Since the beginning of 2025, Poland has been massively granting approvals to Russian bus operators. Starting in January, the Chief Road Transport Inspectorate (GITD) authorized twelve companies to operate international, regular routes between the two countries.
Our portal was intrigued by the information that on November 2, 2025, a bus service connecting the Russian city of Kaliningrad with Warsaw will be launched. The service will be operated by the Russian carrier OOO “PKF AwtoKonig” together with the Polish company “Trans-pol sp. z o.o.” As it turns out, this “thaw” will go even further, as a large number of new routes to Russia are expected to open.
Poland-Russia. Top-level transport connections
International bus service permits are issued by the Chief Road Transport Inspectorate (GITD). We asked this state institution to provide copies of the agreements concluded with the Russian Federation (and their dates) concerning bus transport. What did this inquiry reveal?
Since January 1, 2025, the Polish state has been issuing regular international transport permits on the Poland–Russia route at a rapid pace, including to companies registered in a country that is at war with Ukraine. This year, GITD has approved operations for twelve companies. In 2024, only two received such approval. Interestingly, before that (since 2021), only four carriers had been granted such permits. The issuance of authorizations for regular routes between Poland and Russia takes place in accordance with applicable law (including the Act on Road Transport of September 6, 2001 – Journal of Laws 2024, item 1539 – and the bilateral agreement between Poland and Russia).
According to Article 3(3) of the Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Poland and the Government of the Russian Federation on International Road Transport of August 30, 1996, both parties issue permits for international regular transport services covering the sections of roads within their respective territories. Permits for international regular passenger transport outside the EU are granted on the basis of partnership – to both a domestic carrier and a foreign partner (the obligation to have a partner results from Article 22(2)(2) of the Act on Road Transport). Consequently, on a given route, permits operate in parallel for a Polish entity and for an entity from a third country outside the EU, in this case – Russia.
Below we publish a table provided by GITD – a list of permits for international regular bus routes between Poland and Russia as of October 16, 2025.
