Boosting passenger preference for railways and Digitizing railways: A definite call to action
COVID-19 had a profound impact on people and industries worldwide, with lasting changes to the way many works and travel. As the pandemic-related restrictions were lifted, operators put measures in place to restore rail services and adjust their offerings to suit customer’s changing needs, which aided recovery—although passenger rail traffic had not fully recovered at the beginning of 2022, during the 2Q & 3Q rail services were fully crowded and congested especially because of the fuel and economic crisis hit the countries like Sri Lanka.
Even as the global rail industry works to overcome the pandemic’s effects, responsible governments must work towards attracting passenger preference to the service while modernizing the service and bringing more convenience to commuters.
If governments meet consumer expectations and convenience, countries around the world are required to couple with technology for achieving sustainability goals. Therefore, several countries are focusing on modernizing rail infrastructure and decarbonizing transport. In Sri Lanka also despite all the negative outcomes experienced today, it is the government’s primary responsibility to transform Sri Lanka Railways with new technologies and infrastructure enabling new investment opportunities through public-private partnerships towards an efficient railway service.
Given these global trends, rail has the strength to position itself as one of the preferred choices of transportation of the future, helping to solve many longstanding challenges in passenger transport: sustainability, speed, and volume. Rail’s strengths include the ability to transport large volumes of people in an efficient manner, at a faster speed than car travel, with enhanced travel comfort for leisure and business, and at lower energy consumption and hence lower carbon emissions per passenger. Once the service efficiency improved, commuters’ convenience and user experience can be significantly enhanced from an end-to-end journey perspective.
Worldwide, there are number of reasons for passenger preference for railways; price, safety, reliability, accessibility, easy booking systems and convenience remain the main drivers for passengers when choosing their mode of transport. Even in Sri Lanka, SL Railway department an ambitious vision – “to be the most sought-after land transport provider in Sri Lanka, providing unsurpassed value to our stakeholders” – and a challenging mission – “to provide safe, reliable and punctual rail transport service for both passenger and freight traffic, economically and efficiently”. Its 1300-km network connects every major city in the north, south, east and west of the country, which is vital for rapid deployment of emergency relief and security forces. Also integrating with road public transport by synchronising schedules and payment modes using technology to provide seamless and paperless travel further enhances the ecosystem.
In order to create more convenience, in-advance communication is a must to do a critical action point. Communication through SMS, social media, ads and other media channels with customers is critical in creating awareness around existing rail services, and in fostering the desire to travel again. It can also be a key touch point for alleviating passengers’ health-related concerns by showing what hygiene measures are in place.
With the digital transformation exercise, operators could also focus efforts on improving the end-to-end journey and offer a comprehensive mobility-as-a-service (MaaS) experience, for instance through mobile apps. Several operators are working within their travel ecosystems to provide one single pass so passengers can access multiple means of transport such as cars or e-bikes as well as trains. Digitisation particularly making management and service delivery more smart-device based for remote and real-time communication.
Furthermore, as urbanization leads to increased populations within cities and city agglomerations, rail is an efficient means to relieve traffic congestion from individual mobility in high-density regions and aid sustainability. Rail generates four to six times less CO2 emissions than travelling by internal combustion engine cars, and even generates less than electric vehicles. When evaluated against air transportation, rail is a more sustainable option, producing about 10 to 15 times less CO2 per passenger.
All stakeholders may need to collaborate in finding ways to reap the benefits that rail can offer—for customers, operators, and nations. For instance, operators and policymakers could develop an integrated perspective on the business model for rail and its role in alleviating traffic congestion, aiding sustainability, and contributing to economic growth.
(The author, Niroshana De Silva, Chartered Marketer, Strategist, Founder, PR, Corporate Communications, Brand Management Professional. You can reach him on prminds@gmail.com)
