Recently a row broke out over the international program director working for Greenpeace in Amsterdam who several times a month flew to visit his family in Luxembourg. After the issue was raised in the media Greenpeace issued a statement saying that the director would take the train from now on. The argument: Flying is bad for the environment and green activists should take the train.
But is flying so bad? Researchers from the University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute have discovered that flying, depending on trip specifications is better for the environment than driving. The study authors looked at data sets pertaining to passenger movement in the last 40 years. They concluded that flying is 57% better for the environment than driving. It should be noted however that taking the train is even better for the environment.
