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The perception: a bus is nothing more than a utility vehicle taking people from stop A to stop B. It gets in the way of the private motorist, pollutes, and costs government money.

The reality is that buses are big business. The European market is estimated at over USD 32bn per annum and is growing. Poland alone is approaching USD 2bn, and that is from a historically low base. The city and regional bus fleets approach 30,000 in number, along with more than 3,500 trams that employ around 110,000 people. To put this in perspective: more than 15 million passenger trips will have been made today. Also the bus industry is subject to increasingly stringent environmental standards, design regulations and safety controls.

So what is the state of the Polish bus business in 2001? For the most part, the operations are still in the hands of local authorities or state owned regional bus companies. Funding relies on the generousity of stretched city budgets, or manages on operating revenue that is insufficient to support a capital investment programme.

New Polish-built bus sales are increasing, but so are imports, mainly in the form of used buses. According to Zasada Group, sales in 1998 came to 1,518 plus 322 imports. In 1999 they came to 1,309 plus 853 imports and sales in 2000 came to 1642 plus 1,907 imports.

Zasada has been calling on the government to limit the imports. But the bus companies donOt have the resources to buy all-new. At least fleet operators are taking action to improve the condition of buses on the Polish roads. The average used West-European bus is in superior condition to its Polish counterpart. The answer to ZasadaOs concerns lies in the structure of the business itself, and for the answers we should look towards the European Union.The UK embarked on the most radical shake up of bus operations in the 1980Os, which resulted in an open market and privatisation. Bus sales in the UK in 1999 came to 4,548 units, including 2,012 imports. In 2000 sales came to 4,381 units, including 1,808 imports, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

Noteworthy is thatUK imports are of new vehiclesNitOs hard to use left-hand drive used buses in the UK. However, the big difference between the two countries is the way in which the bus business functions. Other European countries are somewhere between the two.

Over the next few years Poland should open up the market. The present market is not going to work in the framework of the EU. The Commission of the European Communities on July 26, 2000 presented a proposal concerning public service requirements and the award of public service contracts in passenger transport.

Funding for modern buses relies primarily on the health of city budgets, as well as the generousity of local authorities and stateowned bus companies.

For Poland to comply, and more importantly, to stimulate investment in this sector, now is the time for the country to introduce proposals, which establish common rules for contracts, compensation payments, exclusive rights, competition and transparency.

The UK transformation has led to the emergence of five large public transport groups, also active in the rail sector, and now investing heavily in mainland Europe and on other continents, especially the USA. These groups have identified profitable growth by focusing attention on what the market wants, instead of concentrating only on the technical side of the operation. Many partnerships with local authorities have emerged.

For example, in one major city a large group entered into a partnership with the city authorities to develop strategic public transport corridors. The city provided 2400 metres of bus lane, put in additional bus shelters, and created level boarding at bus stops, especially benefiting the disabled, and those with children and shopping. The Transport Company invested GBP 1.4m in new buses, with low floor easy access benefits, staff training, and improved marketing and information. Within three years there was an increase of over 12.5 percent in passenger journeys.

So perhaps the passenger is the most important after all.