France has decided to take action to minimize the social and environmental cost of the cheap flights it offers.
Consequently, it has requested the support and aid of various EU member countries to levy a minimum price on all flights.
According to the country, a joint effort from the EU could set an example for all and help cut the carbon emissions being experienced by the aviation sector.
French Transport Minister
Clement Beaune, the Transport Minister of France, further said that he is trying to make sure that a discussion regarding carbon emissions takes place at the EU level.
Earlier in the year, he also proposed that all member countries should consider terminating the cheap airfares that they offer to tourists.
These decisions are being taken by the Minister shortly after he made statements regarding battling environmental and social dumping on account of low-cost airlines.
In his words, low ticket prices do not represent the cost incurred on behalf of the planet.
Consequently, Beaune believes that introducing expensive flights will reduce the carbon footprint of the aviation industry.
Jon Worth
A well-known travel expert and the founder of the Trains for Europe campaign, Jon Worth, has expressed his support for the French Transport Minister on the matter of cutting down on cheap airlines.
He believes that it is fair to ask the airline to contribute to the environmental cost incurred by the planes.
However, he said that countries should also focus on frequent flyers and target the spending power of customers.
The travel expert admitted that while levying higher airfares will reduce the amount of weekend trips, it will not hurt the aviation industry as a whole.
In his opinion, the regular flying elite will continue to spend on airline tickets as a means of transportation.
Climate research
On this note, a climate campaign group called Possible decided to conduct research into the matter and found that around 2% of the residents of France take half of the overall flights.
This number is presented in comparison to 15% of British residents who take 70% of total flights.
Meanwhile, 8% of the Dutch purchase airline tickets and contribute to 42% of the sum of flights.
A European survey from 2014 has also surfaced, which indicates that 37% of Europeans have taken at least one flight outside of their country.
While trains are a more sustainable option for travel, they are pricier in Europe. Ticket prices for trains are twice the price of airline tickets.
However, 12 train lines in Europe have been found to be cheaper, more reliable, and faster than planes and travel to at least 110 important locations.
A while ago, France took to placing a ban on domestic flight routes that could be traveled via trains and would take less than 2.5 hours.
However, the government was forced to lift the ban due to various technicalities. These included trains not running late at night.
As of now, the ban remains in only a few routes, such as Paris Oly to Nantes, Bordeaux, and Lyon.
