (2020) Ownership transformation and FDI among national carriers operating road passenger transport services in the Visegrád Group (V4) countries. Geogr Casop (72)1: 81–102. https://doi.org/10.31577/geogrcas.2020.72.1.05
Ustawa z dnia 16 grudnia 2010 r. o publicznym transporcie zbiorowym [The Act of December 16, 2010 on collective public transport] (2011). Dziennik Ustaw 5: 13. (In Polish)
Velaga NR, Beecroft M, Nelson JD, et al. (2012) Transport poverty meets the digital divide: accessibility and connectivity in rural communities. J Transp Geogr 21: 102–112. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2011.12.005
Walsh K, O’Shea E, Scharf T (2019) Rural old-age social exclusion: a conceptual framework on mediators of exclusion across the life course. Ageing Soc 40(11): 2311–2337. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0144686X19000606
Więckowski M (2018) Political borders under ecological control in the Polish borderlands. Geogr Pol 91(1): 127–138. https://doi.org/10.7163/GPol.0105
Więckowski M, Michniak D, Bednarek-Szczepańska M, et al. (2012) Polish-Slovak borderland: transport accessibility and tourism. Prace Geogr. IGiPZ PAN: 234. IGiPZ PAN-GU SAV, Warsaw-Bratislava, Polnad-Slovakia.
Wolański M, Paprocki W, Mazur B, et al. (2016) Collective public transport outside functional urban area. Oficyna Wydawnicza SGH, Warszawa, Poland. (In Polish)
Wolski J (2016a) Keep from oblivion. In: Wolski J (ed.), The Western Boyko Region — Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. Vol. 1,. Warszawa: IGiPZ PAN: 21–42. (In Polish)
Wolski J (2016b) The landscape of abandoned villages in the Western Bieszczady: The problem of definition and classification. Geogr Pol 89(3): 371–387. https://doi.org/10.7163/GPol.0064
Zmuda-Trzebiatowski P (2016) Transport accessibility and participation in activities, poverty and the risk of social exclusion. Autobusy 17(12): 754–759. (In Polish)
Acknowledgments
The article was partly based on research within the framework of a project financed by the National Science Centre entitled: An empirical pilot study on transport exclusion in mountain areas based on the example of the Low Beskids and the Bieszczady counties (Miniatura 2, contract number 2018/02/X/HS4/00451).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Funding
Open access funding provided by Polish Academy of Sciences.
Rights and permissions
Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
About this article
Cite this article
Ciechański, A. 30 years of the transformation of non-urban public transport in Poland’s peripheral areas — what went wrong?. J. Mt. Sci. 18, 3025–3040 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-021-6762-y
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11629-021-6762-y