Travelling to the continent by train will become an even more energy-friendly alternative to flying as Eurostar is planning to cut its CO2 emissions by up to 25%. The under-channel operator says it will invest in more efficient technology and source more power from renewable sources to meet its ambitious target by 2012.
Eurostar Chief executive, Richard Brown, said the move would make Eurostar the green alternative to short-haul trips between Britain and Europe. “We do know that a high-speed rail journey is 10 times greener than flying,” he said. “The low-cost airlines phenomenon has come up over the last 10 years. We’re looking to attract more passengers to travel with us.”
The rail boss added that Eurostar would not be passing any extra costs onto passengers, including money spent on offsetting schemes. “We will bear the cost of making every journey carbon neutral… We will not charge a penny extra.” Proclaimed Mr Brown but, whether this will be the case, remains to be seen.
Eurostar plans to start offseting the 50,000 tonnes of CO2 produced every year by its trains as soon as their new high-speed line into London’s St. Pancras Station opens in autumn 2007. However Mr Brown has not yet appeared to have done his homework regarding the financial implications of such an initiative. “It could be a good many hundreds of thousands of pounds. It could be a million,” added the executive somewhat vaguely.
Tony Juniper of Friends of the Earth welcomed the news, saying “Something like 80% of takeoffs and landings in Britain are to and from European destinations. Aviation emissions are particularly damaging. Being able to reduce short haul flights is going to make a big difference.”
