[sustran] Zonal fares on buses

[Alan P Howes]

I'm looking for help.

Like in many other countries in the world, Saudi Arabia's urban buses
operate on a flat fare. It's 2 Saudi Riyals - that's about US$ 0.55.
That's good for a trip of up to 30 km. on some routes - perhaps more.
(We operate local service in nine cities and towns).

(And our typical customer may earn around SR 500 per month - which
makes our fares expensive.)

In Riyadh and Jeddah, we suffer heavy competition from "Coasters" -
fixed-route (but otherwise fairly anarchic) minibuses charging the
same fare as we do.

Flat fare schemes are no good for maximising passengers at any given
level of subsidy. They are too high for short-distance passengers, and
lower than necessary for long-distance passengers.

So I want to go Zonal - probably simply cutting fares to SR 1.00 on
sections of routes competed by Coasters. But our operating guys say
"Oh, our passengers and drivers will never understand that". OK, they
may have a point. Neither group are particularly well educated (most
of them, both groups, are non-Saudi, typically South Asian or
Philippino). But no-one expects taxis to charge a flat fare.

So what I want to hear of is experience elsewhere in less-developed
countries (which in many ways, we still are). Particularly if a
flat-fare system has been converted to Zonal.

Shukran Jazeelan 
-- 
GIVE ON-LINE FOR MOZAMBIQUE - http://www.christian-aid.org.uk/f_africa.htm

Alan Howes, Special Advisor (Operations)
Saudi Public Transport Company, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia 
alanhowes at usaksa.com
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