Soaring Airfares in Europe Driving Sustainable Rail Bookings

One of the frustrations of proponents of sustainable travel is that it often costs more than traditional travel options, with cost winning over sustainability among travellers.

That might be changing.

A Berlin-based ground transportation platform Omio reports that cost (and travel time) are still top priority for consumers booking travel. But recent airfare hikes may be levelling the playing, er, airfield and driving travellers towards more sustainable - and cheaper - rail options, at least in Europe.

It cites stats that show a 20 per cent increase in train bookings alongside a 54 per cent drop in flight bookings comparing Q1 of 2023 with the same quarter of 2019.

“Travelers are continuing to take a deeper interest in sustainable travel, and we’re thrilled to see that train travel is more than a trend,” Peter Tomlinson, vice president of data at Omio, said. “This shows us that train travel is not simply a buzzword or popular hashtag but is here to stay.”

Labour shortages and fuel prices have contributed to soaring airfares, while train costs have remained stable, the report explains. It's hitting consumers in their pocketbooks: travellers spent 58 per cent more on flights in Q1 this year than in the same quarter of 2019, and 3 per cent less per train ride.

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Part of the stability in rail travel pricing is EU policy supporting sustainable train travel, including France's ban on short-haul flights with rail alternatives, and enforcing competition in the sector.

There's also the convenience factor. Travel by train involves less time and hassle with transfers to inner-city train stations rather than suburban airports, and fewer security and other lineups, the report pointed out.

And indeed, Omio's data shows that travellers' top priorities are cost and time. 55 per cent of travellers cited cost and 30 per cent named travel time as their top priorities when booking travel.

Only 12 per cent of surveyed travellers cited sustainability as a top priority - but that's 6 times higher than just two years ago.

“Consumers are looking to make more sustainable choices, but ultimately cost is still the main deciding factor for most,” said Naren Shaam, CEO and founder at Omio.

So for those focused on helping travel transition to a more sustainable future, the recent escalation in cost of flying in Europe compared to travelling by train could be an unexpected boost.