Jake's View | Crazy thinking will damage MTR further down the line
The idea that fare increases should be denied if services are not up to a standard deemed satisfactory by some nebulous panel is alien to any rational concept of how a public service corporation works.
It is understood the government will add factors such as service quality and affordability to the existing [MTR] fare adjustment formula, which could make it more difficult to increase fares.
It is anticipated the review will lead to a curbing of fare rises, after prices increased three years in a row under the existing formula.
I would like to understand the thinking here but, try as I might, I just cannot do it. It is alien to any rational concept of how a public service corporation works.
Take this idea that fare increases should be denied if services are not up to a standard deemed satisfactory by some nebulous panel responsible for service oversight.
In actual corporate practice, service quality is a matter of investment. If it is generally held, for instance, that there are too many breakdowns on the MTR, the solution would be to invest in new signal equipment, tighten tolerance limits for metal fatigue and adopt a more rigorous maintenance schedule for rolling stock.