Clean Sky: Rail will not replace aviation for short haul travel

Clean Sky head of strategy Ron van Manen said (14-Oct-2021) the view that rail transport will replace short haul flights is "hogwash", as there are "many connections which are neither convenient, economically justifiable nor particularly sustainable by dedicated rail connections". He noted that on routes where there are only a few hundred passengers per day on a particular route, an aviation link is "economic and can be environmentally optimal when you consider the infrastructure as well as the operations". In contrast, high speed rail "needs several 10,000 passengers per day to recoup the infrastructure, not just in economic terms but even in terms of the carbon footprint" said van Manen. [more - original PR]