Zasada wants government to stop influx of foreign buses

Automotive firm Zasada S.A., which owns two leading Polish bus manufacturers, Jelcz and Autosan, has asked the government to impose limits on bus and truck imports, particularly of second-hand vehicles. Due to the difficult situation on the market, Autosan has announced it will lay off 10% of its 1,600-strong workforce, while Jelcz said earlier that it would cut 581 jobs. "In 2000, 1,907 buses were imported to Poland, of which 92% were second-hand," said Zasada president Franciszek Gaik. Meanwhile, 1,642 domestically produced buses were sold in Poland that year. Bus imports have increased dramatically over the past few years, as in 1998 only 322 were brought into Poland. Aside from limiting imports, Zasada also wants regulations passed which would require public entities acquiring buses to give preference to domestic producers. (Gazeta Wyborcza, p.18; Puls Biznesu, p.18) T.J.