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France to tax flights from its airports, airline shares fall

reuters.com

161–170 of 578 posts

Re: France to tax flights from its airports, airline shares fall

#161

About time. Traveling is killing the planet. One of major causes of climate change. We need to take it seriously. I'm glad France is willing to take a bold and brave step to support the environment.

I can't believe I am living in an era that a "bold and brave step" is raising taxes. What a sad world we live in. I guess France and their leaders can sleep well knowing they have stifled the climate crisis. Pat yourself on the back France you "did something".

Re: France to tax flights from its airports, airline shares fall

#162
post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

France and Algeria are not connected by land.

They are, it's just a long journey.

Well, I mean by the same logic also Lisboa and Washington DC are connected by land during some parts of the year.

Re: France to tax flights from its airports, airline shares fall

#163

This is simply rent seeking. It won't reduce flights, it's too small to incentivize any fuel efficiency changes, it's passed on to the consumer so it won't alter airline behavior, and while the article claims the revenue will go towards financing trains, it doesn't state how that will be implemented. Are they going to reduce fees on trains accordingly? Are they going to improve train efficiency? Are they going to bui…

> I just don't see how this helps. Just curious, what would be your favorite solution(s) of the climate crisis?

Not GP, but any action that does not occur at a global level is nothing more than a feel-good measure. You're kidding yourself if you think that this, or even this multiplied across all of Europe would make a dent in climate change. Meanwhile, it allows people to feel like they're doing something, reducing the likelihood that we will actually see a globally coordinated effort to really change direction on the climate.

Re: France to tax flights from its airports, airline shares fall

#164

This is simply rent seeking. It won't reduce flights, it's too small to incentivize any fuel efficiency changes, it's passed on to the consumer so it won't alter airline behavior, and while the article claims the revenue will go towards financing trains, it doesn't state how that will be implemented. Are they going to reduce fees on trains accordingly? Are they going to improve train efficiency? Are they going to bui…

It should be easy to see what happened to the tax revenue in the budget numbers. Large taxes and fees are risky. Governments are usually careful to not put an entire industry (including thousands of jobs) at risk of overnight collapse. Also, airlines already benefit from aviation fuel tax exemptions (to the tune of billions of dollars). Maybe we should be looking at slowly getting rid of those too.

Re: France to tax flights from its airports, airline shares fall

#165

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And they’re expensive compared to flying the equivalent route/distance.

But save you from the pain of getting to/from CDG.

Getting to CDG...by train...is pretty easy.

Traveling by train through Paris is a PITA as it often involves a station transfer via bus.

Re: France to tax flights from its airports, airline shares fall

#166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think that invalidates the idea. I can't fly everywhere , I still have to do the last mile some other way. In the sane way I don't expect the train to pick me up out side my house. Further I don't expect to go to my local airport and expect to be able to travel to any other airport direct, so why should the same apply to train travel?

Because a lot of immigrants use air travel and they don't really have an alternative. A 2-day adventure involving trains, cars, ferries,hotels is much more environmentally (and physically) costly than a $300 flight.

"A 2-day adventure involving trains, cars, ferries,hotels is much more environmentally (and physically) costly than a $300 flight"

Based on what?

Sea travel is really quite efficient, so are trains, especially when we're talking about French trains powered by French nuclear.

And why are immigrants a reason that its regressive? Low paid eastern Europeans aren't going to be flying around Europe, well paid international businessmen probably will.

Edit: Ignore the "And why are immigrants a reason that its regressive", I'm confusing my threads. The point stands though. Poor immigrant doesn't necessarily correlate with having to fly.

Re: France to tax flights from its airports, airline shares fall

#167
Finally. It's really frustrating to see how heavily subsidized airlines, plane fuel and airports are and how big of a tax breaks they get when they come to a city.

At the same time people are shamed for buying salad in a plastic bag when the big lever is somewhere completely different. Had the same thought yesterday when I saw:

https://twitter.com/paulg/status/1148317244893597696

Re: France to tax flights from its airports, airline shares fall

#168
post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I took a plane from Lisbon to Paris for 35 euros last week. That feels incredibly cheap to me, especially compared to high-speed train. I routinely pay twice as much to get not even half as far by TGV. Making train more competitive by taxing planes more might not be a terrible idea. I say might because I can't pretend to even begin to understand all the implications of this tax but hopefully whoever came up with it d…

On distances like Lisbom to Paris trains can't compete on time, not only on price. There is no way a train can be made faster with the current technology (hyperloop: let's wait and see.) I think nobody goes from Lisbon to Paris and back by train to spend a weekend there. Of course if flying costs more people will fly less.

Portugal is generally not connected by train anywhere else.

Last I checked we didn't even have more than one or 2 routes to Spain by train, due to different gauges, and spain has different gauges from france.

If you want to go from Paris to Lisbon by train expect a whole day of travel if not more, with multiple changes

Re: France to tax flights from its airports, airline shares fall

#169

About time. Traveling is killing the planet. One of major causes of climate change. We need to take it seriously. I'm glad France is willing to take a bold and brave step to support the environment.

Yawn

There are much worse polluters, sure, travel is a contribution to greenhouse gasses, but I guess fuck people for wanting to take a plane somewhere

Though the tax is small, so this seems more like a money grab than anything else

Re: France to tax flights from its airports, airline shares fall

#170
post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

From Wikipedia: «Fascism ... characterized by dictatorial power, forcible suppression of opposition and strong regimentation of society and of the economy». There are people who see the enforcement of the green agenda in these terms, like this: you can't speak publicly against it, you can't act openly against it, and it gets forced on the economy through the power of the state. I personally think that such a view is…

>>"[..]you can't speak publicly against it, you can't act openly against it,[..]" By this, I suppose you mean that, if you do it, you will get some angry answers in your direction, but, is that not true about anything deserving to talk about? It works in the other direction too: I have heard pretty harsh insults against ecologist (yeah, sometimes they are even called fascists). >>"[..] and it gets forced on the econo…

I'm mostly talking about a PR suicide that is speaking against beliefs of majority, or even a vocal minority. This has real economic consequences, so it makes businesses stay in line with the accepted beliefs by talking the only language that matters to them.

Yes, a state is an instiute of enforcement, violent if needed. Nothing new here indeed. People just tend to see enforcement of ideas they like as good, and of the ideas they don't like, as evil. Nothing new here either.

I just tried to explain the train of thought that may have led to the original (flagged) comment.

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