Spain's high-speed trains win over fed-up flyers

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009...3/spain-trains

Spain's high-speed trains win over fed-up flyers

* Giles Tremlett in Madrid
* The Guardian, Tuesday 13 January 2009
* Article history

Spain's sleek new high-speed trains have stolen hundreds of thousands
of passengers from airlines over the last year, slashing carbon
emissions and marking a radical change in the way Spaniards travel.

Passenger numbers on fuel-guzzling domestic flights fell 20% in the
year to November as commuters and tourists swapped cramped airline
seats for the space and convenience of the train, according to figures
released yesterday.

High-speed rail travel - boosted by the opening of a line that slashed
the journey time from Madrid to Barcelona to 2 hours 35 minutes in
February - grew 28% over the same period. About 400,000 travellers
shunned airports and opted for the 220mph AVE trains.

Last year's drop in air travel, which was also helped by new high-
speed lines from Madrid to Valladolid, Segovia and Malaga, marks the
beginning of what experts say is a revolution in Spanish travel
habits.

In a country where big cities are often more than 500km (300 miles)
apart, air travel has ruled supreme for more than 10 years. A year ago
aircraft carried 72% of the 4.8 million long-distance passengers who
travelled by air or rail. The figure is now down to 60%.

"The numbers will be equal within two years," said Josep Valls, a
professor at the ESADE business school in Barcelona.

Two routes, from Barcelona to Malaga and Seville, opened last week.
Lines are also being built to link Madrid with Valencia, Alicante, the
Basque country and Galicia. The government has promised to lay
10,000km of high-speed track by 2020 to ensure that 90% of Spaniards
live within 30 miles of a station. The prime minister, José Luis
Rodríguez Zapatero, boasts it will be Europe's most extensive high-
speed network.

The high-speed train network is also helping Spain control carbon
emissions.Straight tracks and few stops mean AVE trains use 19% less
energy than conventional trains. Alberto García, of the Spanish
Railways Foundation, has calculated that a passenger on the Madrid-
Barcelona line accounts for one-sixth of the carbon emissions of an
aeroplane passenger.

High-speed rail tickets are often cheaper. The lowest one-way price on
the 410-mile Barcelona-Madrid route this month is €44 (£40). Rail
operator Renfe says 99% of trains on the route arrive on time.

That sort of efficiency was sorely missed at Madrid's Barajas airport
at the weekend. Tens of thousands of passengers suffered delays of up
to 30 hours because of snow, a work-to-rule by Iberia pilots and a
lack of air traffic controllers.

Zapatero, who has put infrastructure projects at the heart of an anti-
recession surge in public spending, plans to invest €108bn (£96bn) in
the high-speed rail network until 2020.

On Tue, 13 Jan 2009 01:38:52 -0800, Katherine Wiel wrote:

snip
The government has promised to lay 10,000km
of high-speed track by 2020
snip

That was the phrase that stood out when I read the article. Even if Spain
doesn't manage that, can anyone in their wildest dreams imagine our own
government making a promise like that? Not me.

--
Bewdley, Worcs. ~90m asl.

That was the phrase that stood out when I read the article. Even if Spain
doesn't manage that, can anyone in their wildest dreams imagine our own
government making a promise like that? Not me.


That's most unfair our Government makes such a commitment every year.

Apparently the UK’s net contribution to the EU is nearly exactly equal
to Spain’s net EU funding which goes a long way to towards paying for
their high-speed railways.

Something to consider next time your sitting for three hours just
outside Rugby because the WCML wires are down again.

with a few viruses perhaps ??

"

On Tue, 13 Jan 2009 22:35:48 +0000, Runge13 wrote
with a few viruses perhaps ??

Viruses... through USENET?

Stimpy wrote:

On Tue, 13 Jan 2009 22:35:48 +0000, Runge13 wrote
with a few viruses perhaps ??

Viruses... through USENET?


The only "virus" on Usenet is this fowl "Runge" character...


--
Best
Greg

The guy is a virus.

"Stimpy" a écrit dans le message de
. co.uk...
On Tue, 13 Jan 2009 22:35:48 +0000, Runge13 wrote
with a few viruses perhaps ??

Viruses... through USENET?

and here's a second one.
Notorious OT copy/paste nuisances.

"Gregory Morrow" a écrit dans le message de
m...

Stimpy wrote:

On Tue, 13 Jan 2009 22:35:48 +0000, Runge13 wrote
with a few viruses perhaps ??

Viruses... through USENET?


The only "virus" on Usenet is this fowl "Runge" character...


--
Best
Greg