Distinguished for Their Service to the Capital and Its Railway

Twenty years after the first SKM train entered service in Warsaw, 15 employees of SKM have received the “Meritorious for Warsaw” award.

Passengers usually associate the railway with stations, stops, trains, drivers, conductors, or train managers. Out of sight for most travelers are the people who decide on timetables, punctuality, comfort, travel safety, the condition of the rolling stock, essential documentation, and the logistics that allow trains to leave the depot. Shortly before Railway Workers’ Day, celebrated on 25 November, 15 such employees of SKM received the “Meritorious for Warsaw” award.

“These are representatives of many railway professions: train drivers, train managers, traffic controllers, dispatchers, and people who for years have handled technical matters, logistics and supplies, transport planning, investments, development of the safety system, quality improvement, and administrative support. As a railway operator, we wanted to recognise those whose contribution to the development of our 20-year-old company is undeniable,” said Maria Wasiak, CEO of SKM.

“I like when everything works like clockwork,” says Michał Głaszczka. He knows very well what it means to work on the front line with passengers on board. Twenty years ago, at the very beginning of SKM’s operations, he started as a train manager. For the past 15 years, he has worked as a dispatcher. When an accident or sudden incident occurs on Warsaw’s tracks, stopping or delaying trains, he is the one who quickly provides information as the SKM dispatcher. “I am in constant contact with train managers, dispatchers at PKP PLK, ZTM (the Public Transport Authority), and other operators,” he explains. He feels that his work truly matters when thousands of SKM passengers can reach their destinations according to schedule—or, in the case of an accident or failure, with as little delay as possible.

Paweł Szmigielski has been a traffic controller for 13 years. He took part in building and developing the SKM traffic control post. During night shifts, the yellow-and-red SKM trains return to the depot as late as 1:00, only to leave again from 3:00—clean, technically checked, and ready for service. Traffic controllers are the ones who assign specific units to specific lines.

“Planning has to include all repairs, technical inspections, cleaning, washing, and reserve units,” explains Paweł Szmigielski. This often requires careful scheduling of departures and track occupation, as well as constant cooperation and information exchange with traffic dispatchers and train crews (drivers and train managers).

Michał Głaszczka and Paweł Szmigielski are among the 15 SKM employees who last Friday received the “Meritorious for Warsaw” award from City Councillor Piotr Wertenstein-Żuławski, Chair of the Warsaw City Council Infrastructure and Investment Committee.

“They all share professional knowledge, outstanding commitment, reliability, full professionalism, and dedication to public service. Thanks to them—and to many other employees of SKM—we can speak of the success of the company and of Warsaw Public Transport, which serves not only the capital but the entire Warsaw metropolitan area. Over the past 20 years, city trains have carried more than 320 million passengers, and nearly 60,000 people use SKM every day,” said Maciej Fijałkowski, Secretary of the City of Warsaw, who attended the event.