The Polish RFT sector - a summary

Second European road freight transport (RFT) flag holder in 2016 ranking and leader of international RFT in Europe, Poland represents itself over 28 % of international RFT activity.

Its RFT sector benefits from a strategic geographical location, relying on the strength of country’s economy and on the Polish politicians’ support on the European stage.

Despite the good national economic indicators, social demands and pressures on employment seem to negatively impact the Polish RFT.

The sector suffers from a lack of lorry drivers which cripples the companies with their development.

On the one hand, transport companies reorganise their activity in order to satisfy their employees: several bonuses are awarded, returns to home happen more often, duration of the circle journeys in Europe and the number of kilometers per lorry driver are reduced … One the other hand, hauliers make some adjustments in order to preserve their competitiveness and reduce other costs: a better negotiation of their leasing contracts or an optimisation of the use of their rolling stock…

The fuel price decrease is another important factor in favor of their cost cuts.

These efforts bring positive results, Poland maintains its leadership in 2016, realizing +18% for its international transport activity.

This summary of the 2017 version on the Polish RFT industry gives some details on the European leader and offers some comparisons with its French counterpart.