On Thu, Jun 29, 2006 at 08:35:35PM +0530, Devdas Bhagat wrote: > > (swiss - and european rail in general - transport prices are so high > > because one of the attributes valued is frequency of service, which > > typically means trains run empty most of the time. with fewer passengers, > > each ticket must cost more. )
i should have added: one attribute valued in european public transport by consumers is frequency of service much higher than would be justified by passenger capacity. consumers are often not willing to pay enough for this, directly, which is why even privately run public transport in europe is often subsidised through public funds (sometimes indirectly, in the form of low-interest loans, etc). truly private transport with optimal pricing can be found in many parts of africa (or perhaps india), where privately run buses charge a low price, but wait until they are full before they leave - leading to unpredictable schedules. in a mumbai situation when you can fill trains way beyond capacity every 3 minutes, it should be possible to provide privately run, profitable services at low cost. as far as i know, mumbai buses (unlike delhi buses) have always been privately run by BEST, which also provides the electricity supply. Tata-owned BEST, providing relatively black-out free service, was usually contrasted with delhi's state-run DESU (for electricity) and DTC (buses). best, rishab
