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Calling for discount fares on new high-speed Shanghai-Nanjing trains
By Zhu Shenshen |
July 8, 2010, Thursday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
COMPLAINTS about the new high-speed train service between Shanghai and Nanjing have been gathering pace faster than a speeding bullet: express trains too few; ticket prices too high; older lower-cost services disappearing.
In view of public dismay, railway officials are to review the situation this weekend. In my opinion, now is not the time to restore older services that have been canceled between both cities. A better option would be to review ticketing policies to encourage more travelers.
Among the ideas are discounted fares for round trips, multiple trips and group travel. I believe that fares for senior citizens, students and people with disabilities should also be discounted.
The high-speed rail, which began service earlier this month, runs trains at up to 350 kilometers an hour across Nanjing, Shanghai and other cities like Suzhou. It boosts development in the Yangtze River Delta, a region of economic importance in China.
When I attended an Expo forum in Nanjing during the July 3-4 weekend, the nonstop service halved travel time to only 73 minutes one way.
The price of such convenience doesn't come cheap, of course. A one-way ticket costs around 146 yuan (US$21.50), at least 50 percent higher than the previous slower train service.
By comparison, older-generation trains, with several stops, took about two hours to complete the same trip with a standard ticket price of up to 93 yuan only.
Price matters
The Shanghai Railway Administration has canceled most of the older two-hour train service, pushing passengers to ride on the new CRH (China Railway High-speed) rail system.
"CRH stands for chi ru hao (to be shamed)," one call-in viewer of a Nanjing TV show complained. On the Internet, it's called the BGT bei gao tie, which refers to being forced to take the more expensive high-speed railway.
Then came the news that on July 11, 26 express trains would be added daily to the new high-speed service (there're only four now). The quick response was commendable but will it quell all the public grousing? I fear not.
Speed is one thing, price another. People who have to watch their budgets may be forced to resort to bus service that takes up to four hours between Shanghai and Nanjing.
Take the situation, which is not all that uncommon, of a software engineer who lives in Shanghai but works in Nanjing, where Oracle and some Indian firms have opened research centers. To take the new CRH train to commute to and from work would cost 300 yuan a day, or 6,500 yuan a month on average. That would eat up a big chunk of his salary.
Alternatively, the engineer could take a free company bus or low-cost train at a cost of about 100 yuan a day.
As a state-owned monopoly, the railway operator should make the public welfare its chief concern. It's a social responsibility to make transport affordable.
Discounts
As a business reporter, I certainly appreciate the railway's need to show a return on its huge investment of 30 billion yuan. The railway is hoping, as passengers move to the new CRH service, that spare capacity along that rail corridor can be dedicated to cargo, which would help business development in the delta as well as the company's bottom line.
But more important, where the railway company needs to do some creative thinking to boost ridership is in ticketing. As I suggested, discounts could be offered for such things as return trips and purchases of 10-trip or 20-trip ticket packages.
How about monthly tickets for commuters or discounts for groups such as tourists or business conferees? Or even cheaper prices for those who book tickets a week or two in advance or who book online?
In fact, the CRH could run a bit like Shanghai's Metro system, which provides fixed-rate tickets that are good for unlimited trips within a 24-hour period.
Last but not at least, discounted prices should be provided for special riders, including senior citizens, students and people with disabilities. That's one place where the railway firm could quickly exercise its social responsibility.
And a word to disgruntled consumers. Don't forget that it will take a while for any new service to find its legs.
In view of public dismay, railway officials are to review the situation this weekend. In my opinion, now is not the time to restore older services that have been canceled between both cities. A better option would be to review ticketing policies to encourage more travelers.
Among the ideas are discounted fares for round trips, multiple trips and group travel. I believe that fares for senior citizens, students and people with disabilities should also be discounted.
The high-speed rail, which began service earlier this month, runs trains at up to 350 kilometers an hour across Nanjing, Shanghai and other cities like Suzhou. It boosts development in the Yangtze River Delta, a region of economic importance in China.
When I attended an Expo forum in Nanjing during the July 3-4 weekend, the nonstop service halved travel time to only 73 minutes one way.
The price of such convenience doesn't come cheap, of course. A one-way ticket costs around 146 yuan (US$21.50), at least 50 percent higher than the previous slower train service.
By comparison, older-generation trains, with several stops, took about two hours to complete the same trip with a standard ticket price of up to 93 yuan only.
Price matters
The Shanghai Railway Administration has canceled most of the older two-hour train service, pushing passengers to ride on the new CRH (China Railway High-speed) rail system.
"CRH stands for chi ru hao (to be shamed)," one call-in viewer of a Nanjing TV show complained. On the Internet, it's called the BGT bei gao tie, which refers to being forced to take the more expensive high-speed railway.
Then came the news that on July 11, 26 express trains would be added daily to the new high-speed service (there're only four now). The quick response was commendable but will it quell all the public grousing? I fear not.
Speed is one thing, price another. People who have to watch their budgets may be forced to resort to bus service that takes up to four hours between Shanghai and Nanjing.
Take the situation, which is not all that uncommon, of a software engineer who lives in Shanghai but works in Nanjing, where Oracle and some Indian firms have opened research centers. To take the new CRH train to commute to and from work would cost 300 yuan a day, or 6,500 yuan a month on average. That would eat up a big chunk of his salary.
Alternatively, the engineer could take a free company bus or low-cost train at a cost of about 100 yuan a day.
As a state-owned monopoly, the railway operator should make the public welfare its chief concern. It's a social responsibility to make transport affordable.
Discounts
As a business reporter, I certainly appreciate the railway's need to show a return on its huge investment of 30 billion yuan. The railway is hoping, as passengers move to the new CRH service, that spare capacity along that rail corridor can be dedicated to cargo, which would help business development in the delta as well as the company's bottom line.
But more important, where the railway company needs to do some creative thinking to boost ridership is in ticketing. As I suggested, discounts could be offered for such things as return trips and purchases of 10-trip or 20-trip ticket packages.
How about monthly tickets for commuters or discounts for groups such as tourists or business conferees? Or even cheaper prices for those who book tickets a week or two in advance or who book online?
In fact, the CRH could run a bit like Shanghai's Metro system, which provides fixed-rate tickets that are good for unlimited trips within a 24-hour period.
Last but not at least, discounted prices should be provided for special riders, including senior citizens, students and people with disabilities. That's one place where the railway firm could quickly exercise its social responsibility.
And a word to disgruntled consumers. Don't forget that it will take a while for any new service to find its legs.
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