The Republic of Poland is a country in the eastern part of Central Europe, with a population (according to 2015) of thirty eight and a half million people. Despite the fact that its economy has been developing rapidly over the past ten to twelve years, Poland for the most part still remains a so-called transit country. If you look at the map of the world, it becomes obvious that the main automobile passenger and freight traffic between Asia and Europe converges at this point, so toll roads in Poland are an opportunity to quickly and inexpensively transit this rather big country.
Transport corridor
Logistic paths are easy to follow. Due to the aggravation of political and economic situations in Ukraine and Turkey, these two automobile corridors can be said to be practically closed. Therefore, the main flow of trucks and autotourists converge in the last of possible options travel to the central part of Europe - in the Republic of Belarus. The bulk of cargo traffic from Central Asian countries, for example from Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and other former Soviet republics, goes through Russia, to Moscow, then to Belarus, Minsk and Brest. And from Brest the goods continue their journey across Poland. From the Baltics, the only way, for example, to the Balkans, also runs through the border of the Pansta.
Are there toll roads in Poland?
Many people ask this question when getting ready for the road and paving their route to their destination. The answer is simple - yes. But so far there are very few of them: only three. the increased level of comfort every year in the country becomes more and more, but tolls are still charged on them only on the A1, A2 and A4 highways. And even then, not in all areas, but only in the busiest, with heavy traffic and increased wear road surface... Despite the relatively high cost of toll roads in Poland, there is a high demand, and at the toll station there are often congestions, and sometimes, as a rule, during rush hours, and traffic jams.
Even before the entrance to the paid site, the drivers following in passing direction, several times warn about payment (pobor opłat). The fundraising itself is carried out at specialized posts in the direction of travel, but, as a rule, when leaving the toll site or when passing the checkpoint of payment. Even before entering toll roads in Poland, drivers always have the opportunity to leave the highway and go to its free analogue. Moving along it will not be so comfortable, the travel time will increase, but you will not have to spend money paying for travel.
Travel along the A1 highway
To enter the toll roads A1 and A2, the driver needs to take a ticket, wait for the opening of the barrier and continue driving. Information about the point of entry to the highway is recorded on the coupon. The calculation of the fare depends on the type of vehicle (motorcycles, cars, cars with a trailer, buses, freight transport) and the distance traveled. There are ten toll checkpoints along the A1 highway along its entire length.
The maximum fare for a passenger car here will be 29.90 (about 7 euros, or 500 Russian rubles), for a passenger car with a trailer - 71 zlotys (16.6 euros, or 1200 rubles). You can pay for travel in cash or with a plastic (credit or debit) card. When paying in cash, both national currency and euros and American dollars are accepted for payment, however, the latter are only in banknotes (coins are not accepted) and with a face value of no more than 100.
Payment on the A2 and A4 highways
The cost of toll roads in Poland is lower than in Spain, France or Italy (where a similar payment method is used). However, for the local population, it is still quite high, therefore, such highways are used, as a rule, by transit drivers or regular long-distance truckers.
A similar situation is on the A2 highway, which runs through the whole country and is a continuation of the travel route from Moscow through Minsk, Brest to Berlin and further to the A2 highway. There are four toll sections on the A2 highway, they start from Lodz and go almost to the border with Germany. The total cost of travel on this route for a passenger car with two axles will be 54 PLN and ten grosz. In euro terms, this amount is equal to 12.5 euros or 880 Russian rubles. At the entrance to each paid section, the driver will need to take a coupon, and when leaving, pay for the kilometers traveled.
On another toll road - A4, which connects such large cities as Krakow, Katowice and Wroclaw (Breslau), drivers have to pay at each collection point (there are only two of them: in Myslowice and in Balice). Then you have to pay for the fare based on the tariff of 10 Polish groschen (2.5 euro cents or 1.6 Russian rubles) per kilometer.
Infrastructure
In Poland for passenger cars slightly more comfortable than for the rest of the type of transport. This is due not only to the infrastructure of gas stations, shops, cafes, but also to the planning of recreational areas, places for recreation and the organization of entrances to them. The road network itself and the scheme of interchanges are no worse than the neighboring, more developed countries. Drivers are offered modern refueling complexes famous brands (Shell, OMV, BP, Orlen, etc.), fast food restaurants (McDonald's, KFC, Burger King, etc.), as well as hotel rooms of European level of service. Recreation areas for independent overnight stays, camping sites, as well as stations for servicing campers have been equipped.
Driving directions
Drivers who drive up to the collection points for the first time in their lives experience a slight panic, and the only question that revolves in their heads is: "How to pay for toll roads in Poland?" And this is not without reason, because the highway is expanding sharply, and before the eyes of the motorist, ten to sixteen stationary payment posts appear. And almost every one of them has a queue of cars.
The most important thing here is not to get nervous, but to study the graphic information from the shields installed above each of the terminals. Basically, such points are divided into those that work with cash (image of coins and / or bills), with plastic cards (image of a card, as a rule, with the inscription VISA), with special pass cards (image of specialized cards with the inscription PASS or other ), travel using a transponder (image of radio waves and signature viaToll, TELEPASS or other). Your option is the first two. Experienced travelers advise you to go to the place where cash is accepted, because there, as a rule, there is an employee who, in extreme cases, will be able to help you by suggesting further actions.
In Poland, they are very easy to use, judging by the numerous reviews of autotourists. Many people say that it is worth driving through any of them just once, and the abundance of terminals and payment methods immediately ceases to scare you. Also, reviews tell us that payment is fast. Drivers from other countries praise the ability to pay in euros and US dollars. The most important thing is to remember (this is what the reviews say) that the coupon must be saved before leaving the paid site. If the coupon is lost, the driver will be charged at the maximum rate.
Features and benefits of Polish roads: markings, markings, road signs, Traffic rules, driver culture, pedestrian crossings, toll roads and photographs.
Foreword
I never thought that I would truly love Poland, but after several trips my opinion has changed a lot. Now I dream that we have such drivers, roads and a minister of transport as in Poland.
Poland is the first country that Russian car travelers encounter on their way to the EU. They travel along the standard route: the M1 - Brest - Europe highway, so a little knowledge about Polish roads, traffic rules and driving habits will be useful.
So, the impressions about Poland can be divided into three blocks: how the state cares about drivers and pedestrians, how local drivers respect each other and, finally, a little tar in the Polish barrel of honey - our Russian pluses, which, however, border on minuses.
Poland through the eyes of a driver
Poland has a very extensive network of roads, many highways, and it is a pleasure to travel around this country.
The first thing that meets a driver entering Poland is an information board that briefly explains the traffic rules section. speed mode and the issue of paying for roads.
The speed limit in Poland is well thought out - there are six types of roads, each with its own speed. Regardless of the category, the roads are well-groomed, with the correct slope, there is never water or snow on them.
They warn about photo radars in advance, and they themselves are bright yellow, most often they stand at pedestrian crossings, as a rule, there are none outside the city.
The roads themselves are beautiful, like the bridge in Wroclaw, picturesque. It is a pleasure to ride them.
In Poland, there is a very simple system of paying for roads (this applies to cars, trucks and commercial vehicles have their own kitchen) - you go and pay.
The toll road is indicated in advance, an alternative is offered. Then booths appear on the road, where you give the operator zlotys, euros or dollars, and he knocks out a check and gives change (only in zlotys). So until the next point of payment. Many highways were originally planned as toll ones, but now travel on them is free.
Paying to the operator is easy and simple, because:
You always know that this is where the toll road started. For example, in neighboring Czech Republic they are not warned about this, and the fine is huge.
You pay for specific kilometers, not mythical trips, as with vignettes.
No trouble with money - the operator takes everything and gives change, but the machine is capricious in this regard.
This method is very convenient for us, who are not used to toll roads and their features.
Differences from Russian traffic rules
It will be enough for a Russian in Poland to find his way around, there are no special differences in traffic rules, everything is correctly and clearly explained by signs.
A significant difference is higher fines, which are inevitable even for small excess.
And yet, in Poland they denote in a special way settlements: distinguish between the name itself and the immediate beginning of the village. Signs can be located at a distance from each other, or on the same pillar.
A pedestrian in Poland - a man with a capital letter
In Poland, the issue of pedestrian safety is very well developed. Roads often pass through settlements, so traffic lights, safety islands are installed everywhere, there are bright markings.
By the way, these islets are in complete disaster, for pedestrians it is a plus, for drivers - a minus. And although it is known in advance about their approach, they appear unexpectedly: suddenly there are poles on the road, artificial elevations. It is necessary to calculate overtaking in order to make it to the islands, to slow down in order to fit into the proposed narrow space. Poles themselves sometimes skip the islets along oncoming lanewhen they realize that they do not have time to complete overtaking. Of course, you cannot do that.
Informativeness of Polish roads
The information content of Polish roads is very high, it is impossible to download here to a policeman who has not seen the sign or markings. And I do not want to violate seeing such a respectful attitude towards the driver.
Signs are duplicated, signs are repeated at roundabouts - this is what the whole world could learn from Poland. You will never go your way here.
The markings are always bright, clear, clearly visible in rain or fog. In the mountainous regions of Poland, they use additional marking options, put much more signs, in short, they warn and warn in every possible way. This helps a lot, especially if the driver is tired.
Where can a driver rest in Poland?
Strange, but in Poland you can find a paid toilet at McDonald's or at a gas station, even if you buy fuel from them. At the same time, there are wonderful free parking spaces with parking pockets, clean toilets, gazebos, benches and a lawn.
So that cars do not interfere with each other, there is a diagram at the entrance to such a parking lot, where places for trucks, cars, buses and motorcycles are indicated.
You can stay in numerous roadside restaurants, rather, these are recreation complexes where Poles love to celebrate their celebrations.
Road repair in Poland
As usual, when we have a long-abandoned sign "40" or another 20 kilometers before repair, everything is different in Poland. If a section of the road is being repaired, then signs with restrictions are placed directly in front of the brigade and immediately behind them, i.e. the driver does not pass a single meter at a low speed. Everything is indicated by signs and markings.
An interesting moment is with the autobahns - they are almost always open, even if they are unfinished. There is a ready-made piece, for example, near Warsaw, 22 km away - please ride with the breeze at least a little bit until the continuation is opened.
The Poles seem to be expanding rather good roads, and in a smart way, they are trying to significantly divide the oncoming traffic. In this place, most likely, there will be a high-speed highway up to 120 km / h.
Poles behind the wheel: how are they different from us?
What's also nice about Poland is how other drivers behave. The road there is a zone of complete respect and freedom, no one bothers anyone. I want to fly at an incredible speed - please, the Poles understand this and will never pass it on to the police, you go slowly - your right, no one will prop up.
In Poland, it is customary to give way for any overtaking, you need to shift to the right to the side of the road. There is no humiliation in this, it is natural and convenient.
Our drivers are far from such a culture, which is sad. In our country, on the contrary, it is customary to assert ourselves and solve our complexes.
On high-speed roads, it is also customary to free the left lane, if someone is going faster than you, to slow down a little at junctions - suddenly someone missed their turn, and now through several lanes or in reverse will go wherever he was.
But not everything is so smooth! Poles always turn on the turn signal, but often literally already at the beginning of the maneuver, while they brake sharply. Crossroads must be passed carefully. Poles very often warn of police ambushes, communicate by radio, treat Russian drivers calmly, do not distinguish them in any way.
What can we be proud of looking at Polish roads?
As wonderful as Poland is, it has serious capitalist downsides. It is difficult to illustrate them in a photo, because many things are simply forbidden to photograph.
Fuel cost... Many autotourists try to refuel in Belarus at our prices, so the border guards endlessly tighten the transportation of fuel and even note how many liters you have in the tank now. These restrictions mainly apply to "fuel tankers" - Belarusian entrepreneurs who earn extra money by selling fuel abroad on weekends.
In Poland, it is noticeable where the interest from the sale of fuel goes - the cost of a liter of gasoline in our country will soon be equal to that in Europe, but the roads are unlikely to become so clean, smooth and thoughtful.
The cost and efficiency of emergency services... It is known that on the Autobahn you can only stop in authorized places. If it becomes necessary to slow down for a minute - to warm up, check luggage, wipe glass or pour coffee, you can be sure that it will arrive in a few minutes emergency service and check the reason for the stop. And if the driver says that he grabbed his heart or stomach, or the car broke down, they will immediately call an ambulance car or a tow truck. All this will cost a lot of money.
Yes, we save a lot on this, no one will impose paid emergency services on us, but it can take us hours to get to an accident.
Police ambushes... In Poland, the practice of covert surveillance of drivers is widespread. For example, a girl with fluffy hair driving a convertible or a grandfather in an old wreck can easily turn out to be police officers and be fined for minor speeding or pedestrians. If in Poland a car is following you for a suspiciously long time (a couple of minutes) and does not attempt to overtake you, do not rush. Probably, your art is recorded on the registrar. Fortunately, we have not thought of this yet.
You should definitely visit Poland by car, it is an unforgettable experience and emotions - perfect order on the roads when everything is done for drivers.
At the end of 2014, the length highways Poland was about 3200 km, of which 52% fell on express roadsand 48% - on the autobahns. But already in 2016, the government launched a national road construction program to create 950 km of new motorways. As before, the roads in Poland are good, but many of them are toll roads.
Development of the road system in Poland
Back in 2011, the viaTOLL system started working here - the drivers of all vehicle weighing more than 3.5 tons are paid for each kilometer of the road. The collected funds are used to further develop the country's road infrastructure.
Since October 1, 2016, toll roads have appeared in 7 voivodeships: Lower Silesian, Silesian, Lodz, Mazovia, Podkarpackie, Swietokrzysk and West Sea. Most of the new toll roads are on the recently completed A4 Autobahn, which connects western and eastern Poland. This is a key road of not only national but also international level - it connects the main industrial facilities of the country and turns into the German motorway of the same name.
The total length of the A4 autobahn is almost 700 km - the road starts from the Ukrainian-Polish border, leads to Krakow and further to Germany. You will have to pay for traveling on a comfortable highway, but you can always use free roads.
Toll roads in Poland - how and where to pay?
For the convenience of drivers, you can pay for toll roads in 2 ways:
1) make a payment to the operator at the checkpoints on the autobahns;
2) make payment through special machines at the entrance to paid sites.
Today, toll roads in Poland are limited to the A1, A2 and A4 autobahns.
The A1 Autobahn leads from Torun to Gdansk - the toll for the whole journey is PLN 29.90. The tariff on the sections Torun - Grudzidz and Grudzidz - Gdansk is 12.30 and 17.60 zlotys, respectively. Other sections of the motorway within Poland are free.
The A2 Autobahn passes through Swiecko, Poznan, Konin, Stryków, Lodz and Warsaw. Traveling the entire Autobahn will cost PLN 78.90. The fare between some points is PLN 17, but there are also free sections (Swiecko - Rzepin, Lodz - Warsaw, etc.).
The A4 Autobahn will cost 36.20 PLN. The section from Zgorzelec to Wroclaw is free, but then you have to pay PLN 16.20 to Gliwice and PLN 20 from Krakow to Katowice.
There are more than 1,630 km of motorways in Poland. Passenger car drivers pay to use almost half of them. Highway tolls differ depending on who is driving them. We present a guide to toll roads in Poland.
Ultimately, all motorways in Poland must become toll roads. So far, most of them use the viaTOLL (Polish "Platon") system, with the help of which truck and bus drivers pay taxes. Drivers of all other vehicles pay for travel on sections over 700 kilometers.
New Polish motorways are free until the completion of construction and the introduction of a payment system.
Drivers of cars and motorcycles drive free of charge, in particular, in the sections of the A1 Torun - Strykow and A4 Debica - Rzeszow motorways opened in 2016. Formally, because there are still construction sites where work is underway. On A1, it is necessary to build fifteen overpasses, exit roads, service maintenance and Kutno Vostok knot.
To be able to make payment, it is necessary to build parking lots, gas stations, and, of course, payment points, in the near future their construction is not planned. In 2017 to be commissioned electronic system levying a toll that will work on all motorways and will be mandatory for all drivers. Gates with cash desks and barriers will become unnecessary.
All plots under construction, and those that are ready but not yet charged, will be covered by the GDDKiA system. For drivers, this means that the cost of travel will be determined by the Minister of Infrastructure, and the General Directorate will be in charge of maintaining and repairing roads. Its representatives promise that the fare will be the same as on the A2 Strykow - Konin and A4 Katowice - Wroclaw highways. At the moment it is 10 pennies per kilometer for cars and 5 pennies per kilometer for motorcycles.
On the A1 Gdansk - Torun highway, car drivers and motorcyclists pay 16 kopecks per kilometer. On A2 from Swiecko, where the toll is collected from Rzepin to Nowy Tomysl, the duty rate is 20 grosz per kilometer, on A4 Katowice - Krakow (Katowice-Krakow) - 29 grosz per kilometer. Even more expensive, on the A2 highway from Nowy Tomysl - Konin, drivers pay 34 grosz per kilometer. The A2 motorway was built with private money, and the investor must hold high enough rates to have funds to maintain the road, pay off loans, build, and make a profit.
On Polish roads, there are two systems for collecting tolls at the start - closed and open. The first one operates on the routes A1 Gdansk - Torun and A2 Švecko - Novy Tomysl. The driver pays for each kilometer traveled at the entrance at all exits and at the end. The closed system operates on A2 Novy Tomysl - Konin and A4 Katowice - Krakow. Here, payment is made at the start and at the end. The driver must pay for the entire section. On the A4 highway, the toll is payable at toll stations near Katowice and Krakow. The driver pays in half for the fare for this section at the beginning and end.
On roads operated by GDDKiA, passenger car drivers can pay non-stop fares. But for this they need to buy a viaAUTO device that works in the viaTOLL system. Such a device costs one hundred zlotys, of which half of the amount is money that you can pay for the tolls.
The communicator can be purchased, in particular, at petrol stations and at service points, a list of which is available on the website www.viatoll.pl. Road tolls can later be paid in three ways. The simplest and most popular one resembles a deposit mobile phone... The driver at the service point indicates the device number and enters minimum deposit 50 zlotys. You can also register your device via the Internet and control your expenses and replenish your account via the network yourself. There is also the possibility of paying bills for actually covered sections. Then the system operator will send the driver a monthly bill.
Toll sections of motorways in Poland
Motorway A1 Gdansk - Torun
Duration: 152 km
Cars 30 zl (20 g / km)
Motorcycles - 30 zl (20 g / km)
Motorway A2 - Strykow - Konin
Duration: 99 km
Cars - 9.9 zl (10 g / km)
Motorcycles - 5 zl (5 g / km)
Motorway A2 - Konin - Poznan - Swiecko
Length: 255 km
Cars - 72 zl
Motorcycles - 72 zl
The fee per kilometer varies on two sections. Between Rzepin and Novy Tomysl (88 km) it is 20 g / km. On the Novy Tomysl - Konin section (150 km), drivers pay 36 g / km. The highway on the section Svecko - Rzepin is free of charge.
Toll roads in Poland. Highway fares in Poland in 2019
(Click on the picture)
In accordance with current legislation, all motorways in Poland will be toll. Currently paid are:
Motorway A1 Gdansk - Torun The length of the road section is 152 km.
Motorway A2 - Strykow - Konin The length of the road section is 99 km.
Motorway A2 - Konin - Poznan - Swiecko The length of the road section is 255 km.
Motorway A4 - Krakow - Katowice The length of the road section is 62 km.
Motorway A4 - Gliwice - Wroclaw The length of the road section is 162 km.
Taxes for cars, vans and caravans are approx. 2 Euro. Travel on individual sections of the Autobahn costs 1 Euro. Payment is made in cash only and in local currency only.
Here you can find out about the prices for travel on toll roads throughout Europe, click on the map on the country you are interested in and the table will show the prices for travel.
Today in Europe there are at least 28 countries that have toll roads:
