Low Carbon Travel

We want to make it easy and cheap for Eagles to chose low carbon travel options, particularly to the popular European destinations, and the information linked below will help you with this.

It is worth mentioning the relative carbon emissions from different forms of transport. We'll take the example of travelling from London to Geneva. There is no precise answer, as particular vehicles, planes or other services will vary in their emissions, depending on many factors. Different carbon calculators available on the web use different models that give differing weights to these factors. With those caveats, representative estimates for the trip are (for a return trip from London to Geneva):

Travel Mode	Carbon Emissions kg CO2 equivalent per person
Plane, Economy Class	400kg
Large car, 4 passengers	160kg
Small car, 4 passengers	80kg
Coach	50kg
Train (e.g. Eurostar )	25kg

Don't take these too literally, but they give a reasonable comparison. For instance, travelling by car can be better than flying, IF the car is full (do the calculation for your car and your journey). Even so, it is nowhere near as good as travelling by train.

We strongly recommend that you consider travelling to Europe by train. It is much more relaxed and pleasant than fluing, as well as being so much better for the planet. Read John's article below to be convinced.

If you have to fly to your destination, please consider offsetting your emissions by buying carbon credits, through the ESC scheme below, or any other.

•     Plan your Rail travel
•     Purchase carbon credits

For more useful information and help on rail travel:

•    Train Travel Tips and Hints - some notes by John Barnard based on personal experience

For auditing your own or the Club's carbon impact:

•     Carbon Audit Results
•     Measure YOUR impact

  Climate Care Committee