Tourism Kyushu shinkansen first to adopt dynamic pricing

[thomas]

JR Kyushu will introduce dynamic pricing for advance tickets on some Kyushu Shinkansen line services in southwestern Japan. This system, which adjusts ticket prices based on demand, will apply to online sales of tickets for journeys between Hakata Station in Fukuoka and Kumamoto Station in Kumamoto Prefecture. The change will take effect starting 1 July for tickets purchased between one week and one month in advance.

As a result, customers will pay one of three prices -- 4,200 JPY (USD27), 3,800 JPY or 3,400 JPY -- for an advance adult one-way ticket including seat reservation on the section of the line Dynamic pricing means the amount charged is allowed to go up and down depending on demand and the timing of the purchase. The decision follows a trial of the system that began 1 March. Before the trial began, advance tickets for the same route were set at 3,800 JPY for adults. If bought within a week of departure, a standard ticket costs 5,230 JPY. The route is the most popular bullet train service in the southwestern Japan region, and links the cities in as little as 32 minutes.

JR Kyushu said it has no plans to introduce dynamic pricing to other parts of the line or to the Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen line, which currently connects Nagasaki to Takeo-Onsen Station in Saga Prefecture.

Kyushu bullet trains become first in Japan to adopt dynamic pricing

Some Kyushu Shinkansen line services in southwestern Japan will adopt dynamic pricing for advance tickets after a recent trial eased congestion, the operator says, becoming the first bullet trains in the country to use the system.

english.kyodonews.net

 

[nice gaijin]

One of the nice things about train tickets was the stable pricing (I just had to buy some plane tickets and it was a total nightmare). I guess it's just a few hundred yen difference (and a chance at possibly even being slightly cheaper than the standard fare, which sounds nice), but this is how we got Uber surge pricing, and predatory capitalism is all about the gouge.