Record-breaking conference Railway Systems of the 3rd Millennium.

Up to 160 people discussed railways and intermodal transport within the 6^th annual of the Railway Systems of the 3rd Millennium conference in Ustroń

The 6^th annual of the Railway Systems of the 3rd Millennium conference organised by the companies První Signální and OLTIS Polska took place on 3-5 February 2016. A record number of people from the field participated this year. In addition to rail manufacturers and service suppliers, also representatives of research institutes came to Ustroń. Among the represented institutes were: VVUZ – Railway Research Institute, University of Žilina, Politechnika Warszawska – Wydział Transportu, Wyższa Szkoła Techniczna in Katowice, Wyższa Szkoła Biznesu w Dąbrowa Gorniczej, Instytut Kolejnictwa and a representative of the Ministry of transport, construction and regional development of the Slovak Republic, but also representatives of law firms who supported us with their knowledge of the legal field.

Participants attending the plenary session of the conference had the opportunity to see professional and interesting presentations, relating not only to safety:

• Dr. ing. Marek Pawlik, Politechnika Warszawska, Instytut Kolejnictwa, talked about the interoperability of EU railway system
• Prof. ing. Marek Sitarz, Wyższa Szkoła Biznesu, Zespół Technicznych Środkowa Transportu Komitetu Transportu PAN (Group for technical means of transport of Transport Committee of the Polish Academy of Sciences) gave a lecture on the integrated safety management systems in rail transport
• Lucyna Bester, Instytut Kolejnictwa, spoke about use of systems for wireless data transmission in order to increase safety for unprotected railway crossings
• Adrian Furgalski, Railway Business Forum, spoke about the external costs of transport, with emphasis on railway accidents
• Beata Grabowska – Bujna Jastrzębska, Spółka Kolejowa, lectured on the charges for use of infrastructure and the high tariffs
• Prof. dr. hab. ing. Jacyna Marianna, Politechnika Warszawska, spoke about the technical and technological conditions for the organization of railway traffic
• The project manager for interoperability, Department of Informatics PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe S.A., talked about TSI TAF at PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe
• Mec Izabela Kowalczuk-Pakuła, office Bird & Bird, spoke about the protection of personal data and the amendment to the Public Procurement Act
• Katarzyna Więckowska, offices Adwokacka Katarzyny Więckowskiej, lectured on the subsidies in the new financial perspective 2014-2020

Our foreign guests:

• Ing. Jaroslav Grim Ph. D. Railway Research Institute gave a talk on the Test Centre VUZ Velim – a place for cost effective testing of railway vehicles in the 3^rd Millennium
• Peter Hrapko, Ministry of Transport, Construction and Regional Development of the Slovak Republic, spoke about Terminal intermodal transport. IS implementation of the project Žilina – Teplička

Participants from the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia could exchange experience and establish new contacts during the integration sections. A moving moment was handing over a check for the amount of 5001 zloty in the name of the participants and organisers into the hands of Elżbieta Grabowska, director of “Sindbad” a house of temporary residence, the association S.O.S. Children’s Village. The participants pointed out that the organizers prepared a very interesting artistic program during the gala dinner. Group Fragile from Slovakia sang more or less familiar songs without instrumental accompaniment. The group performed so well that soon the dance floor filled with dancers. A surprising and funny performance of the Czech comedian Richard Nedvěd caused loud laughter throughout the hall.

We would like to thank everyone for their participation at the conference, the speakers for their perfectly prepared contributions and our sponsors and business partners for their support. Without their help, the conference would not have reached such a high level. We invite you already to the next annual, which is held in February 2017.

For more information visit the conference website: http://www.railconference.com/koleje-2016/pl/

Thank you and we look forward to see you next year!