Post #445555

2026-02-27 09:03 UTC

🚄✈️ Why is it still so hard to choose a train over a plane? On many long-distance routes in Europe, choosing the train can feel like a borderline heroic decision. It’s often more expensive, takes longer, and can be less reliable when connections are tight. This week we spoke to cross-border rail advocate @jon about what Europe would need to change to make rail the obvious choice, not a moral gesture. Here’s his recipe. THREAD: #trains #travel #europe #infrastructure

Replies (7)

@europeanspodcast@mastodon.social 2026-02-27 09:03

1. Better, more interconnected timetables. One early morning train from Berlin to Paris is not a serious offer on a continent of this size. Sparse frequencies and poorly aligned connections make cross-border travel stressful. If you cannot arrive in Berlin at a reasonable hour and reliably continue to Paris the same day, rail loses to aviation by default. Frequency and coordination matter as much as speed.

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@A_denie@toot.io 2026-02-27 09:03

@europeanspodcast@mastodon.social @jon@gruene.social ah excellent! We were talking about this, trying to work it out, just last weekend!

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@vonxylofon@witter.cz 2026-02-27 17:23

@zatrsakr@kompost.cz @europeanspodcast@mastodon.social I'll have you know ČD is actually average when it comes to reliability, and very good at all other aspects: https://www.transportenvironment.org/uploads/files/Embargo-lifted-09122024-European-Ranking-of-Rail-operators-REPORT-Updated-20122024-2.pdf The state of European rail is truly sad.

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@Kay@mastodon.nz 2026-02-27 10:45

@europeanspodcast@mastodon.social @jon@gruene.social My partner and I love train travel! So much more romantic than nasty planes! For a sole passenger in a hurry planes may be OK (although I stopped flying years ago for climate reasons). If people are travelling for pleasure and to see the countryside, trains are the way to go. Those Scenic Train programmes are great adverts for that. Even for shorter distance commuters, trains are better than cars and buses! No parking issues, more comfortable and more reliable!

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@gwentlarry@mastodon.social 2026-02-27 12:24

@europeanspodcast@mastodon.social @jon@gruene.social Try the UK, some of the worst train services in Europe, a consequence of privatisation leading to multiple train operating companies. Slowly being put right as train companies come back under government control but still not great. The best example of the problem is Ticket Splitting - depending on starting point, final destination and intermediate stations, how and where you buy tickets results in different costs. I have saved up to 50% by ticket splitting.

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@bewo001@darmstadt.social 2026-02-27 13:40

@europeanspodcast@mastodon.social @jon@gruene.social what bugs me most is the booking situation. If I make a phone call to Portugal, I don't need to install an app of every network operator involved from Germany to Portugal. When buying train tickets, this is considered normal.

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@barnesmaurice@mastodonapp.uk 2026-02-27 13:49

@europeanspodcast@mastodon.social @jon@gruene.social we've frequently done Munich-Cambridge (and the opposite) via train, takes about 12-13hrs.

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