Passenger Preferences in Rail Transport in Poland as Regards Travelling Time and Cost

Grażyna Rosa

doi:10.3390/su13094737

Abstract

The paper includes an analysis of passengers’ preferences in the context of selected marketing activities conducted by leading railway companies operating in the passenger transport sector in Poland. Operators’ offers are highly varied, which may make it difficult to find the benefits expected by the passenger. Basing on earlier research, the main categories covered by operators’ classic marketing activities include the time and cost of the journey, and, less frequently, safety and comfort. The purpose of the analysis was to find whether the categories of time and price (cost categories) applied in most of the marketing activities, used for development of the operator’s offer, corresponded with contemporary passengers’ preferences. The conclusions are based on the results of primary research conducted on a random-quota sample of 1012 passengers. Research results—major factors determining preferences among long-distance passengers included trip duration and favorable departure hours, whereas the price was not a major issue. The importance of price increased with the age of respondents. Moreover, on short-distance routes, price and time were major factors depending on the domicile of respondents. The smaller the town, the more important these two factors were.

Highlights

Introduction and CostSustainability 2021, 13, 4737.The possibilities of development of railway passenger transport in Poland are connected with an analysis of behaviors of individuals purchasing such services, which leads to answering the questions of how decisions are made by passengers, what factors influence those decisions, what their needs and preferences are
The results of available secondary research are confirmed, in which the key factors of passengers’ decision-making focus on efficiency, speed, and optimal price [13,52,60], and detailed analysis shows that the older the traveler, the more importance he/she attaches to the use of public transport and rail transport, comparing prices and costs
The formulation of the policy recommendation on the operation of operators and the implementation of preferences in the railroad passenger transport market is closely related to the policies of the European Union [25,61,62]

Summary

Introduction

Introduction and CostSustainability 2021, 13, 4737.The possibilities of development of railway passenger transport in Poland are connected with an analysis of behaviors of individuals purchasing such services, which leads to answering the questions of how decisions are made by passengers, what factors influence those decisions, what their needs and preferences are. The behaviors of passengers in the market of services, including transport services, may be defined as any observable response to impulses from the surroundings or the total of reactions and attitudes towards them. These are focused on direct satisfaction of consumption related needs, as a result of purchasing decisions made. The essential factors which influence the demand include: Number of residents, distribution and concentration of settlement, level of regional economic development, the society’s purchasing power, time devoted to various forms of activity, costs of using individual means of transport in relation to prices of services provided by public means of transport, importance of particular preferences determining the service offer quality [3,4]. “Consumers’ behaviors are the effect of reactions to the above social, psychological, and economic conditions, and may be analyzed by way of observation of actual choices (quantitative indicators) and declarations regarding the way of behaving, aspirations, evaluations, opinions, and motives (qualitative indicators)” [5]

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Conclusion