Emissions from flights are sky-high, so why haven’t sustainable transport alternatives taken off?

Being from the UK, I often feel the urge to leave the country to seek some sun. Travel is one of my great joys in life, but catching flights every other month is clearly not conducive with reducing CO2 emissions. Air travel is one of the most carbon-intensive activities any individual can participate in, generating 13.9% of total transport emissions.

In the name of complete transparency, I took nine international flights in 2023, which work out at almost 9 tons of CO2. To put this into perspective, this is MORE than the average US household produces in an entire year and would take about 150 to 225 mature trees one year to absorb. This is clearly unsustainable, and I know that I need to seriously reduce my annual air travel emissions.

Whilst tips and tricks to reduce flight emissions are available, ultimately the best way to reduce emissions from air travel is simply, not to fly at all. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the UK alone saw a 98% decrease in air travel demand and emissions reduced by 71% in comparison to pre-covid levels. Whilst air travel is now back to pre-pandemic levels, the experience is telling. We need to stop flying.

But how can we just stop? International travel is important for a number of reasons. For business, it offers opportunities for networking and collaboration and in some cases, it allows voices of remote or marginalised communities to be heard, such as during COP conventions. It’s also important for personal reasons, to reconnect with loved ones, seek medical care and to rest and recharge. To expect the global population to simply stop flying is unrealistic. So, what are the alternatives?

The challenge is flying is fast, cheap and convenient whether travelling for business or pleasure. More sustainable alternatives often come at a price premium and just don’t make sense financially or logistically for the average individual. When the price of a train to Manchester is three times the price of a flight to Barcelona, it’s easy to see why people choose to fly abroad rather than travel nationally.

While international rail travel is available, it has also priced out most of the population. The Eurostar, which was pledged as a breakthrough in sustainable travel, is perceived as a novelty activity rather than a genuine alternative. When checking the feasibility of travelling by train for a holiday to Malaga, I found that a return ticket costs £517.19 and takes 25 hours. This is more than double the cost of the flight and takes 22 hours longer. At a time when the cost of living is so high and days of annual leave are limited, how can we expect people to choose this alternative? As it stands, the business case for travel by train over plane is limited.

Fundamentally, trains generally have a larger capacity, the technology has been around for much longer and operating costs are usually lower. From this perspective, it’s hard to understand why they wouldn’t be more available and cost effective. Alarmingly, airlines receive extremely generous subsidies from governments. Airlines pay zero tax on fuel and tickets, totaling tens of billions each year, which allows them to manipulate so-called ‘artificially cheap tickets’. They’ve also become well-equipped in cost saving techniques and market competitiveness, often outsourcing employees, implementing pay-caps, and budget flight options. In comparison, the rail industry lacks competitiveness, service provider and cross-border collaboration and most importantly, subsidies.

We absolutely cannot expect a collective shift in attitudes to emissions from aviation unless sustainable alternatives, such as rail travel, are not made more accessible and affordable. We need increased pressure on governments and the travel industry to make these products more available to us. I think the likelihood of a significant reduction in air travel, as experienced during COVID-19 pandemic, is slim. Consequently, increasing diversification of the international transport market and increasing the competitiveness of sustainable options are essential responses in mitigating emissions from the international transport sector.