Customers' quality perceptions towards online railway reservation services in India: an exploratory study

With increased globalisation, technology is witnessing growing application and acceptance across service delivery platforms. Service organisations are using technology for improving their service quality and customer service culture by developing profitable, long-term relationships with customers (Webster, 1992; Achrol, 1997; Gounaris, 2005). Delivery of superior service quality is an important determinant of success in the service industry. An exploratory research was conducted to study customer experience of the online reservation system of the Indian railways. The purpose was to understand the customer's perception regarding technology deployment in improving services. Dimensions of the service quality model (Parasuraman et al., 1988) were used for understanding perceptions regarding the online railway reservation system. The study indicates that though the service is gaining acceptability in the country, there still exists considerable scope for improvement in customer experience with regard to the various service quality dimensions for the online reservation system. Based on the findings of the study, recommendations for improvement in various aspects of the service are stated.