Balczun Announces His Plan For Ukrzaliznytsia In Coming Months

The Ukrzaliznytsia public railway company’s head Wojciech Balczun presented the detailed action plan of the company’s management to the Ministry of Infrastructure on 25 July. The plan covers all areas of operations and includes short-term goals toward restoring Ukrzaliznytsia to normal operations.

According to the Polish executive, the presented the plan affects hundreds of activities.

According to Balczun, the main objective for the next six months is to combat corruption. In particular, he promised to implement transparent tender procedures. "A significant change to the approach – the tender specifications that are prepared for implementation of projects should yield offers that are as market-based as possible," Balczun wrote on his Facebook page.

Balczun also disclosed the upcoming changes to passenger transportation, preparations for modernization of rolling stock, launch of new train destinations, and improvement of services to passengers.

"From elementary cleanliness of trains to significant improvement of the quality of service provided to travelers. The principles of the plan for resumption of normal operations in the area of passenger transport have been prepared and their introduction will begin soon," Balczun said.

The head of Ukrzaliznytsia also announced steps to review the company’s tariff policy and step up the company’s international operation. In this context, Balczun announced his intention to create a new brand called UZ Cargo International within the next six months.

Balczun also announced an ambitious goal for Ukrzaliznytsia "to become a modern European rail champion."

The criteria for judging the success of the program are improvement of passenger satisfaction by 20%, reduction of the level of corruption by 90%, and USD 300-500 million in “additional financial results.” Domestic investment should total about USD 1 billion in the next 2-3 years.

As reported, Minister of Infrastructure Volodymyr Omelian said last week that he had not yet received an action plan for reform of Ukrzaliznytsia from Balczun.

"I want to finally obtain an action plan for reform with clear deadlines for me to understand who does what and in what time frame to ensure that we do not speak in the form of general declarations but move clearly step by step the way it should be," the minister said.