Poor rail ticketing access fuels higher aviation emissions across Europe

A fragmented and outdated rail ticketing system across Europe is not only making train travel unnecessarily complicated, but is also actively pushing passengers toward more polluting flights, undermining efforts to cut transport emissions, according to a new report by Transport & Environment (T&E).

The analysis shows that international train journeys are still “difficult or impossible” to book on nearly half of the European Union’s busiest cross-border air routes. On key connections such as Lisbon–Madrid and Barcelona–Milan, tickets cannot be purchased through any rail operator’s website. Routes like Paris–Rome and Amsterdam–Milan are only available through a single provider, the Guardian writes.

Georgia Whitaker, a rail campaigner at T&E and the report’s author, said outdated booking systems are holding back efforts to reduce emissions from transport.

“It almost feels a bit silly that a clunky and outdated system was holding back climate action,” she said.

“In the world we live in you can get pretty much most things, for better or worse, with one click,” she added. “When you can’t do that to travel by rail – despite people’s best intentions – we are not going to see the full potential being utilised.”

The findings come amid rising concern over aviation emissions, one of the hardest sectors to decarbonise. Industry forecasts suggest passenger numbers could double by 2050, leading to a sharp increase in greenhouse gas emissions.

T&E researchers analysed the 30 busiest international air routes within the EU—excluding island routes and journeys over 1,500 km—and found that passengers could not book a single ticket covering the full rail journey on 20% of routes. On a further 27%, tickets were only available through a single operator. Similar gaps were also identified across a wider set of 50 routes.

Brian Caulfield, a transport researcher at Trinity College Dublin who was not involved in the study, said the system discourages environmentally conscious choices.

“This report exposes a ‘stone age’ system where major operators often fail to even display – let alone sell – available cross-border connections or cheaper competitor fares,” he said.

“We are making it structurally difficult for even the most climate-conscious travellers to choose the greener option.”

The report also highlights how national rail operators continue to dominate ticket sales within their own markets. Companies such as Germany’s Deutsche Bahn and France’s SNCF rarely offer access to competing services. Across Europe, incumbent operators do not sell rival tickets on 86% of routes where competition exists, while in 59% of cases, alternative services are not shown at all.

A YouGov survey commissioned by T&E found that 61% of long-distance rail users have avoided journeys due to booking difficulties, while over 40% said they would travel more by train if purchasing tickets were simpler.

One of the key barriers remains price and transparency. As Whitaker noted, “One of the barriers to travelling by rail is price because often it is more expensive than flying,” she said. “But what’s happening as a result of not displaying or selling other competitive services on the same routes is that often passengers are not aware of the fact that there are actually cheaper options.”

The European Commission is expected to respond with a single ticketing package due on 13 May, aimed at simplifying cross-border rail travel and improving passenger rights.

The findings align with earlier research by Greenpeace, which showed that trains were cheaper than flights on only 39% of 109 European cross-border routes studied.

Herwig Schuster, a rail campaigner at Greenpeace, said the new report adds urgency to reform efforts.

“When choosing between rail and plane for short-haul journeys, many people prioritise price. However, if they find it too complicated to purchase the necessary train tickets, they will opt for the more polluting flight.”

By Sabina Mammadli