41 cities and communes, approx. 2.3 million inhabitants, approx. 240 thousand companies that produce about 8 percent of the Polish GDP. This is the first metropolis in Poland. It was established in the center of the Province of Silesia.
The area of the Metropolitan Association of Upper Silesia and Dąbrowa Basin (commonly referred to as Silesian Metropolis) is over 2.5 thousand km2, where traditional industry and modern technologies are being developed, mostly related to automotive trade, IT, and medicine. This is the potential of diversity and joint activity that is based on integration, coordination and support for the development of key industries. These actions are taken to improve the quality and comfort of residents' lives and increase the investment attractiveness of Metropolitan Association cities and communes. The metropolis was established on the basis of a dedicated act with tasks as followed:
• supporting social and economic development
• integration and coordination of investments related to public transportation
• spatial order
• cooperation in creating national and provincial roads network
• promotion of the metropolitan union and its area.
During the first few months of the Metropolitan Association’s operation, we managed to implement solutions that residents of the Silesian conurbation had been waiting for almost 20 years. This includes common tariff for public transport tickets or fare-free transport for the youngest residents. There are plans of collective-buying of electricity to purchase a total of almost 1TWh of energy in the years 2019-2020.
