Greenpeace urges Europeans to take trains instead of planes for short trips

Greenpeace is urging Europeans to take trains instead of planes for short trips in an attempt to reduce pollution, The Associated Press reported.

The environmental group on Wednesday called on European governments to boost train travel so fewer planes, which emit larger amounts of pollution, fly over the continent. 

A study commissioned by Greenpeace showed that more than one-third of the busiest short-haul flights on the continent have viable train alternatives that are far less polluting. 

The study also highlighted some problems with air routes, with one author noting that those flights can emit a dozen times more carbon dioxide than trains would, according to the AP.

The study also said that routes from Madrid to Barcelona, Frankfurt to Berlin, and Brussels to Amsterdam could be covered by train in two to four hours. 

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Today we’ve released a report that we prepared for @GreenpeaceEU, analysing the existence of train alternatives to short-haul flights in Europe https://t.co/IzayzZtsw4 #BetterByTrain #EUYearofRail

— OBC Transeuropa (@BalkansCaucasus) October 27, 2021

“Europe could replace almost all of the top 250 short-haul flights and save some 23.4 million tons of CO2 per year, as much as the annual CO2 emissions of Croatia,” Greenpeace said in the study. 

The study noted that 34 percent of the 150 busiest short-haul flights have train alternatives that are less than 6 hours. 

The study by OBC Transeuropa was released before the United Nations climate change summit in Glasgow, Scotland, the AP reported. 

This comes as airlines argued that short-haul flights are necessary due to them being essential connections for longer-distance trips. 

The study said it will be beneficial for European Union governments to promote train travel more especially with night travel, the AP noted.