A NEW APPROACH TO THE ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY ASSESSMENT OF CARGO OWNERS TRANSPORT SERVICE QUALITY IMPROVEMENT

Соколов Ю.И.¹, Лавров И.М.²

¹Доктор экономических наук, профессор, ²Аспирант, МГУПС (МИИТ)

НОВЫЙ ПОДХОД К ОЦЕНКЕ ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКОЙ ЭФФЕКТИВНОСТИ ПОВЫШЕНИЯ КАЧЕСТВА ТРАНСПОРТНОГО ОБСЛУЖИВАНИЯ ГРУЗОВЛАДЕЛЬЦЕВ

Аннотация

В данной статье предлагается актуальный метод по оценке эффективности  повышения  уровня  качества транспортного обслуживания на основе использования рассчитанного значения коэффициента неценовой эластичности спроса на железнодорожные грузовые перевозки, который может быть использован на практике в транспортных компаниях.

Ключевые слова: качество транспортного обслуживания, эластичность спроса, экономическая эффективность.

Sokolov Yu.I.¹, Lavrov I.M.²

¹Doctor of Science (Economics), professor, ²Postgraduate student, Moscow State University of Railway Engineering (MIIT)

A NEW APPROACH TO THE ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY ASSESSMENT OF CARGO OWNERS TRANSPORT SERVICE QUALITY IMPROVEMENT

Abstract

In this article the actual method of the transport service quality level increasing efficiency assessment based on the not price demand elasticity calculated value for rail freight transportation is offered. This method can be used in transportation companies practice.

Keywords: transport service quality, elasticity of demand, economic efficiency.

Realization of the task connected with improvement of transport service quality on Russian Railways meets a number of problems. One of the most important problem is the imperfection of economic efficiency evaluation  methods for quality improvement.

The quality improvement efficiency traditionally was counted as transport organization expenses decrease. However this approach as based on objective data is very close as does not consider the quality value for the cargo owners, who need  a growth of quality for transport service. It will follow increase in demand. The numerical assessment of this growth is very complicated.

In a proper understanding an efficiency (EF) is a ratio of results (RES) and expenses (EX) that have been spent to reach these results:

            (1)

An efficiency of any activity can be calculated as quantitative so as qualitative characteristics. The most important indicators of efficiency are  the effect indicators.

The effect of any activity in a wide view is a category that expresses an excess of activity results over activity expenses for a certain period of time. The characteristic indicators are different because of expenses and results structures and ways of expenses comparison that deal with not the same periods  and  results. In a close aspect this term can be used for appointment of some similar indicators [2].

The most generalized effect indicator (EF') shows a difference between results and expenses for the certain kind of activity [5]:

        (2)

The analysis of assessment technique of customer’s demand elasticity to compare with a quality of the transport service we have carried out earlier. It allows to calculate a degree of increase in customer’s demand for transportations with the growth of a quality complex indicator by 1% [3]. Having executed calculations according with those calculation methods, we received value of factor of elasticity  which full equation represents  [4].

By definition, customer’s demand elasticity degree (or speed of reaction) in the market depends on how much customer’s demand volume increases with the reduction of price (level of quality) or reduces with the increase in the price (level of quality) [1]. Therefore to use factor of not price elasticity in this research will allow to define the growth rate of the predicted volume of demand for railway transportation. For this purpose it is necessary to possess information about the growth rates of a quality indicator as the important factor for the volume of demand, and to consider it in the subsequent calculations.

For calculation of the growth rates of a quality indicator is used following the statistical formula:

                  (3)

where   - level of an quality indicator in the base and current periods.

For further calculations the interested quality indicator sets and calculation of the growth rate for the last period of time is carried out for this indicator.

The following step consists in determination of prognostic volume of the demand according to  well-known equation of the demand elasticity with the quality and the growth rate of the chosen indicator of quality. As the indicator of elasticity represents one factor that shows the degree of change of each indicator under changing of other indicator in relative expression. So it can be used in further calculations only together with the values that also represent relative or percentage changes of any indicator.

This procedure can be made by means of the following formula:

           (4)

where  - prognostic volume of volume of demand relative change under the influence of change of the quality indicator taking into account known factor of elasticity;

 - factor of not price elasticity;

 - the growth rate of an analyzed indicator of quality.

Thus, on the basis of the given technique we can make a forecast of demand volume for transportations that concerns any change of a quality indicator for any unlimited period of time. This method of calculation also can be used in case when it is necessary to find inverse relationship of the quality indicator change from the demand volume for transportations change.

References

1. Bases of an economic science [Text] / A. Marshall; [preface J. M. Keynes; the lane with English V.I. Bomkina, V.T. Rysina, R.I. Stolpera.] - M: Eksmo, 2007. - 832 pages.
2. Assessment of efficiency of investment projects. Theory and practice [Text] / P.L.Vilensky, V.N. Livshits, S.A. Smolyak // 2nd edition, processed and added - M: Business, 2002. - 888 pages.
3. Sokolov Yu.I., Integrated assessment of service quality of cargo owners by transport company [Text] / Yu.I. Sokolov, I.M. Lavrov // STAGE: Economic Theory, Analysis, Practice. - 2012, No. 2 - page 136-143.
4. Sokolov Yu.I., Assessment of elasticity of demand for rail transportation of [Text] / Yu.I. Sokolov, I.M. Lavrov // Economy of the railways, No. 8, 2013. - page 34-42.
5. Economy of railway transport: the textbook [Text] / Under the editorship of N.P. Teryoshina, L.P. Levitsky, L.V. Shkurina. - M: FPBEI «The educational and methodical center by training on railway transport», 2012. - 536 pages.