The sustainability of services in undertakings which operate in railway passenger transport is closely connected with efforts to provide high-quality and time-acceptable services to the customer, to achieve lean processes, to standardise work processes, to eliminate wastage and to avoid those activities which do not add any value. Considering its ecological nature and big volume of passenger transport, railway passenger transport represents an irreplaceable sustainable system for the future. These facts and the entry of new railway carriers into this system highlight the importance of managing risks in a progressive way. This article focuses on the options of risk management when versatile and flexible tools, such as Lean tools, are set correctly. The aim of this article is to introduce a proposal for the application and a specific application of Lean philosophy in risk management which impacts train delays in railway passenger transport. From the point of view of quantitative data analysis, multiple mathematical-statistical tests have been used to assess data (e.g., Anderson–Darling test, Kolmogorov–Smirnov test, Jarque–Bera test, two-tailed test, Grubbs’s test and Thompson Tau test). Also, descriptive statistics and ANOVA test (Analysis of Variance) have been applied in the process of evaluating the monitored attributes. In order to assess the data dependency, Chi-Square Test and a correlation analysis have been applied. The research outcomes focus on highlighting the need for a systematic approach for train delays and to avoid delays through risk management. The case study applies selected Lean methods to monitor train delays in selected stations within the main railway corridor of the Slovak Republic for the period from 2015 to 2018. In 2019, the results were processed and created a basis for proposing a unique software tool like an aid for risk management in the case of train delays using Lean philosophy. The flexible software includes the participation of employees, and at the same time, it respects the needs of customers. The research results provide grounds for further study of risks in a challenging environment of railway undertakings, with different types of trains, railway stations as well as entire railway networks. The processed results of the article represent valuable material for railway undertakings not only in Slovakia but also for railway organisations in V4 countries.

The paper deals with the implementation of a modified FMEA methodology according to the EU Commission Regulation no. 402/13 on a common safety method for risk assessment and evaluation in the railway sector. The basic goal is to create a methodology for risk identification regarding the safety of services in railway transport concerning railway crossings. Reason for this research was the fact that the manager of the railway infrastructure in Slovakia has problems related to accidents at railway crossings including problems with the quality of services when trains are delayed. Based on previous research, this area has been defined as a priority for risk identification. Accidents at level crossings are often the result of complex interactions between several factors. The results of the authors’ long-term research bring direct impact on the safety and quality of rail transport services. The first effect of the research is a detailed investigation of the causes of accidents, on which the new methodology is based. This is important because understanding the causes of accidents is the first step in eliminating them. The proposed new framework of the methodology provides guidance to the railway infrastructure manager on how to identify, analyze, evaluate and eliminate the risks of their effects.

Sustainability of (small and medium-sized enterprises) SMEs in a globalized economy depends on several factors. According to available studies, effective Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is one of the factors affecting the competitiveness of SMEs in a positive way. This paper is focused on creating customer databases and on using the CRM strategy in SMEs in Slovakia. The aim of the paper is to cluster SMEs in Slovakia based on using customer databases and CRM and to identify differences in clusters according to the selected attributes. The outputs of the research focused on marketing communication and on creating the CRM strategy in Slovak enterprises are presented in the paper. Quantitative nonexperimental research using the questionnaires was conducted at the end of 2017 and throughout the year 2018. The research results are based on the responses of 1009 Slovak SMEs. Basic descriptive statistics, K-means cluster analysis, Analysis of variance (ANOVA), and Tukey HSD test were used to process the data. The resulting clusters show three typical attitudes of Slovak SMEs to creating the database, using the CRM and its effectiveness. Moreover, attitude to the application of ethical principles and holistic, integrated, and socially responsible marketing are presented in the clusters. Following the results, the fact that SMEs can be divided into the three following clusters with equal size can be stated: 1st cluster (in 92.2% and consisting of micro- and small-sized enterprises), customer databases are created for the purpose of marketing communication; 2nd cluster, consisting of the highest percentage of medium-sized enterprises and enterprises with foreign equity participation using the customer databases and CRM; and 3rd cluster characterized with smaller-sized enterprises with domestic property not focused on marketing communication and using the customer databases. The research results provide the basis for further research and support for small and medium-sized enterprises.

The motivational preferences of employees can be statistically determined, but not lifted out of context in terms of the field they work in. The transport and logistics sector is undergoing a significant transformation, characterised by new technological solutions in everyday practice. It is a sector subject to a high number of legislative, economic, social, technological and environmental changes. Such changes have a secondary influence on the expectations, values and therefore preferences and job satisfaction of employees. The objective of this contribution is to identify the development of the motivational preferences of employees in the transport and logistics sector over time. These changes are monitored within the context of key changes and the strategic direction of the sector. The achievement of the objective is based on the partial results of research conducted by means of a questionnaire survey (n = 3,543) on motivational preferences and job satisfaction within the field. The ANOVA test and Tukey’s HSD test were used for the verification of the hypotheses. The results show that employee preferences are changing significantly, with the most significant increase being identified in the case of social factors (environmental approach, corporate vision and regional development), reflecting current green innovation trends in the sector. Also, employees perceive education and professional growth, self-realisation, competencies, corporate prestige, physical and mental demands, content and type of work, working hours and environment and such feedback on results as increasingly important. On the other hand, there is declining emphasis on basic salary.

From the point of view of the national economy, the development of a transport sector is a key process which relies on many other industries. Therefore, it is inevitable to coordinate related activities and to develop the transport sector effectively, and significant synergies in relation to other sectors could be generated. This article deals with the issue of public passenger transport and its greater attractiveness through the account-based ticketing (ABT) technology application in the process of passenger handling. The article contains a review of the current literature on the subject, using both completed and partially completed studies. It presents the case of study of account-based ticketing in the Slovak Republic. ABT technology has already been introduced in many countries, for example, in the Netherlands in 2019, and in Singapore.

Dynamical vehicle performances depend on its center of gravity’s position. It is necessary to determine this position as closely as possible. The current methods of determining the center of gravity’s position are either not sufficiently accurate or are very demanding in relation to finances, time and special equipment. At the same time, there is a lack of accurate data on the center of gravity’s position of current vehicles for further research. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to propose such a methodology of measuring the center of gravity’s position, including its height, which is accurate enough and has as low-demand measuring equipment as possible. Another purpose of this study is to obtain data on the change in the centers of gravity’s positions in different vehicles due to various load distributions. Extensive experimental measurements, according to the innovative methodology, were performed with five vehicles. The positions of the center of gravity were determined for various load distributions, and the results were analyzed in detail.