France implements domestic flight ban adopted in climate law – News

The measure approved the year before last in the Climate Protection Act is based on consultations with citizens.

“This measure is a world first that fully fits into the government’s policy to promote the transition to means of transport with lower greenhouse gas emissions,” said Beaune.

The introduction of the regulation, which puts that part of the law into practice, means an immediate ban on flights between Nantes, Bordeaux and Lyon and Paris Orly Airport.

BFM TV explains that flights between the aforementioned three cities and Paris Roissy Airport remain permitted, as in this case the train journey time is calculated according to the station, which is directly at the airport to the northeast of the metropolis, and the journey from Bordeaux or Nantes thus takes longer than 150 minutes.

In addition, an exception applies to flights connecting to another connection.

However, the law only confirmed the already established practice. The French government forced the national carrier Air France to cancel short-haul flights in exchange for a promise of financial aid in May 2020. The ban thus mainly affects Air France’s competitors who might want to pursue short-haul flights.

The idea arose from consultations with citizens organized by the French government in 2019 and 2020 under the name Citizens’ Convention for the Climate. This resulted in the request that the ban apply to flights that can be replaced by up to a four-hour train journey.

A milder version was then approved by parliament in 2021 as part of a package of measures to help France reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2030 compared to 1990.