The majority of popular European routes are cheaper to travel by aeroplane than by train, recent analysis by Greenpeace has revealed. Travelling to foreign destinations by train from Belgium is particularly expensive.
The environmental impact of flying is well known, with the emissions produced in some conditions more than fifty times greater than those from taking a train. Indeed, the pollution from planes is so enormous by comparison to rail that overhauling the way we travel and transport goods has been widely accepted as essential for reaching climate objectives.
To this end, several European countries implemented major rail reductions last year and several governments, Belgium's included, seek to develop international rail links that would provide a more practical, economical, and environmental alternative to flying, at least for shorter distances.
However, the findings of Greenpeace highlight the shortcomings of these efforts, with people generally able to fly more cheaply even when an alternative rail route exists. The environmental group argued that policies at the EU and national levels have created an "unfair" competitive advantage for "climate-wrecking airlines" after assessing the costs of flight and train tickets on 112 routes in Europe at nine different points in time. Tickets for trains are on average twice as expensive as for flights.
"This report shows to what extent European citizens are encouraged to fly. Airlines benefit from unfair tax breaks, while low-cost airlines, in particular, exploit all loopholes to offer flights at outrageously low prices," said Herwig Schuster, mobility expert at Greenpeace. The group argued that €10 flights only exist because taxpayer money covers the real costs.
Belgium among worst performers
The report highlighted the most expensive routes to travel by train. The London-Barcelona route is up to 30 times more expensive by train than by flying. In fact, these are Europe's two most expensive countries for rail travel.
Belgium was named the third most expensive country for train travel. Those travelling from Belgium by train can expect tickets on average 2.6 times more than aeroplane tickets. A train ticket for the Madrid-Brussels route costs 15 times as much as an air ticket, the fourth largest price difference in the report.
Brussels is serviced by high-speed trains operated by Eurostar, but this was one of the most expensive trains found in the analysis, meaning travel by aeroplane to London, for example, is often cheaper.
Eurostar trains waiting at London St Pancras International station. Credit: Fraselpantz / Wikimedia Commons
Connections between Brussels and the German city of Hamburg, as well as the Swiss city of Zurich, were almost always cheaper by train as these routes are only operated by traditional airlines which are usually more expensive. Yet where there is an option to travel by low-cost airlines such as Ryanair or Easyjet, flying almost always turns out the cheapest option.
The report noted that the Austrian railway company ÖBB has been operating a night train between Brussels and Vienna three times a week, adding to the good connections between the two cities. But these night trains have become a victim of their success, with prices rising at peak times meaning that they are not always cheaper than flying.
Meanwhile, despite the new European Sleeper trains running between Berlin and Brussels three times a week (tickets starting at €39.90), Ryanair flights were still cheaper on eight out of the nine days analysed.
Transfer flights: the ultimate absurdity
Overall, only 23 of the 112 European routes surveyed by Greenpeace are (almost) always cheaper by train than by aeroplane, as low-cost carriers operate 79% of the routes analysed. The report stressed that in Central and Eastern Europe, trains are more often cheaper in relation to flights than in Western Europe. But the frequency, speed, connections and services of these trains are usually worse.
Sometimes, travellers are offered even cheaper transfer flights for the same routes, emitting up to 10 times more greenhouse gases. "For example, travellers are given the absurd option of flying cheaply from London to Brussels, with a stopover in Denmark," Schuster said.
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Greenpeace lamented the fact that airlines benefit from fiscal advantages, while railways have "no equivalent exemptions for any energy that they consume." The group argued that to make rail more affordable than air, national governments should introduce climate tickets: affordable and simple tickets that are valid on all forms of public transport in a country or region, including all trains and transport across borders.
"For the planet and people’s sake, politicians must act to turn this situation around and make taking the train the more affordable option, or else we’re only going to see more and more heatwaves like the one currently wreaking total havoc in Spain, Italy, Greece and elsewhere," Greenpeace EU senior climate campaigner Lorelei Limousin said.
