Pakistan Railways pulls in record revenue by improving customer service

Pakistan Railways has managed to pull in a record 88 billion rupees in revenue in 2024. As per reports, the implementation of widespread upgrades allowed the entity’s revenues to post a 40 percent year-on-year (YoY) growth rate.

Upgrades include the addition of 10 new trains, service upgrades such as dining lounges and premium bathrooms, along with an increase in coach capacity. Moreover, the railway administration has increased daily operations to 100 while simultaneously boosting capacity to 19 coaches per train.

Railway authorities are focusing on providing improved customer service to boost revenues. Following the new customer-centric approach, the entity has improved its menu, and after introducing new meals, the menu now includes north of 40 food items.

According to credible reports, changes to the menu have so far been limited to major train lines such as Khyber Mail and Tezgam Express. Many believe that an improvement in food items offered on less popular train lines could boost the demand for those routes, allowing Pakistan railways to realize higher revenues.

The introduction to state-of-the-art airconditioned bathrooms at Lahore’s railway station is the first of many bathroom upgrades. Reports indicate that the entity plans to incorporate these ‘executive’ washrooms across 13 major stations. The provision of and the commitment to provide these services have generated a positive customer response.

A recent government performance review revealed that the entity generated a respectable 33 billion rupees in just the first five months of fiscal year (FY) 2024-25. Compared to the corresponding period last year, revenues have grown by an impressive 14 percent.

The figures for the period from February to December 2024 reveal that Pakistan Railways was able to rake in over 80.5 billion rupees. Reports indicate that a whopping 42.65 billion rupees were made from offering fares and other services to passengers, while freight services were responsible for 27.85 billion rupees in inflows. Data from the review suggests that the entity was able to make an additional 10.04 billion rupees from miscellaneous sources.

Revenues over the same period in 2023 were low, sitting under 68.5 billion rupees. Operational efficiency has witnessed drastic improvements, too. This is because punctuality rates have reportedly gone from a measly 63 percent in 2019 to a respectable 82 percent.

Some believe that the digitalisation of certain processes, such as fuel management, has proved to be beneficial for the entity. Data from reports suggests that the digitalisation process, coupled with the transfer of electricity meters to power distribution companies, has resulted in the entity saving a staggering 2.5 billion rupees.