Chennai: Surge pricing on premium trains unfair, say angry rail passengers

Chennai: Voicing their dissent against railway ministry’s move to increase base fares by 10 per cent with every 10 per cent of berths sold, rail passengers said such moves are unfair and would only lead to further fall in passenger earnings.
Starting Friday, passenger fares of the premium trains Rajdhani, Shatabdi and Duronto have been hiked by 10-50 per cent.

“Railways is a service-oriented organisation. Such practice of increase fares every year without improving facilities, services and cleanliness is an unfair practice,” said T. Sadagopan, president of Tamil Nadu Progressive Consumer Centre.

“Middle-class and upper middle-class people use trains as air is preferred by upper-class travellers. But at this rate, people will start preferring air, which would have similar rates,” he said.

Comparing the prices for Chennai to Coimbatore, someone booking a seat on premium trains in the last 10 per cent would have to shell out Rs 1,470.

Almost at a comparable price and offering shorter travel duration, the cheapest flight tickets are available. Another passenger said that while the government was keen to remove surge pricing by taxi aggregators like Ola and Uber, they give a bad impression by implementing it.

Railway officials, however, said that the flexi fares do not jump based on demand, unlike cab aggregators. “Railways need money in order to put in its services and match the requirements. It is to balance the income and expenditure of railways. Based on affordability and demand, railways can price the tickets. Railways recover only 57 per cent of the cost of travel per passenger.”