On track
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With a daily connection in both directions, the Paris-Berlin rail route is aimed at users for whom time is less important than their carbon footprint and the fact of arriving in the city center. A decision which symbolizes the return to favor of the train in Europe, pushed by the EU.
This is a new railway announcement, which symbolizes the transformations underway more than it will revolutionize mobility in Europe. From this Monday, December 16, one train per day will leave from Paris to Berlin, and another in the opposite direction, with stops in Strasbourg, Karlsruhe and Frankfurt. “The two capitals will be directly linked from city center to city center, at high speed, for the first time in the rail history between the two countries,” trumpets the SNCF, which operates the line with Deutsche Bahn, in a press release. And if the travel time – 8 hours – is logically greater than that of the plane – 1 hour 45 minutes in the air – the ecological benefits are undeniable: 2 kg of CO2 per passenger by rail, compared to 200 kg by air.
Moreover, it is the public that loves “slow travel” and is favorable to the environment that the two railway companies are primarily targeting. “It makes sense because we see that people are willing to make longer and longer journeys. There are really people who are ready to r