A Study of the Efficiency of Regional Railway Services: The Case of Poland
Regional railway transport is an alternative to individual transport that contributes to a reduction in external costs and is considered a public service obligation (PSO). A common way to measure the efficiency of regional railway transport is compensation for operational performance in train-kilome...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Collegium of Economic Analysis, SGH Warsaw School of Economics
2023-12-01
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| Series: | Gospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://gnpje.sgh.waw.pl/A-Study-of-the-Efficiency-of-Regional-Railway-Services-The-Case-of-Poland,174499,0,2.html |
| _version_ | 1797366212261314560 |
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| author | Michał Zajfert |
| author_facet | Michał Zajfert |
| author_sort | Michał Zajfert |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Regional railway transport is an alternative to individual transport that contributes
to a reduction in external costs and is considered a public service obligation
(PSO). A common way to measure the efficiency of regional railway transport is
compensation for operational performance in train-kilometres. However, this
metric does not accurately reflect the true efficiency of this kind of transport as
it overlooks the main objective of engaging public funds. The goal is not merely
to operate trains at the lowest possible cost, but rather to provide maximum societal
benefits. Our analysis revealed a significant challenge in determining the
actual efficiency of regional railway services. The nationwide railway company
appears to employ cross-subsidisation of services to generate abnormal profits,
thereby reducing its expectations in the face of potential competition and artificially
improving its efficiency in areas where there is real competition. The current
organisation of regional railway transport makes it difficult to assess its efficiency
and, consequently, to select the optimal operator in economic terms. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T17:01:02Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8cd3ddca274649a18408e05ad34222cd |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2300-5238 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T17:01:02Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | Collegium of Economic Analysis, SGH Warsaw School of Economics |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Gospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics |
| spelling | doaj.art-8cd3ddca274649a18408e05ad34222cd2024-01-04T11:07:30ZengCollegium of Economic Analysis, SGH Warsaw School of EconomicsGospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics2300-52382023-12-013164305310.33119/GN/174499174499A Study of the Efficiency of Regional Railway Services: The Case of PolandMichał Zajfert0https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8104-9401Institute of Economics of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, PolandRegional railway transport is an alternative to individual transport that contributes to a reduction in external costs and is considered a public service obligation (PSO). A common way to measure the efficiency of regional railway transport is compensation for operational performance in train-kilometres. However, this metric does not accurately reflect the true efficiency of this kind of transport as it overlooks the main objective of engaging public funds. The goal is not merely to operate trains at the lowest possible cost, but rather to provide maximum societal benefits. Our analysis revealed a significant challenge in determining the actual efficiency of regional railway services. The nationwide railway company appears to employ cross-subsidisation of services to generate abnormal profits, thereby reducing its expectations in the face of potential competition and artificially improving its efficiency in areas where there is real competition. The current organisation of regional railway transport makes it difficult to assess its efficiency and, consequently, to select the optimal operator in economic terms.https://gnpje.sgh.waw.pl/A-Study-of-the-Efficiency-of-Regional-Railway-Services-The-Case-of-Poland,174499,0,2.htmlpublic transportregional transportrailway transportpublic service obligation |
| spellingShingle | Michał Zajfert A Study of the Efficiency of Regional Railway Services: The Case of Poland Gospodarka Narodowa. The Polish Journal of Economics public transport regional transport railway transport public service obligation |
| title | A Study of the Efficiency of Regional Railway Services: The Case of Poland |
| title_full | A Study of the Efficiency of Regional Railway Services: The Case of Poland |
| title_fullStr | A Study of the Efficiency of Regional Railway Services: The Case of Poland |
| title_full_unstemmed | A Study of the Efficiency of Regional Railway Services: The Case of Poland |
| title_short | A Study of the Efficiency of Regional Railway Services: The Case of Poland |
| title_sort | study of the efficiency of regional railway services the case of poland |
| topic | public transport regional transport railway transport public service obligation |
| url | https://gnpje.sgh.waw.pl/A-Study-of-the-Efficiency-of-Regional-Railway-Services-The-Case-of-Poland,174499,0,2.html |
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