The ministry of railways is planning to give a ‘user-friendly’ makeover to the dynamic pricing system, which the national carrier had launched in September last year on 142 premium trains.
The pricing system, based on the ones used by cab aggregators and airlines, may now be shelved following a public outcry and a low-occupancy level after airlines became a cheaper option for passengers.
According to sources close to the development, the new pricing system for premium trains like the Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto is likely to be in place in 10 days. This comes at a time when the national carrier’s revenue touched Rs 260.31 crore from the introduction of the flexi fare system in these trains during the period September 9, 2016, to February 28, 2016.
This revenue would have been otherwise a mere Rs 21 crore, considering the number of passengers that the railways has carried.
According to the new plan, the Railways may increase the percentage of reserved berths at normal fares in these trains to about 50 per cent from the current 10 per cent, after which surge pricing may come into play.
“We are planning to make the flexi fare system more user-friendly. The new model of pricing for premium trains will be ready in 10 days,” said Mohammed Jamshed, member (traffic), Railway Board.
According to railway estimates, only about 0.35 per cent of the passengers travel in these premium trains. The decision to review fares was taken looking at the low occupancy rates in the Rajdhani (95 per cent), Shatabdi (75-77 per cent), Duronto (about 82 per cent) and Suvidha trains (about 70 per cent) from April to February 2016-17.
This is seen as a move to arrest the declining trend in the number of passengers in the past three financial years before 2016-17.
However, in 2016-17, the railways posted an increase in passenger traffic by 1 per cent till February 28, which will bring an additional revenue of Rs 2,000 crore.
This will be the second time that the railways ministry will review the flexi fare system. An interim review was done on December 12, giving a 10 per cent rebate in basic fares on vacant berths after preparation of the first chart in the Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto trains on an experimental basis for six months.
In addition to this, the provision of the tatkal quota was reduced in flexi fare trains from a maximum of 30 per cent to 10 per cent of the available berths.
Moreover, discounted fares are being offered on the New Delhi-Ajmer Shatabdi Express (Jaipur-Ajmer and Ajmer-Jaipur) and on the Chennai Central-Mysuru Shatabdi Express (Bengaluru City-Mysuru and Mysuru-Bengaluru City) for six months.
The railways is also considering the pricing models of the Humsafar, Gatimaan and Mahanama trains to be introduced in other premium trains.