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| Train or Plane? More Travelers Choose Both | Train or Plane? More Travelers Choose Both |
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| Air travelers in Canada, France, Germany and Spain may increasingly find that they are doing part of their journey on the ground, as airlines work with rail companies to sell tickets for combined trips. | Air travelers in Canada, France, Germany and Spain may increasingly find that they are doing part of their journey on the ground, as airlines work with rail companies to sell tickets for combined trips. |
| William Agius, a lecturer at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences and a frequent traveler, said he had booked tickets on Air France, Lufthansa and Swiss that included legs by rail. | William Agius, a lecturer at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences and a frequent traveler, said he had booked tickets on Air France, Lufthansa and Swiss that included legs by rail. |
| “During the booking process, you notice no difference, and at the end of the process you have a message alerting you to the fact that that particular service is operated by train and not by plane,” he said. | “During the booking process, you notice no difference, and at the end of the process you have a message alerting you to the fact that that particular service is operated by train and not by plane,” he said. |
| A combination of faster trains and slower progress through crowded airports makes rail travel competitive with air on routes that are three and a half to four and a half hours long, said Andrew Sharp, director general of the International Air Rail Organization, based in London. This is especially the case in Europe, where many railway stations are in or near international airports. | A combination of faster trains and slower progress through crowded airports makes rail travel competitive with air on routes that are three and a half to four and a half hours long, said Andrew Sharp, director general of the International Air Rail Organization, based in London. This is especially the case in Europe, where many railway stations are in or near international airports. |
| Counting the time spent getting to and from the airport, checking in and getting on and off the plane, “any flight, even a 24-minute flight like San Diego to Los Angeles, will take three hours,” Mr. Sharp said. | Counting the time spent getting to and from the airport, checking in and getting on and off the plane, “any flight, even a 24-minute flight like San Diego to Los Angeles, will take three hours,” Mr. Sharp said. |
| Even Mr. Agius, who works at the university’s Center for Aviation and is an avid flier, said that taking the train is sometimes a good option. “I would prefer to take the train anytime, simply out of convenience, if the overall journey time from door to door is similar to that by plane,” he said. | Even Mr. Agius, who works at the university’s Center for Aviation and is an avid flier, said that taking the train is sometimes a good option. “I would prefer to take the train anytime, simply out of convenience, if the overall journey time from door to door is similar to that by plane,” he said. |
| About five years ago, the 300-mile trip to Paris from Strasbourg, in eastern France, took six hours. In 2007, the French railroad SNCF began running a high-speed train that made the trip to Charles de Gaulle Airport in two and a half hours. The rail service effectively killed Air France’s Strasbourg flight, a spokeswoman said, and so on Dec. 9, the airline will eliminate its four-times-a-day air service and sell a trip to Paris that goes by rail. | About five years ago, the 300-mile trip to Paris from Strasbourg, in eastern France, took six hours. In 2007, the French railroad SNCF began running a high-speed train that made the trip to Charles de Gaulle Airport in two and a half hours. The rail service effectively killed Air France’s Strasbourg flight, a spokeswoman said, and so on Dec. 9, the airline will eliminate its four-times-a-day air service and sell a trip to Paris that goes by rail. |
| “Passengers will be checked into their final destination by Air France staff at a special check-in desk at Strasbourg station,” the spokeswoman, Claire Jacobs, said. | “Passengers will be checked into their final destination by Air France staff at a special check-in desk at Strasbourg station,” the spokeswoman, Claire Jacobs, said. |
| Replacing an air route with rail is a first for Air France, but it follows an example set nearly 30 years ago when Lufthansa, in Germany, started selling airline tickets with flight numbers on trains operating between the Frankfurt and Düsseldorf airports. By eliminating these flights, airlines like Lufthansa and Air France free up gate slots for more profitable routes — usually long-haul flights. | Replacing an air route with rail is a first for Air France, but it follows an example set nearly 30 years ago when Lufthansa, in Germany, started selling airline tickets with flight numbers on trains operating between the Frankfurt and Düsseldorf airports. By eliminating these flights, airlines like Lufthansa and Air France free up gate slots for more profitable routes — usually long-haul flights. |
| Outside Europe, however, commercial partnerships between rail and air operators remain novel. This year, for the first time, Canada’s national rail system, VIA Rail, signed agreements with Royal Jordanian Airlines and Air Transat that allow the companies to sell each other’s tickets, coordinate schedules and share revenue. | Outside Europe, however, commercial partnerships between rail and air operators remain novel. This year, for the first time, Canada’s national rail system, VIA Rail, signed agreements with Royal Jordanian Airlines and Air Transat that allow the companies to sell each other’s tickets, coordinate schedules and share revenue. |
| “This initiative of ours is mostly to allow Royal Jordanian to be competitive in the Ontario market, from where we have no flights and our interline agreement fares with Air Canada are prohibitively high,” said Manouk Manoukian, head of operations for Royal Jordanian in Canada. | “This initiative of ours is mostly to allow Royal Jordanian to be competitive in the Ontario market, from where we have no flights and our interline agreement fares with Air Canada are prohibitively high,” said Manouk Manoukian, head of operations for Royal Jordanian in Canada. |
| Royal Jordanian operates twice-weekly service from Montreal to Amman, and many travelers from Canada transfer to other flights in the region on arrival in Jordan. Much of Canada’s Arab population is in Ottawa (125 miles from Montreal) and Toronto (300 miles). | Royal Jordanian operates twice-weekly service from Montreal to Amman, and many travelers from Canada transfer to other flights in the region on arrival in Jordan. Much of Canada’s Arab population is in Ottawa (125 miles from Montreal) and Toronto (300 miles). |
| The partnership “is a solution that will help us achieve a higher level of sales,” Mr. Manoukian said in an e-mail. | The partnership “is a solution that will help us achieve a higher level of sales,” Mr. Manoukian said in an e-mail. |
| Like other code share agreements, the one between Royal Jordanian and VIA allows passengers to buy a complete journey by rail and by air through either company. | Like other code share agreements, the one between Royal Jordanian and VIA allows passengers to buy a complete journey by rail and by air through either company. |
| “Right from the start, providing door-to-door mobility has been the holy grail,” said Mohamed Bhanji, director of marketing technologies at VIA. The company runs intercity, regional and transcontinental trains, as well as motor coaches, and Mr. Bhanji said its plan was to link Canadian cities to airports across the border: for example, Windsor, Ontario, to Detroit and Vancouver to Seattle. | “Right from the start, providing door-to-door mobility has been the holy grail,” said Mohamed Bhanji, director of marketing technologies at VIA. The company runs intercity, regional and transcontinental trains, as well as motor coaches, and Mr. Bhanji said its plan was to link Canadian cities to airports across the border: for example, Windsor, Ontario, to Detroit and Vancouver to Seattle. |
| In other countries, the challenge is instilling a taste for trains among those who prefer air travel. When the Spanish airline Spanair went out of business, Avianca in Colombia has this problem. Spanair had been responsible for sending 10,000 passengers to Colombia on Avianca, and its collapse left the Colombian carrier with a problem in Spain, said the airline’s chief operating officer, Estuardo Ortiz. “Without them, we had no distribution,” he said. | In other countries, the challenge is instilling a taste for trains among those who prefer air travel. When the Spanish airline Spanair went out of business, Avianca in Colombia has this problem. Spanair had been responsible for sending 10,000 passengers to Colombia on Avianca, and its collapse left the Colombian carrier with a problem in Spain, said the airline’s chief operating officer, Estuardo Ortiz. “Without them, we had no distribution,” he said. |
| Avianca turned to Spain’s Renfe train system. The deal with Renfe, which went into effect in April, allows Avianca to sell tickets to 15 destinations in Spain departing by rail from airports in Madrid and Barcelona. | Avianca turned to Spain’s Renfe train system. The deal with Renfe, which went into effect in April, allows Avianca to sell tickets to 15 destinations in Spain departing by rail from airports in Madrid and Barcelona. |
| Even in places where train travel is common, railroad stations have to be close to or in the airport, as they are in Europe, for the agreements to work, according to a report Mr. Sharp wrote for his air rail organization, which receives support from a Heathrow Airport rail link, Heathrow Express. “A train station at an airport is virtually essential,” it said. | Even in places where train travel is common, railroad stations have to be close to or in the airport, as they are in Europe, for the agreements to work, according to a report Mr. Sharp wrote for his air rail organization, which receives support from a Heathrow Airport rail link, Heathrow Express. “A train station at an airport is virtually essential,” it said. |
| This is why in the United States, Amtrak has just one airline agreement — a 10-year-old code share with United Airlines at Newark, which is near a high-speed train station. | |
| “The U.S. rail system has grown up independently from the airport system,” said Matt Hardison, chief of sales, distribution and customer service at Amtrak. “That is the No. 1 challenge we face.” | “The U.S. rail system has grown up independently from the airport system,” said Matt Hardison, chief of sales, distribution and customer service at Amtrak. “That is the No. 1 challenge we face.” |
| About 24,000 people a year take Amtrak to Newark to connect to United flights, with 90 percent of them coming from Philadelphia, 79 miles away, Mr. Hardison said. Travelers in Delaware and Connecticut can also book a combination ticket through Amtrak or United. | About 24,000 people a year take Amtrak to Newark to connect to United flights, with 90 percent of them coming from Philadelphia, 79 miles away, Mr. Hardison said. Travelers in Delaware and Connecticut can also book a combination ticket through Amtrak or United. |
| “We picked those because we wanted to test underserved cities, places where rail had an advantage over air,” Mr. Hardison said. But, he added, customers traveling from Connecticut encounter 15- to 20-minute layovers at Pennsylvania Station in New York, and that is dissuading them. | “We picked those because we wanted to test underserved cities, places where rail had an advantage over air,” Mr. Hardison said. But, he added, customers traveling from Connecticut encounter 15- to 20-minute layovers at Pennsylvania Station in New York, and that is dissuading them. |
| “We’re in the transportation business, and we’re all about giving options to the traveling public,” said David Kinzelman, managing director of alliances at United. “Look at the population in the United States. There’s not an aversion to taking a train to the plane, but it’s physically not possible in very many places. It’s a chicken and egg situation.” | “We’re in the transportation business, and we’re all about giving options to the traveling public,” said David Kinzelman, managing director of alliances at United. “Look at the population in the United States. There’s not an aversion to taking a train to the plane, but it’s physically not possible in very many places. It’s a chicken and egg situation.” |
This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: | |
| Correction: October 24, 2012 | |
An earlier version of this article erroneously attributed a distinction to the Amtrak station near Newark Liberty International Airport. It is not the only high-speed train station near an international airport in the United States. Amtrak also has a high-speed station near BWI, though it does not have a joint ticket arrangement with any airline there. |