Airport Rail Link has decided to stop charging the flat 20-baht discounted fare for its City Line after it failed to attract as many passengers as expected, resulting in the service running at a loss of almost two million baht a month, the Matichon website reported on Thursday.
Airport Rail Link (Photo by Patipat Janthong)
Chamroon Tangpaisarnkit, chairman of the SRT Electric Train Co which runs the Airport Rail Link, on Thursday said the company board had decided not to extend the 20-baht discounted rate ― which began on Oct 1 and ended on Dec 31, for the system's City Line between 11am and 2pm ― because the number of passengers still fell short of the target.
The company wanted the promotional fare package to attract about 7,000 passengers a day, but it only slightly increased the number of city travelers to between 5,000 and 5,500 during the entire period, or about the same figure as before the discounted fare was introduced.
The company began charging normal fares for the City Line, which runs from Phaya Thai station to Suvarnabhumi airport, on Jan 1. The fares are from 15 to 45 baht, depending on the distance travelled to the station.
Airport Rail Link would need to come up with new promotional packages or approaches to draw in more passengers to use the system, Mr Chamroon said.
The separate express service to the airport charges a higher fare per passenger -- one-way 90 baht and return 150 baht.