This “surge pricing” means you could be paying $8 an hour to park in Chinatown-Penn Quarter at peak times.
You read that right. $8. An hour.
City officials say the idea is to reduce downtown traffic congestion, 25 percent of which, studies show, is caused by vehicles circling the block looking for a parking space. It is simple supply and demand, they say.
Yield Management on Broadway:
ReplyDelete"Ticket Pricing Puts ‘Lion King’ Atop Broadway’s Circle of Life"
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/17/theater/ticket-pricing-puts-lion-king-atop-broadways-circle-of-life.html?_r=0
"Since 2011, the [Lion King’s] producers, Disney Theatrical Productions, have been relying on a previously undisclosed computer algorithm to recommend the highest ticket prices that audiences would be likely to pay for each of the 1,700 seats at every performance in the Minskoff Theater. While other shows also employ this so-called dynamic pricing system to raise seat prices during tourist-heavy holiday weeks, only Disney has reached the level of sophistication achieved in the airline and hotel industries by continually using its algorithm to calibrate prices based on demand and ticket purchasing patterns.
By charging $10 more here, $20 more there, “The Lion King” stunned Broadway at year’s end as the No. 1 earner for the first time since 2003, bumping off the champ, “Wicked.” And Disney even managed to do it by charging half as much for top tickets as some rivals.
'Everyone would love to get their hands on Disney’s formula,' said Paul Libin, a veteran producer and executive vice president of Jujamcyn Theaters, which owns five of Broadway’s 40 theaters. 'All Broadway shows are getting into dynamic pricing as a way to survive, but ‘The Lion King’ has really mastered it.'
Credit the management science experts at Disney’s corporate offices — a data army that no Broadway producer could ever match — for helping develop the winning formula."
Chap 12 Surge Pricing cross the Hudson River
ReplyDeleteThe concept of “surge pricing” is not new. Quite some time ago (2001), the Port Authority of NY and NJ implemented surge pricing for its bridge and tunnel crossings. Major ones being the George Washington Bridge, the Lincoln Tunnel and the Holland Tunnel used for Hudson River crossings. The propaganda was offered to smooth the extremes of rush hour traffic and reduce congestion at the crossings, with the spikes at rush hour to entice commuters to use mass transit.
The introduction of the ‘EZ Pass’ system helped improved transit through toll booths and reduce congestion at toll booths. The discount available through using ‘EZ Pass’ was quickly adopted and utilized by regular travelers.
Additionally, the shoulder times abutting the peak crossing times experienced increased commuter and commercial traffic as some utilized time shifting to both reduce paying rush hour increased fares and so to reduce their wait time in heavy traffic. The observed secondary effects concerning the impact on human comportment in response to challenges affecting both financial and time behavior.
From personal experience the fare hikes have little effect on total vehicle count during rush hours. Some additional notes: While the fare increase was/is supposed to pay toward rebuilding the World Trade Center buildings, this use of funds is illegal under federal law. (2) The daily congestions continue to increase as the population, business and commerce on both sides of the crossings increases yearly. The initialized then stopped new tunnel railroad crossings for the Hudson River from NJ to NY (under NJ Governor Christie’s oversight) would have shifted some commuting to railroad transportation.
For background, six railroad tracks and 24 motor vehicle lanes cross the Hudson River between New Jersey and Manhattan. There have been no new railroad tracks added since 1910, no new tunnel since 1957, and no new interstate vehicular lanes added since 1962. (Personal thought, I think the time is long overdue for building additional crossings to benefit the region for both the reduction in the surge amount of traffic and the surge pricing.) (1)
Lee Lichtenstein
References:
1. www.transhudsonsummit.com/s/PANYNJ_RITN_Profile.pdf
May 7, 2015 - The New York-New Jersey metropolitan region draws its economic ... markets on all modes between the Outerbridge Crossing and the George ... The Hudson River vehicular and transit crossings operate at or near ...... crossings, as well as some effect of the variable pricing toll schedule introduced in. 2001 ...
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2http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2011/09/19/toll-fare-increases-at-hudson-river-crossings-take-effect (article by Sean Adams)
This discussion brings to mind the recent hike in Disneyland park prices and its huge increase in annual passholder prices.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the website, the highest level of Disneyland annual pass costs over $1000, a huge increase from its previous price of just under $800.
As stated by Disney representatives, the price hike is simply a result of supply and demand. The number of annual passholders has amassed to over 1 million members, as estimated by some Disney blogs since Disney has not revealed the actual number of passholders. Therefore, the company claims that it hopes to maintain the integrity of the park experience by managing strong demand with the increased prices. In lay terms, they are hoping to discourage further increases in annual passholder memberships by making the annual pass insanely expensive. In this fashion, attendance at the park will decrease and the company will be able to maintain quality experience that it boasts.
As expected, reactions exploded on social media regarding the price increase and the move by Disney will probably work - die-hard fans will continue to dish out the money and less passholders will renew their passes, leading to continued revenue for the company while decreasing the park crowds.
https://disneyland.disney.go.com/passes/
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/disney-686033-pass-disneyland.html