The model assessing the impact of price and provided services on the quality of the trip by train: MCDM approach

Abstract

Long-distance transportation of passengers is usually performed by air and rail transport. The time and cost of the trip, as well as quality and variety of services and other economic criteria, strongly influence the choice of one of the competing transport facilities. The quality of the trip by train is determined by the criteria of four groups associated with the vehicle elements and the state of the railway line, organization of the trip by train, its technology, the price of the trip and the provided services (PTPS) and safety of the trip by train. The paper presents a model of the major component of the comprehensive quality index (CQI), characterizing a trip by an international train from such aspects as the PTPS. Based on using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP), the weights of these criteria groups and the weights of the criteria of each group are determined. A survey of the respondents of three categories, including passengers, service staff of the train and the administration staff of the joint-stock company, is conducted to know their opinions about various aspects of the trip described by the considered criteria. The model is based on the average weight and the weights of six criteria of the group, describing the PTPS, which are multiplied by the calculated variables. This allows the quality of the trip by train, depending only on these criteria, to be expressed in a single number. The numerical example shows that the suggested model yields reliable data and can be used in practice for evaluating the quality of trips by various international trains.