RegioJet will begin with a single daily round trip on Thursday, with a scheduled journey time of 3 hours 20 minutes. The company calls the service a pilot as it navigates the start-up process for rail operations.
From mid-December, the Czech carrier plans to expand its domestic network in Poland, and by April next year aims to roll out a full timetable on routes from Warsaw to Kraków, Poznań and the Tri-City, the paper reported.
The prospect of new competition has already fed through to pricing, Dziennik Gazeta Prawna said. On Friday, a PKP Intercity train leaving Warsaw 30 minutes before the RegioJet service was priced at PLN 45 (~EUR 11) — PLN 4 (~EUR 1) less than the rival — for a category that typically costs PLN 70 (~EUR 17).
A high-speed Pendolino service departing an hour earlier was offered at PLN 101 (~EUR 24), compared with the usual PLN 169 (~EUR 41) charged a few days before departure, according to the newspaper.
More rivals are coming. Next year PKP Intercity will face another challenger from the Czech Republic — Leo Express — which already runs Prague–Kraków trains and plans to extend services to Warsaw from March 1, 2026. The Warsaw–Kraków–Prague corridor will then have two daily round trips.
Leo Express sells its cheapest Warsaw–Kraków tickets for PLN 9 (~EUR 2), but Dziennik Gazeta Prawna reported there are only four seats per train at that fare.
(jh)
Source: RMF24