Authorities in Kiev have announced that they have started sending trucks by rail to Poland to avoid the fact that Polish road hauliers have been blocking the border between the two countries for a month.
In a statement released to the public, officials of Ukraine’s state railway company, Ukrzaliznytsia, said they had sent “the first truck train to Poland”.
According to the source, the convoy is due to pass through the Izov – Hrubieszów border crossing in south-eastern Poland, and after crossing the border, the trucks will continue their journey to their final destination by road. “Similar journeys will be organised in the opposite direction,” Ukrzaliznytsia said.
Trucks on rail in Poland after road hauliers block borders
Since early November, Polish truck drivers have blocked the main crossing points between their country and Ukraine, denouncing “unfair competition” from Ukrainian transport companies. Above all, they are demanding the re-establishment of a European permit system for Ukrainian transport companies sending trucks to Poland.
The blockade has created endless queues at the border and is a major economic problem for Ukraine, which relies heavily on the roads for its exports and imports of grain and other food goods, especially since the Russian invasion in early 2022.
Officials in Brussels have dropped the restrictive system to support Kiev after the Russian attack in February 2022. Initially signed for one year in June 2022, an agreement liberalising the transport of goods between Ukraine and the European Union was later extended until June 2024.
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