Public transport in Warsaw free today amid pollution worries
PR dla Zagranicy
Paweł Kononczuk
15.12.2016 14:42
Warsaw City Hall on Thursday for the first time gave residents free access to public transport across the capital in a bid to reduce high air pollution.
Free tram in central Warsaw on Thursday. Photo: PAP/Marcin Obara
Warsaw Deputy Mayor Michał Olszewski said: “We urge residents to leave their cars at home and use the public transport system. We ask them not to use their fireplaces.”
He added: “Residents should also limit the time they spend outside, especially in the eastern districts of Warsaw, where the level of pollution might be especially high.”
Anna Dworakowska-Guła, from a grass-roots movement called Kraków Smog Alert, which aims to educate residents in Kraków, southern Poland, about the dangers of pollution, said: “It’s very good that the problem of smog is being noticed in our capital too.
“Maybe this will force politicians to take the necessary action and legislative changes in order to improve air quality in the whole country.”
She added that making public transport free would have an “educational and public awareness impact”, but would not significantly improve air quality.
(tf/pk)