CK:PAP Expert Appointed to the ITS Section of the Transport Committee of the Polish Academy of Sciences

Dr Małgorzata Pełka, CK:PAP expert, has joined the group of researchers appointed to the Intelligent Transport Systems Section of the Transport Committee of the Polish Academy of Sciences. The letters of appointment were presented during the Section’s meeting held on 18 May 2026 at the Mercure Warsaw Centrum Hotel.

The appointment is a significant distinction for CK:PAP. The ITS Section of the Transport Committee brings together leading Polish academics and practitioners working on intelligent transport systems. The presence of the Centre’s expert on the Section secures CK:PAP’s direct involvement in the work of the foremost academic body shaping ITS thinking in Poland. The letters of appointment were jointly presented by the Section’s Chair, Prof. Mirosław Siergiejczyk, and the Chair of the Transport Committee of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Prof. Marianna Jacyna.

The scientific part of the meeting opened with a presentation by Assoc. Prof. Tomasz Kamiński, who shared the results of research conducted until 2022 at the Motor Transport Institute. The researchers examined how drivers respond to nine different messages displayed on variable message signs, collected survey data at motorway service areas, and analysed records from continuous traffic measurement stations. The findings revealed a clear discrepancy: although most drivers declare that they notice the signs and slow down when speed limits are imposed, in practice they reduce their speed by less than the sign requires. Drivers respond more effectively to messages that include the reason for the restriction, with the warning about strong winds proving the most influential.

The second presentation, delivered by Prof. Piotr Olszewski, addressed cooperative intelligent transport systems (C-ITS) and the EU’s C-ROADS programme. The speaker outlined the programme’s objectives and the number of projects completed, and noted that Poland has ultimately not joined the initiative.

The discussion pointed to one possible cause of drivers’ disregard for signage: the inadequacy of some Polish speed limits. Participants referred to solutions applied in other countries and emphasised both the need for further research and the necessity of concrete action in this area.

In current business, attendees were invited to the “Logistics Systems in Transport” conference, organised by the Faculty of Transport of the Warsaw University of Technology on 6–9 September 2026, whose programme will include a session devoted to ITS. The possibility of holding further meetings at the Office of Rail Transport (UTK) and at the Traffic Management Centre in Katowice was also discussed. The Section’s Chair called on members to deliver scientific presentations at the ITS Polska Congress 2027, in order to introduce the Section’s work to a wider audience. Members were also invited to take part in the remaining sessions of the ITS Polska 2026 Congress.