 |
|
| Public hearing on China's domestic airfares |
| CCTV.COM 2003-07-15 15:07:38 |
|
The public is having its say today (Tuesday) in Beijing, on planned changes to domestic airfares. Fifteen people were on hand this morning for a long－waited five－hour hearing to look at the country's air carriers' ticket pricing policies.
Fifteen delegates from all walks of life but mainly representing consumers, airlines and industry experts voiced their opinion on the proposed scheme. The new proposal drafted by the State Development and Reform Commission aims to provide reasonable prices for consumers and at the same time boost the healthy development of the country's airline industry. However, the hearing shows that it is not easy to balance these two factors at the moment.
Tan Xinglu, official of China Civil Aviation Administration （CAAC）, said, "Market supervision is the key issue. We hope that many improper operations will be stopped with improved law and regulations, and the development of the market economy. Consumers, airlines, and the administrative supervisors all want to see that the reforms will result in reasonable prices for tickets and healthy development of the airline industry."
Under the proposal, airlines will be given freedom to raise and cut ticket prices base on a benchmark price fixed by the government.
The proposed benchmark price for every passenger is 0.75 yuan per kilometer. Airlines will be allowed to raise ticket prices by a maximum of 25 percent or cut them by up to 40 percent.
For example, a benchmark price from Beijing to Shanghai is about 900 yuan or around 110 US dollars. Airlines can adjust this down, to 500 yuan, or up to 1,100 yuan. And that's pretty close to the current 1,000 yuan, or about 125 US dollars, being charged.
So, most of the delegates representing consumers at the hearing suggest that the current benchmark price is not reasonable and should be pegged lower. Some insist that airlines should try to make profits by saving costs through restructuring reform rather than sustain high prices. Many other related issues have also been raised in the discussion.
"The problem of ticket agencies operating illegally is very serious. They confuse consumers and jeopardize consumers' rights and interests. So we feel it's urgent to regulate ticket prices, to eliminate dubious discounting practices. What's more, we also suggest that the airport construction fee should be lifted. It is not a reasonable charge and it is not convenient for passenger," said Consumer delegate Zhu Rongmao.
The hearing has drawn a lot of attention because it is not only considered something just about the air ticket price, but also an important process of the reform of China's airline industry. The industry is only in the initial stage of having government protection and limitations lifted, and airlines will have to think about surviving in a competitive market. The discussion on the new policy is still going on and the final draft is expected to come out by the end of the year.
|
|
Editor: Xiao Wei CCTV.com
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
