In Switzerland, the train was more expensive on 70% of routes, even though the country has good rail links and the fewest low-cost airlines, stated Greenpeace in a press release on Thursday.
Flights to Spain were considerably cheaper, with two low-cost airlines offering direct connections. The most expensive European train ticket from Switzerland was from Zurich to Madrid and cost over CHF480 (around $560).
On the other hand, it was cheaper to travel by train to Vienna and Berlin. Despite competition from low-cost airline Easyjet, it was also cheaper to travel between Geneva and Paris by train, thanks to eight high-speed TGV connections running daily.
On other routes, the situation varied according to conditions. For Zagreb in Croatia, the plane was only cheaper on days when there was a direct low-cost flight. For Zurich-Brussels, the train cost less than a flight booked well in advance, but more than a flight booked at short notice.
Greenpeace compared ticket prices for the two means of transport on 112 journeys in 27 European countries, including Switzerland, and at nine different booking periods. Only 23 journeys were found to be cheaper by train with half of these judged inconvenient for travellers.
The countries with the biggest price differences between air and rail were the UK (4.04 times more expensive), Spain (3.86) and Belgium (2.6). Low-cost airlines served 79% of all the routes studied. Their fares were almost always lower than those of the rail companies.
The most striking price difference was on the Barcelona-London route, which cost up to €384 (around CHF369) by train. That’s 30 times more than the €12.99 air fare.
More
More
Swiss night trains: past, present and future
This content was published on
The Swiss Federal Railways is discussing re-investing in sleeper trains, reacting to a public increasingly sceptical of flying short distances.
Young undocumented migrants gain easier access to vocational training
This content was published on
Rejected asylum-seekers and young undocumented migrants in Switzerland will have easier access to basic vocational training from June 1.
Migration: Swiss government wants to shorten reunification period for families
This content was published on
Family members of people temporarily admitted to Switzerland should in future be able to join them after two years instead of three.
This content was published on
2023 was a record year for the Rhaetian Railway in several respects. Never before has the narrow-gauge railway in Graubünden, eastern Switzerland, transported so many passengers and cars.
Swiss CFOs much more optimistic despite global uncertainty
This content was published on
The main concerns of business leaders in Switzerland are geopolitical uncertainty and the important trading partners Germany and China.
Record organ donation in Switzerland despite high rejection rates
This content was published on
More organ donations were recorded in Switzerland in 2023 than ever before. This was despite a high rejection rate of 58% by surviving relatives.
This content was published on
Seven years after the death of record-breaking Swiss mountain climber Ueli Steck, his estate is going to the Alpine Museum of Switzerland in Bern.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.