Back in October, Larry Olmsted wrote a piece on Forbes that was so glowing about the benefits of taking trains over flying, we felt here at SilverRail that we could have written it ourselves!

In the article, Larry talks about how in Europe (and parts of Asia), the convenience benefits of arriving downtown are enormously valuable, particularly when compared to air travel.  He says:

"The single biggest advantage of train travel is that it goes from city center to city center, without the need to arrive over an hour early, which in many cases can save you 2-3 hours of travel time (and taxi expenses) before you even count the travel itself. This is especially true because in both Europe and Japan, airports are often located far outside major cities, and in cases like London and Paris, a cab from the airport can take an hour and cost upwards of $75 – each way. Arrive by train however, and you are instantly downtown, often within 5-minutes of your hotel. Additionally, unlike at home, many major European airports are served directly by inter-city trains, so it is entirely possible, for example, to land in Paris, board a high-speed train right at Charles DeGaulle airport for Lyon, a popular destination known as the culinary capital of France, and be in the middle of that city an hour and forty-five minutes later – not significantly longer than simply getting into Paris during rush hour – and much easier and faster than renting a car and driving."

Larry goes on to highlight some of the softer benefits of rail as well, including rail being more "scenic" as well as highlighting the possibility of saving on hotel costs if you take an overnight train!

As more people come round to the view that Larry highlights here, I'm sure the Rail Revolution will continue apace.