“It’s a good thing I was sitting down today when I was ordering train tickets for Vilnius-Kaunas-Vilnius. I probably would have fallen over when I saw the ticket prices,” political scientist A. Lašas wrote on Facebook on Thursday.
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The man stated that he usually paid about 18-19 euros for a round trip. In May, the Government and “Lietuvos geležinkeliai” (Lithuanian Railways), taking into account the jump in fuel prices due to the war in Iran, temporarily reduced ticket prices by 50 percent.
“Less than a week ago, the same trip cost less than 10 euros. Indecently cheap, but apparently they wanted to show that they cared. Now, not only has the previous price been restored, but it has also been additionally increased by 50 percent!” A. Lašas wondered.
After trying to order a train ticket online from Vilnius to Kaunas and back, A. Lašas saw that it would cost more than 27 euros.
It’s a good thing I was sitting down today when I was ordering train tickets for Vilnius-Kaunas-Vilnius. I probably would have fallen over when I saw the ticket prices.
“Everything is very understandable – the wars are over, we all forgot about the Strait of Hormuz, fuel prices are at rock bottom, and therefore now it’s possible to reclaim the money for all the discounts given. Simply a wonderfully sensitive decision to increase ticket prices three times in a week! Dear LTG, who is in charge of your pricing – a drunk Gariūnai market trader from the 1990s?” A. Lašas ironized.
“Lietuvos geležinkeliai”: buying in advance – cheaper
Julija Leimonė, communication partner of “LTG Link”, the passenger transport company of the “Lietuvos geležinkeliai” (LTG) group, commented to 15min that after the temporary 50 percent discount, which was applied to train tickets for two months – April and May – expired, prices were returned to the usual level that was valid before the discount was introduced.
“The situation you mentioned reflects the principles of dynamic pricing – by planning a trip in advance, a travel ticket can be purchased significantly cheaper,” said J. Leimonė.
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According to her, even before the 50 percent discount came into effect, “LTG Link” applied dynamic pricing – a pricing model where ticket prices change depending on demand, the occupancy of a specific route, and seasonality.
“By planning trips in advance, passengers can purchase tickets up to 40 percent cheaper than the regular price, and as the departure time approaches, it gradually increases. In some cases, for example, when buying at the last minute or choosing express routes, the ticket price can be up to 10 percent higher than the regular price,” explained the “LTG Link” representative.
She gave an example that even before the 50 percent discount came into effect, in March, prices for the Vilnius–Kaunas route ranged from 5 to 10 euros. During the discount period, it was possible to travel on this route for 2.5 euros, and dynamic pricing was not applied at that time. After the discount expired, prices returned to the previous level, and dynamic pricing was also reintroduced.
Now, not only has the previous price been restored, but it has also been additionally increased by 50 percent!
“Currently, a ticket for the same route, when planning a trip in advance, can be purchased for 5–10 euros. Dynamic pricing is currently applied on 7 domestic and 4 international routes. It is important to emphasize that it does not affect existing discounts and concessions – passengers can continue to use, for example, student or disabled discounts,” said J. Leimonė.
In April and May, passengers could purchase 50 percent cheaper train tickets on domestic routes.
