Sunday, 11 April 2021

The Euro Travelling Brits?

A high percentage of people in the UK are reportedly keen to travel for foreign holidays. This is an understandable response to the pandemic lockdowns. Having said that, many of the locations the British would like to visit currently have relatively a) high levels of Covid-19 infections and b) modest vaccination figures for their populations. There is always a possibility of picking up infections and bringing them back to the UK. This even applies to the 'safe' (green) locations. One can't rule out the possibility, these would include new more infective or vaccine-resistant variants of Sars-CoV-2. In spite of this, Johan Lundgren (CEO of EasyJet), somewhat predictably argues it's unfair that travellers, to 'green' locations, have the added expense of Covid tests before and after their flights. Indeed, these tests may cost more than the flights themselves. Lundgren, consequently, thinks that only the well-heeled (not EasyJet's usual passengers) will then be able to afford to travel (https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/easyjet-government-travel-rules-expensive-b1827366.html). The climate crisis, requires a marked reduction in the amount of air travel we undertake. It is consequently interesting to also read of 2022 plans for a sleeper train service between the UK and locations in Europe (https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/apr/11/the-dream-ticket-a-sleeper-train-to-europes-cities-may-soon-be-on-track). Sleeper trains would be a much better environmental option for business and holiday travel in Europe. The planned service would run between Brussels and Prague, with stops in Amsterdam, Berlin and Dresden. A one-way ticket would cost around £60. Some 30 years ago, there was an intention to run 'Nightstar' sleeper trains through Eurotunnel. These trains would have connected London, Plymouth, Swansea and Glasgow to Amsterdam, Frankfurt and Cologne. The carriages were built (they are now in Canada) but the plan abandoned, largely due to the rise of cheap airlines (such as EasyJet). To be quite honest, any rise of sleeper train services requires airtravel to become more expensive. I also would have thought that, people who choose to holiday abroad, actually have a responsibility to take tests, to keep the transmission of Covid infections down. Cheap can't always be cheerful.

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