3 ms·

Air travel is almost as subsidized as road travel, I don't think 'cheaper' is a good argument for it (not even counting externalities). Convenience though is a

by orwin 3y ago

Air travel is almost as subsidized as road travel, I don't think 'cheaper' is a good argument for it (not even counting externalities). Convenience though is a great argument for air travel.

uxp8u61q 3y ago
Air travel is not convenient. How do you get to the airport? How long does it take you? Do you take your car and pay for parking, do you pay $$$ for a cab? Do you take public transportation and take hours? How long in advance do you need to get there? How much time do you waste in ID checks, security checks, taxiing...? Meanwhile, where I live, I take a metro car and I'm at the train station in 30 min. I get there 10 min before the train leaves just to be safe. Then I just... get on the train? And when the train arrives, I just... get off it. And that's it.
- wkat4242 3y ago
  High speed trains in Europe have security checks too. Though they're not as rigorous and time consuming as those for air but you still need to plan for them.
  - uxp8u61q 3y ago
    I must have taken the TGV a hundred times in my life, and high speed trains elsewhere in Europe several times. I have never been through a security check. The only time I had to, it was the Eurostar. I don't know what you are talking about or where your information is coming from.
    - wkat4242 3y ago
      Oh here in Spain I've always had to go through a check. Metal detector and baggage through the X-ray scanner.
globular-toast 3y ago
Convenience really depends. At its most convenient, I think rail wins. You could walk to a station and get exactly where you need to go, right into the city centre. No limit on luggage size or weight or anything. No long boarding/deboarding procedure. In fact, now I think about it I'm not sure how you could call air travel convenient compared to rail. The only advantage is you can go further and cross oceans and mountains etc.

3 ms·

Air travel is almost as subsidized as road travel, I don't think 'cheaper' is a good argument for it (not even counting externalities). Convenience though is a

by orwin 3y ago

Air travel is almost as subsidized as road travel, I don't think 'cheaper' is a good argument for it (not even counting externalities). Convenience though is a great argument for air travel.

uxp8u61q 3y ago
Air travel is not convenient. How do you get to the airport? How long does it take you? Do you take your car and pay for parking, do you pay $$$ for a cab? Do you take public transportation and take hours? How long in advance do you need to get there? How much time do you waste in ID checks, security checks, taxiing...? Meanwhile, where I live, I take a metro car and I'm at the train station in 30 min. I get there 10 min before the train leaves just to be safe. Then I just... get on the train? And when the train arrives, I just... get off it. And that's it.
- wkat4242 3y ago
  High speed trains in Europe have security checks too. Though they're not as rigorous and time consuming as those for air but you still need to plan for them.
  - uxp8u61q 3y ago
    I must have taken the TGV a hundred times in my life, and high speed trains elsewhere in Europe several times. I have never been through a security check. The only time I had to, it was the Eurostar. I don't know what you are talking about or where your information is coming from.
    - wkat4242 3y ago
      Oh here in Spain I've always had to go through a check. Metal detector and baggage through the X-ray scanner.
globular-toast 3y ago
Convenience really depends. At its most convenient, I think rail wins. You could walk to a station and get exactly where you need to go, right into the city centre. No limit on luggage size or weight or anything. No long boarding/deboarding procedure. In fact, now I think about it I'm not sure how you could call air travel convenient compared to rail. The only advantage is you can go further and cross oceans and mountains etc.