Experienced travelers know how to get to their destination faster and save on accommodation or train tickets. But what about a traveler without experience? Russian Railways has launched a new pricing system that will help make any train trip cheaper. The main thing is to understand it.
Program idea
Today there is a new program - the dynamic pricing of Russian Railways. What it is? First of all, this is an opportunity for any traveler to save money with the help of a differentiated system of increasing the price of train tickets, due to the time of purchase, season, demand and destination.
This means that the lowest price for a train ticket is possible when you buy it at the beginning of the sale (45 or 60 days before the trip, depending on the direction of the train). The sale starts at the indicated time from 8 am Moscow time.
The principle of the program
To understand in more detail what dynamic pricing means in Russian Railways, it is necessary to understand how the system works and what the fare is ultimately made of.
In its simplest form, it turns out that the higher the demand and the more wagons are filled, the more expensive it becomes to travel on a train. Moreover, each direction has its own tariff and line, according to which the price varies. The fare in the required direction, in addition to demand, also varies depending on the season, day of the week and class of wagon.
The minimum fare is set on the day the sale is opened. Opening times are 45 or 60 days, depending on the chosen direction of the trip. As the departure date approaches, the price rises. We will try to understand in more detail the dynamic pricing of Russian Railways. What is it and how does it work? Any traveler will be helped by knowledge of the directions and available classes of wagons.
Available destinations
The Federal Passenger Company is phasing in new tariffs for calculating train fares. Today, the Russian Railways dynamic pricing system extends to the following directions in both directions:
- from Moscow to Anapa, Penza, Yoshkar-Ola, Kazan, St. Petersburg, Volgograd, Izhevsk, Arkhangelsk, Astrakhan, Bryansk, Petrozavodsk, Nizhny Novgorod, Novorossiysk, Kostroma, Belgorod, Lipetsk, Rostov, Samara, Kursk, Voronezh, Kirov Yekaterinburg, Kislovodsk, Murmansk, Cherepovets and other cities;
- from Adler to Kislovodsk or Rostov-on-Don;
- from Kislovodsk to Rostov-on-Don;
- from Vladivostok to Khabarovsk;
- from St. Petersburg to Adler, Belgorod, Vladikavkaz and other routes.
By January 14, 2017, the federal passenger company promises to add new directions to existing ones and cover almost all trains of the Russian Railway.
Today you can find out a complete list of areas that the Russian Railways Dynamic Pricing program uses. What this scheme is and how it works can be clarified by calling the Russian Railways hotline or on the company's official website.
What tickets does the system apply to?
Today, Russian Railways (dynamic) service pricing is used in luxury cars, sleeping cars, compartment cars and in relation to seats in some areas. Moreover, the lower the category of the train carriage, the cheaper the fare will be, regardless of the timing of its purchase or the selected dates of the trip. It is important to note that the program does not apply to reserved seats and through trains, since ticket prices are regulated at the state level.
Now it’s much easier for each passenger of the FPK to understand what dynamic pricing in Russian Railways means and how it works.
Seasonal Ratio
When at least in general terms it becomes clear how the dynamic pricing of Russian Railways works, the question of fare costs remains open. In accordance with the seasons when passenger flows increase (for example, before the New Year holidays or summer, during the holiday season), Russian Railways increases the cost of tickets according to the coefficients.
There is a basic (base) fare, taken per unit. Further, the price changes. For example, according to the data for 2016, it can be seen that on December 31 the coefficient is 1, from January 1 to January 10 it is 1.10 (which means + 10% of the base fare). The smallest coefficient of 2016 was 0.9 (-10% of the base cost of the destination), the largest was 1.15 (+ 15% of the fare).
System benefits
So, we continue to consider the dynamic pricing of Russian Railways. What it is? The benefits of the program are becoming apparent. First of all, this is a simplified ticket return scheme. If a train travel document needs to be handed over, then the price at which it was purchased is returned (in case the deadlines do not imply penalties).
Now the price is more flexible and depends not only on the season, but also on the date of purchase of the ticket. And if you purchase a travel document in advance, then the difference in price between the compartment and reserved seat will be quite insignificant. Among the advantages of the new program, one can also single out the possibility of choosing a tariff taking into account the duration of the trip, estimated financial costs and plans.
Program limitations
With all the advantages, the program also has its drawbacks. So, for example, dynamic pricing does not apply:
- the cost of tickets reserved seats ;
- on commercial trains and Sapsans;
- on passing trains.
The system cannot be combined with various special tariffs from Russian Railways, discounts and promotions for travel. For example, dynamic pricing does not combine with stocks for senior citizens or discounts on the cost of tickets for passengers who will be on the road from December 31 to January 1.
The program is just starting to be implemented, and it is still quite difficult to objectively evaluate its usefulness and effectiveness. The system still does not work in all directions, but RZD plans to cover the maximum number of trains as quickly as possible. You can always clarify information on the route of interest to the traveler on the official website or on the hotline.
How to save on a dynamic pricing program
We examined in detail the dynamic pricing of Russian Railways. What is it, we also found out. But any passenger has the following logical question: how is it more profitable to get a ticket? Here are some simple tips:
- Purchase in advance. Since they start selling tickets in more than a month, any traveler has the opportunity to purchase an inexpensive trip with the right to choose one of the first places (if the ticket is purchased via the Internet).
- Choose a suitable car class. A frequent situation is when luxury cars at the beginning of ticket sales vary slightly in value.
- Select a travel date. It’s good if it’s floating, and it’s possible to choose an option that is not very convenient for most travelers for which tickets are sold worse (for example, when the train leaves at night on a weekday)
- Use different driving directions to your destination. Sometimes you can get very cheap on two trains with a change or change trains.
Dynamic pricing in brief
As you can see, it’s easy enough to understand how the dynamic pricing of Russian Railways works. What is it, now everyone understands. As a result of this, you can significantly save and plan your trip well. The basic principles of work are that the earlier a ticket is purchased, the cheaper it will be, the higher the category of a car, the more expensive the ticket, and the less demand for a destination, the lower the fare.
The system is still at the implementation stage and does not cover all the routes of trains of Russian railways. The first 46 long-distance trains operating under this program were launched along 4 routes: from Moscow to St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Voronezh and Smolensk. After that, another 74 long-distance trains joined the program, and the directions had already expanded to ten. Future plans of the federal passenger company include increasing the number of routes that the system will cover.
Dynamic pricing is a program in which the fare increases as the departure date approaches. A similar system has long been operating in the field of air travel.
The system works only with luxury cars, sleeping, compartment and seating on some routes. The fare is floating and differentiates depending on demand, season, day of the week and the number of seats sold. The minimum cost is possible when buying a ticket 45 days before the train departure. At the very beginning of the sale, any traveler can buy a ticket for a sleeping car almost at a fare in a car class lower.
The price, of course, will not rise to infinity, even if you buy a ticket on the day of departure. But it will differ from the minimum by about 25-40%. If cheaper options for tickets to the same destinations (for example, with air carriers) will be available for purchase, the cost of travel by train will not increase much. The system is very convenient for anyone who thinks about a trip in advance, seeks to plan everything and calculate the cost of travel even at the stage of buying tickets. Now, even a novice traveler can easily calculate the cost of travel and save their own financial resources.