Ban on short-haul flights if there is a train, ok from the EU | FormulaPassion.it

Stop using short-haul flights if there is a rail alternative. France gets the green light (albeit under certain conditions) from the European Union to ban the use of planes for short-distance journeys if there is the possibility of using the train. The norm had been inserted by the Elysee in the 2021 Law on “Climate and Resilience” but it had been the subject of an appeal for various reasons, from the protection of airlines to that of travellers. In the end, the green light from the EU arrived, which however set some limits.

on the level ofenvironmental impact in fact, the French government had presented more than valid arguments, starting from the amount of carbon dioxide emissions saved by using trains rather than planes on routes such as Lyon-Paris or from Orly to Bordeaux or Nantes: according to data provided by France , the saving would be 55 thousand tons of CO2 in the year (using air traffic data from 2019). The European Commission has given the ok but to protect the right of consumers to choose the most suitable means of transport for their needs and those of free-market airlines, the community body has set some conditions.

Starting from the travel times, with the stop at the air connection that could be triggered if there is the possibility of using a train that is under two and a half hours of travel between the two cities. The same must then be guaranteed frequently throughout the day and without the need for a trainset change. Round-trip journeys on the same route must be guaranteed, as well as timetables must always be appropriate to the needs of passengers, giving travelers the possibility of being able to stop at least 8 hours in the city of arrival including travel times. The stop to flights will then be guaranteed only in the event that there is a train that can take you from the airport to the city of destination and that it is a high-speed train. The green light from the Commission also opens up similar scenarios in other countries, including Italy: here a possible section between Rome and Florence could be replaced by rail convoys that guarantee the connection in less time.