The change follows a March city council resolution covering shops and gas stations across the city. Restaurants, bars and pubs may continue serving alcohol overnight. Duty-free stores beyond security at Gdańsk Airport are also excluded. The measure passed with 26 votes in favor, none against, and seven abstentions.
Between 2018 and 2024, about 180 Polish municipalities adopted similar nighttime curbs, in 30 cases limited to part of a municipality. Such rules are most common in the Mazowieckie, Małopolskie and Wielkopolskie regions.
Among large cities, Kraków, Bydgoszcz and Biała Podlaska enforce citywide bans, while Poznań, Wrocław, Rzeszów, Katowice, Bielsko-Biała and Kielce restrict only their centers. Giżycko introduced a seasonal ban in June; Słupsk followed in July and Szczecin in early August.
Warsaw is weighing its own limits. Districts reviewed two draft ordinances: one from Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski setting hours from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. with a three-month grace period, and another from the Left caucus and Miasto Jest Nasze proposing 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. with a 14-day grace period after publication. Of the capital’s 18 districts, 14 issued negative opinions and four supported the move. Councillors will now consider the proposals.
(jh)
Source: PAP