The Problem
We all know that the transportation industry is a major culprit of climate change. According to the UEA report from Oct 2022, it’s responsible for 23% of the CO2 emissions worldwide.
This is a massive and scary number but it’s also one, for which the carbon neutral solutions exist out there. So, switching to those now, is a low hanging fruit we should all be picking and stuffing our pockets with. We can’t sit back and claim the science hasn’t caught up to our needs, or the infrastructure can’t get us there.
The government says they’ll block the sale of new emitting cars by 2030, but that’s still 7 years ahead, and how about all the second-hand exhaust coughing vehicles out there? What’s the alternative for people like me, living in flats, in condensed cities? Where is my EV charging point going to be? My building’s freeholder still can’t make their mind about fireproofing our building after the 2022 Fire Safety regulations. The improvements they need to make to tackle climate change, like communal charging points, insulating our roof and exterior walls and installing solar panels, are not even on their radar. I’m sure I’ll moan about those issues in another post, but my point is, electric vehicles are not the panacea Mr. Musk would like them to be.
And how about aircrafts? We are so far from even building a long-haul aircraft running on a carbon neutral fuel, it’s almost science fiction. So let’s not delude ourselves that we’ll get there in time for it to make a difference.
The Solution
The answer is much simpler – trains. Europeans love them but bizarrely, it was the Brits who invented them.
Something bad happened along the way… These days, in the UK, trains are famous for being unaffordable, unreliable, inconvenient and unavailable.
What Others Do
I did a quick comparison on a couple of trips connecting major cities in England vs. in France.
| Journey | Distance | Travel by | Duration | Weekend Cost | Weekend Cost Details | Weekday Cost | Weekday Cost Details |
| Paris to Lyon Return | 464 km | Train | 02:08 | £128.71 | Booked on Tue for the Fri-Sun (https://thetrainline.com) | £137.60 | Same Day return, booked day before |
| Car | 04:40 | £152.35 | including £69.21 of motorway tolls (https://viamichelin.com) | £152.35 | including £69.21 of motorway tolls | ||
| London to Newcastle Return | 447 km | Train | 02:50 | £164.00 | Booked on Tue for the Fri-Sun | £175.40 | Same Day return, booked day before |
| Car | 05:05 | £99.36 | fuel cost – no tolls to include | £99.36 | fuel cost – no tolls to include | ||
| Paris to Poitiers Return | 340 km | Train | 01:20 | £77.78 | Booked on Tue for the Fri-Sun | £120.37 | Same Day return, booked day before |
| Car | 03:29 | £126.66 | including £65.68 of motorway tolls | £126.66 | including £65.68 of motorway tolls | ||
| London to Manchester Return | 323 km | Train | 02:35 | £94.00 | Booked on Tue for the Fri-Sun | £209.60 | Same Day return, booked day before |
| Car | 04:01 | £105.72 | including £13.78 of motorway tolls | £105.72 | including £13.78 of motorway tolls |
And what do we notice from this little study?
- The French train routes are more than twice as fast as their car alternatives and significantly cheaper.
- The English train routes are slower than the French and significantly more expensive than their car alternatives.
Let’s stop putting pressure on people to choose the greener option over the affordable one. Those sorts of battles are doomed.
The French government sees the train system as an essential public service and recognises its role in promoting economic growth, social cohesion, and environmental sustainability. As such, the government commits the necessary investment in the country’s transportation infrastructure and its citizens’ quality of life.
And of course, this philosophy doesn’t just live in France. It is shared across the European continent.
Well, I’d like to bring it into Great Britain too, please!
What We Should Do
I’d like the British government to push the Rail companies to invest in:
- Electrification: The government and the rail companies have stalled on electrifying the network outside of London and this is just plain shameful.
- Infrastructure: we need a well-developed rail infrastructure that covers the entire country. The rail tracks to be maintained in good condition, and there to be regular investments made in improving the infrastructure.
- High-speed trains: All major cities across the UK must be connect with high-speed trains to provide an efficient and comfortable mode of transportation.
- Network connectivity: The various rail companies need work together and with other transportation providers, such as bus and underground systems, for passengers to travel within cities and across the country seamlessly.
Supplemented by electric buses and other ride share schemes, the train system is the perfect solution that we already have, but are not using to cut out our CO2 emissions.
Contact your MP, write to your Mayor’s office, tweet your local train companies, you may even know someone who works for a train company – buy them a drink and let them all have a piece of your mind on this issue.
And the bottom line is: opt for public transport. Let’s all hop aboard the green train!
