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Sleeper services are usually much, much more expensive than a regular seat, so it doesn't help in trying to compete with air service (where you don't need sleep
by magduf 7y ago
Sleeper services are usually much, much more expensive than a regular seat, so it doesn't help in trying to compete with air service (where you don't need sleeper service because it's so much faster).
- seanmcdirmid 7y agoI used to do a hard sleeper from Beijing to shanghai or Hangzhou (overnight train), and it was definitely cheaper than flying at the time. But hard sleepers aren’t for the feint of heart, especially if you get a dreaded top berth. Sleepers are appreciated on planes enough that they charge a lot for them (a 12+ hour long haul in business class is mostly sleep, in economy it’s watch whatever movie you can find).
- magduf 7y agoSleepers on planes certainly are expensive (you're talking about business or first class to get that space), but you don't feel the need for it as much because it's only that useful on long-haul flights. There's no such thing, usually, as a train that goes the same route as a 14-hour plane flight: such a train would have to somehow cross an ocean.
- seanmcdirmid 7y ago> such a train would have to somehow cross an ocean. Beijing to Western Europe via Moscow could technically be done by train. The first leg is 8 hours which should count as a long haul.
- magduf 7y agoThat's why I added the word "usually" in there. Try taking a train to Australia or Japan (from outside those countries), between the Americas and Europe or Asia, etc.
- seanmcdirmid 7y agoGenerally anything separated by water should fly, but even just going across the continent I think flying wins out; eg why train from shanghai to Urumqi for 2-3 days when you can just fly for 5 or 6 hours?
- magduf 7y agoYeah, that's the point I was trying to make before with my first sentence. A 5-6 hour flight isn't that hard to do in a seat; you don't need a sleeper for that. But a 2-3 day trip on a train isn't something you want to do in a regular upright seat.
- komali2 7y agoI see your point, and understand it, but on the same note, food like pasture raised egg/milk etc is more expensive than the factory farmed version. Isn't it worth comparing not only the financial cost, but the ethical one and the environmental impact of decisions?
- magduf 7y agoIs pasture-raised dairy actually more ecological? Sounds like it requires a lot of land.