Tag: Train

Environment, Travel

Plane vs train CO2 emissions

Posted on by insightndes

Handily the Guardian Newspaper has published a comparison of CO2 emissions between plane and train (and car). See https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/jun/30/carbon-emissions-from-uk-rail-travel-lower-than-previously-thought?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

The example the Guardian cited was the journey from London to Edinburgh, which is one part of the journey that I completed. 12.5kg for the train and 131kg for the plane, more than a factor of 10 difference. All the trains I travelled on we’re pretty well full, so maximum savings achieved.

From the article “The first result from RDG’s new carbon calculator confirms this figure is actually 12.5kg/CO2e – approximately half the previous estimation, and 10 times less carbon than car travel or 13 times less than the equivalent flight.” referring to trains. I am actually surprised how much better trains are than flying and cars.

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Travel

Paris-London-Edinburgh

Posted on by insightndes
Hotel des Pyrenees, great location, crazy room shapes.
Street art in a tunnel next to the Seine- converted to pedestrian and cycle use.

Cycled to the Tour d’Eiffel. Paris is really cycle friendly and it turns out that this is a really good way to see Paris. I was surprised by the tunnel with the street art.

La Tour d’Eiffel
Armed military patrols around La Tour d’Eiffel
Time to kill before getting on the Eurostar at Gare Du Nord.
Église Saint-Vincent-de-Paul
View from Église Saint-Vincent-de-Paul
Sightseeing route
Catching the Eurostar at Gare Du Nord.

No Window seat on the Eurostar means it’s not easy to get pictures from the train.

Back at St Pancras
Next train is from Kings Cross

No seat booking but I am booked on the train. Stood up until we reached York.

North Sea
Berwick on Tweed

Edinburgh Waverley

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Travel

Madrid-Barcelona-Paris

Posted on by insightndes
Through the blind of the sixth floor hotel room window

Not enough time in Madrid due to the late arrival and catching the 1030 train.

Parque de el Retiro. Beautiful and cool,
The super fast Spanish train

The next leg on the very fast Spanish service is not covered by Interrail. So had to pay for the ticket in advance on Trainline. But I had not realised that there is a baggage allowance. So I had to pay extra to get my luggage on the train.

Leaving Madrid
Super fast train

Changed to TGV at Barcelona,

View from upper deck of TGV
Arrived in Paris- Gare de Lyon
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Travel

Madrid-Barcelona-Paris

Posted on by insightndes
Through the blind of the sixth floor hotel room window

Not enough time in Madrid due to the late arrival and catching the 1030 train.

Parque de el Retiro. Beautiful and cool,
The super fast Spanish train

The next leg on the very fast Spanish service is not covered by Interrail. So had to pay for the ticket in advance on Trainline. But I had not realised that there is a baggage allowance. So I had to pay extra to get my luggage on the train.

Leaving Madrid
Super fast train

Changed to TGV at Barcelona,

View from upper deck of TGV
Arrived in Paris- Gare de Lyon
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Travel

El tren a Madrid

Posted on by insightndes

While on the bus I checked google maps and discovered that I would get to Madrid far sooner by train .

Valladolid station

The train was delayed by 35 mins. Would I make it before midnight?

Interestingly baggage get’s scanned before boarding.

Madrid Charmatin

Yes! Made it to Madrid before midnight local time. But not to the hotel. Better than 0330.

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Travel

Porto-not Madrid -Porto Strike 2!

Posted on by insightndes
Good bye Porto – on time for the 0637 train

On my way to Entroncamento . On the way notices appeared with the word “greve”.

It’s quite green

Arrived at Entroncamento

The single carriage train to take us to Badajoz but…..

Total confusion. The train was being cleaned. Two older English women were also trying to get to Badajoz. We asked around. No one appeared to know what was happening with the train. Eventually we got some sense from the ticket office. Train cancelled, it might go at 1500 or the next day or not. Too late for the connecting trains.

The two English women decided to go back to Lisbon, I decided to back to Porto.

The day before the trip and during the journey to Entroncamento I had checked the Portuguese railway website- nothing saying the train from Entroncamento to Badajoz was cancelled. However the train was cancelled due to industrial action.

Old steam engines at Entroncamento
Back to Porto!

Five hours on the train and back to the start,just barter 1300. Disaster!

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Travel

Badajoz to Porto

Posted on by insightndes
Train at Badajoz

An issue straight away with the start of this journey, a delay of 30 minutes, first delay of the trip, The delay would make my connection very tight, particularly as I had to make a reservation at Entratron.

Not busy at the start of the journey,

The train is a single carriage diesel, a bit long in the tooth. Not fast and not modern, Operated by the Portuguese Railway service.

A man with a flag set us off.
Arrived in Portugal
Sheep
Torre Das Vargens

The line is single track with a steep climb after entering Portugal. Not fast, Then we are told we have to get off the train an wait for a bus. A train further down the line had broken down and blocked the track,

https://videopress.com/v/rwBxUcoZ?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata&useAverageColor=true
During a long wait for the bus we could watch the house martins.
Back on a train at Abrantes
https://videopress.com/v/02uiIsFq?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata&useAverageColor=true
Undoing the handbrake?
Entroncamento

Picked up a fast train at Entroncamento. I had no reservation for the train, No opportunity to get one with the previous chaos, I am not convinced it would have been possible even if everything had gone to plan. It is not possible to make reservations for Portugal in Spain or on the train to Entroncamento. But past caring by this stage,

Coming into Porto
Arrived in Porto two hours later than planned .
Cycling to the hotel

This was the first time that the journey encountered issues. Old rolling stock on single track line, Language was an issue resolved by fellow travellers being multi linguists. I had to move once on the final train due to the arrival with a traveller with a reservation. Arrived eventually. But list bike helmet in all the changes.

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Travel

Barcelona to Badajoz

Posted on by insightndes

A long journey across Spain, an opportunity to see how the landscape, vegetation and agriculture changes. Taking in a change of trains in Madrid, at a very confusing set of stations all clumped together with poor sign posting. A foreigner’s nightmare. Train ended up 30 minutes late to Badajoz.

Front of the queue Barcelona Santa
Madrid Puerta de Atocha

Badajoz

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Travel

Oxfordshire to Barcelona

Posted on by insightndes

A long way to go in one day!
Early start with the moon in the sky.

A revisit to Reading on the way to London.

Paddington nice and early.

Followed by an almost pleasant bike ride to St Pancras.

Stress at St Pancras as the gate for the 0701 Eurostar was closing. Still had a long wait on the train. Pleasant ride on the Eurostar but the electrical sockets don’t work. No matter, sure there will be opportunities later.


train

Arrived at Gare Du Nord

Ride across Paris from Gare du Nord to Gare de Lyon, followed by lunch, sightseeing, and a return to Gare de Lyon.

The ride from Paris to Barcelona was epic, long, fast and a good selection of French landscapes. Brits, Americans, Australians, Germans, French, Spaniards. A fun mix, and by the end of the journey we felt like we had experienced something together. Six hours travel time on the final leg of today.

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Travel

Changes

Posted on by insightndes

Or traveling from Farnham to Bristol

To get to Bristol from Farnham involved changing at Brookwood:

Changing at Basingstoke:

Changing at Reading:

I managed to catch a delayed service from Basingstoke to Reading, which did not stop due to the delay. This enabled me to catch another delayed train at Reading speeding up the journey. The delay at Basingstoke was not for a good reason. The train coming from Reading had been held up due to a member of staff being racially abused. This is not acceptable.

Final destination Bristol Parkway:

Three changes in all. South east England is surprisingly pretty from the train, and green.

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