Spatial aspects of the production and export of buses in Poland in the years 1989–2014

Abstract

In Central and Eastern Europe in the years 1949-1991 there existed the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance, which brought together the socialist countries of this part of the world. The internal rules of the organization selected leading companies in the production of rolling stock for public transport. Among many facilities producing buses, trams and trolleybuses, most supplied local markets only (within country borders where the facility was located), only a few were much more financed and developed, and they were engaged in the provision of rolling stock on a larger scale - export occurred (but mainly between the Council’s members). After a period of political change associated with the change of the government system, changes in Central and Eastern Europe started a significant transformation of the automotive industry, including the production of public transport fleet. In Poland, before 1989 there were two bus factories (in Sanok - “Autosan” and in Jelcz-Laskowice - “Jelcz”). After the political transformation, the market of the rolling stock producers in Poland has undergone a tremendous transformation. The main factors of the change were relatively low production costs (mainly due to lower wages than the ones of the workers in Germany) while maintaining quality and timeliness. These determinants influenced the decision on the transfer of production by large corporations to the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, including Poland. The second factor of this transformation was the privatization process in Polish factories and the technology transfer related to the process. Another important element was the investment of private capital in the production of transport vehicles, which has resulted in creating new production sites. Over the last 25 years Poland has become one of the major bus manufacturers in Europe. During this period, foreign brands opened new factories and Polish companies began producing vehicles under new brands. Companies in Jelcz- Laskowice and Sanok underwent the privatization process. The article analyses the transformation of the bus manufacturers market in Poland, both in terms of location and volume of production for the past 25 years. It also shows the export volume in spatial terms for the analyzed period of 1989-2014. Moreover, it defines factors for success and failure in the production and export of buses among existing producers.