Dynamic pricing of Russian Railways - what is it? The advantages of the new program

Experienced travelers know how to quickly reach their destination and save on accommodation or train tickets. But how to be a traveler without experience? RZD has launched a new price system, which will help make any trip by train cheaper. The main thing is to understand it.

The idea of the program

To date, 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 for increasing the price of railway tickets due to the time of purchase, season, demand and destination.

This means that the lowest price for a railway ticket is possible with its purchase at the beginning of the sale (for 45 or 60 days before the trip, depending on the direction of the train). The sale starts on the specified dates from 8 am Moscow time.

Program operation principle

In order to understand in more detail what dynamic pricing in RZD means, it is necessary to understand how the system works and from which, in the end, the cost of travel is added.

In the simplest form it turns out that the higher the demand and the more filled wagons, the more expensive the journey becomes in the train. At the same time, each direction has its own tariff and a ruler, according to which the price varies. The fare for the required direction, in addition to demand, also varies depending on the season, the day of the week and the class of the car.

The minimum fare is set on the day the sale is opened. The opening dates are 45 or 60 days, depending on the chosen direction of the trip. As the date of departure approaches, the price increases. We will try to understand in more detail the dynamic pricing of RZD. What is it and how does it work? Any traveler will be helped by the knowledge of directions and available classes of cars.

Available destinations

The Federal Passenger Company gradually introduces new tariffs for calculating the fare on the train. To date, the system of dynamic pricing of Russian Railways covers 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, Ekaterinburg, Kislovodsk, Murmansk, Cherepovets and other cities;
• From Adler to Kislovodsk or Rostov on the Don;
• From Kislovodsk to Rostov on Don;
• From Vladivostok to Khabarovsk;
• From St. Petersburg to Adler, Belgorod, Vladikavkaz and other routes.

Already by January 14, 2017, the federal passenger company promises to add new directions to the already existing ones and cover almost all the trains of the Russian Railways.

Today you can find out the full list of directions that the program "RZD's dynamic pricing" uses. What kind of scheme is it and how it works can be clarified by calling the hotline of the Russian Railways or on the official website of the company.

What are the tickets for the system?

Today, the pricing of RZD (dynamic) services is applied in luxury cars, sleeping cars, compartment cars and in relation to seats in some areas. At the same time, the lower the category of the train car, the cheaper the price for the fare, regardless of the terms 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 passing trains, as ticket prices are regulated at the state level.

Now it is much easier for every FPK passenger to understand what the dynamic pricing in RZD means and how it works.

Seasonal coefficient

When at least in general terms it becomes clear how the dynamic pricing of RZD works, the question of the cost of travel remains open. In accordance with the seasons, when passenger traffic is increasing (for example, before the New Year holidays or in the summer, during the holiday season), RZD increases the cost of tickets according to the coefficients.

There is a basic (basic) fare, taken as a unit. Then the price changes. For example, according to data for 2016 it is clear that on December 31 the coefficient is equal to 1, from 1 to 10 January it is 1.10 (which means + 10% to the basic fare). The smallest factor of 2016 was 0.9 (-10% of the base cost of the direction), 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 advantages of the program become obvious. First of all, this is a simplified ticket return scheme. If the travel document for the train needs to be handed over, then the price at which it was purchased is returned (in the event that the deadline does 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, the difference in price between the coupe and a reserved seat will be very small. Among the advantages of the new program, you can also highlight the possibility of choosing a tariff taking into account the terms of the trip, the estimated financial costs and plans.

Limitations of the program

With all the advantages of the program has its drawbacks. For example, dynamic pricing does not apply:

• On the cost of tickets of reserved cars ;
• On commercial trains and Peregrine Falcons;
• On passing trains.

The system is not summed up with various special tariffs from RZD, discounts and shares for travel. For example, dynamic pricing is not combined with shares for pensioners or discounts on the cost of tickets for passengers that will be en route from December 31 to January 1.

The program is just beginning to be introduced, and it is still difficult to objectively evaluate its utility and effectiveness. The system still does not work in all directions, but in the plans of the Russian Railways as soon as possible to cover the maximum number of trains. You can always check the information on the route of interest by visiting the official website or via the hotline.

How to save on the program of dynamic pricing

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 take a ticket? Here are a few simple tips:

• Purchase in advance. Since to sell tickets start more than a month, any traveler has the opportunity to purchase an inexpensive trip with the right to choose a place one of the first (if the ticket is purchased via the Internet).

• Choose the right class for the car. A common situation is when luxury cars at the beginning of ticket sales vary slightly in value.
• Choose the date of your trip. Well, if it is floating, and it is possible to pick up a variant that is not very convenient for most travelers, to which tickets are sold worse (for example, when the train leaves at night on a weekday)
• Use different driving directions to your destination. Sometimes it is very cheap to get on two trains with a transfer or to make a transfer to the bus.

Briefly about dynamic pricing

As you can see, it is quite easy to understand how RZD's dynamic pricing works. What is it is now clear to everyone. As a result, you can save a lot and plan your trip well. The basic principles of work consist in the fact that the earlier the ticket is bought, the more it will be cheaper, the higher the category of the car, the more expensive the ticket, and the lower the demand for direction, the lower the fare.

The system is still at the implementation stage and covers far from all 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, 74 long-distance trains joined the program, and directions have already expanded to ten. The further plans of the federal passenger company include an increase in the number of routes that the system will cover.

Dynamic pricing is a program in which the fare increases with the approaching date of departure. A similar system has long been working in the field of air travel.

The system works only with luxury, sleeping, sleeping and seating cars on certain routes. The fare is floating and differentiated depending on demand, season, day of the week and the number of seats sold. The minimum cost is possible with the purchase of a ticket for 45 days before the departure of the train. At the very beginning of the sale, any traveler can purchase a ticket to a sleeping car almost at the price of travel in a car class lower.

The price, of course, will not grow 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, air carriers) are available for purchase, the cost of travel by train will not increase significantly. The system is very convenient for all who think about the trip in advance, aspires to plan and calculate travel expenses at the stage of ticket purchase. Now even a novice traveler can easily calculate the cost of travel and save his own financial means.