Online booking for train travel improved

The website of the Saigon Railway will begin accepting bookings starting October 15 with a faster, more improved programme, said the railway’s Deputy General Director Dinh Van Sang.

The re-launching of the online booking website is a warm-up task before the bustling sales of train tickets for Vietnam’s traditional new year period, which usually begins in December.

“The new programme allows buyers to book tickets 60 days earlier and takes only three steps instead of five like with the old proramme,” said the deputy general director.

A technician who is responsible for the booking website said one of the biggest improvements of the new programme is the greater capacity of the website as far as number of people who can book tickets at the same time. He says, however, that a deadlock of the website could still occur.

To prevent a large number of users from accessing the website, passengers can also book tickets via short message mobile service (SMS), said Saigon Railway.

Sang also reported that train ticket prices could increase by up to 25 per cent during the Tet holiday for a few routes.

Saigon Railway began selling train tickets online in 2005. Since then, the booking website has been criticised for an inability to meet the huge demand of train passengers during the bustling Tet holiday. (Thanh Nien)