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Written by: Commentary Editing Room
2021-01-06 06:45
Last update date: 2021-01-06 06:45
Legislative Council Member Tian Beichen revealed that according to his understanding, the MTR has the opportunity to reduce the "face price" according to the plus and minus mechanism this year, which is the first time since the merger of the two railways.
However, because of the increase in the past two years, some have been postponed to take effect this year, the actual adjustment is still variable.
The economy is sluggish and all industries are sluggish. Even if the government and the MTR introduced preferential measures to offset the set fare increase, the face-to-face fare increase alone is no longer justified, reflecting the failure of the fare adjustment mechanism to keep up with the trend.
To be sure, Hong Kong people’s transportation expenses are definitely not light, and they account for more than 8% of the median monthly income at any time.
To reduce the daily expenses of the public, the government should take the lead in requesting the MTR to lower fares and encourage the industry to follow suit. In the long run, it should strengthen its control over the fares of public transport.
Tian Beichen said that this year's face price reduction is "absolutely possible," and then added that "the reduction is hovering at -1.5%", meaning that the price reduction threshold may not be reached.
The fare adjustment mechanism of the MTR mainly has several parameters.
Substituting the nominal wage index of the transportation industry in September -1.7% and the consumer price index -0.2% in November, announced at the end of last year, into the equation, the MTR will cut prices by 1.55% in the coming year.
MTR calculates based on the figures in December and believes that the worsening of the epidemic will further lower the values of the two parameters.
However, because the MTR has increased its fares in the past two years, some of the increases are left to take effect this year, and the fare reduction must exceed 1.5% before it will start. In the end, whether the MTR will freeze or reduce the face price according to the mechanism is still full of variables.
Fare adjustment formula:
0.5 x November's change in the Composite Consumer Price Index (-0.2%)
+ 0.5 x September wage index change (-1.7%)
-Productivity factors (0)
-Additional deduction (0.6%)
= Forecast this year's fare adjustment rate (-1.55%)
MTR's fare increase under the economic recession, even if it only increases the face price, is hardly reasonable.
Following the practice of the past two years, the government and the MTR will introduce additional discounts to offset the increase or even the price reduction. There is really no reason for the government to cancel the discount this year.
Having said that, requiring the Government and the MTR to take additional measures to prevent fare increases is a reflection of problems with the fare mechanism and must be reviewed.
Many suggestions have been put forward in the past, such as changing the "transportation industry nominal wage index" to the "transportation industry real wage index" to indicate the purchasing power of employees, the rate of increase beyond the capping mechanism cannot be postponed, or the establishment of a fare stabilization fund, etc. Not redundant.
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Concessionary fares for Hong Kong people are still heavy
What is more certain is that even taking into account various concessions and subsidies, the transportation expenses of Hong Kong people are still not light.
We can estimate the monthly transportation expenses of Hong Kong people who take public transportation based on the government's public transportation subsidy scheme.
According to statistics in May 2019, when the economy is still booming, 2.26 million people benefited from the subsidy program, of which 480,000 people spent between 600 and 1,000 yuan a month, and 138,000 people spent between 1,000 and 1,600 yuan a month. , The two groups totaled 620,000.
Even if the economy deteriorated from January to February last year, the number of beneficiaries in the above two categories still totaled 488,000.
It should be noted that these fares have taken into account various monthly passes, concessions and subsidy schemes provided by the government or transport operators. That is to say, if there are no concessions, the fare expenses will be more.
Assuming that those receiving higher subsidies are also wage earners, based on the median monthly employment income of 18,700 yuan in the second quarter of 2019, transportation expenses can account for 8.6%.
Lowering MTR fares can effectively reduce the cost of living of the people.
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MTR price cuts can lead to lower transportation costs
As an enterprise with the government as its major shareholder, MTR has received a number of preferential public policies. It should be based on the interests of the public, rather than just making profits to account to shareholders.
The reduction of fares by the MTR can reduce the travel expenses of the public, and compared to reducing the burden of housing, starting with the MTR to reduce transportation fees is more effective.
The government should exercise its power to order MTR to stick to public utilities and review the fare adjustment mechanism.
More thoroughly, the government should repurchase the MTR, grasp the absolute dominance of the MTR, and implement the government's transportation policy.
The long-term goal of repurchasing the MTR is to reduce the cost of living of the people, including the "Hong Kong 01" proposal for a two-yuan fare per trip.
This proposal may be difficult to complete in one hour or three. After all, we have to consider the increase in the flow of people, the loss of MTR’s ticket revenue, and the weakening of the revenue of the transportation industry. However, the MTR has set the general direction for lowering the fare. The public benefits, and the effect of saving expenditure is especially obvious in dual-working families.
Another advantage is that the direct price reduction of the MTR is simple and easy to understand, eliminating the confusing and concessions that may not be enjoyed by everyone.
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