About Thalys
Breathe
High speed train: reduced CO2 emissions
Thalys pollutes far less than aeroplanes or cars for several reasons:
- Exclusive consumption of electrical energy, which better respects the environment.
- Large capacity transport.
- Low rolling resistance of wheel/rail contact: over the same distance, a mass equal to one tonne consumes much less energy on rails than on the road.
- Particularly high occupancy rate: 71,60% between Paris and Brussels for example.
If we focus on greenhouse gas emissions, the results are as follows:
Specific emission in kg of CO2 per passenger and per one-way journey
| Thalys | Car | Aeroplane | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paris-Brussels | 5.6 | 33.2 | 59.0 |
| Paris-Amsterdam | 12.1 | 55.1 | 75.1 |
| Paris-Cologne | 12.2 | 53.1 | 74.1 |
Figures calculated using mean values and given as an indication only (Source: Ecopassenger UIC)
Intermodality: Thalys Connect
We have created several Thalys services to facilitate customers’ journeys “door-to-door”:
- Sale of public transport tickets for Paris, Brussels and the Netherlands at the Thalys bar.
- Free access to public transport in Aix-la-Chapelle (AVV) with a Thalys ticket.
- Easier rail connections. Passengers can use the internal rail networks with certain Thalys tickets without having to purchase another ticket. Find out about the “Any Belgian station” and the “Paris-Maastricht” rates.
- Member of Railteam: The European high-speed train network for travelling within Europe.
- Reservation of taxis on board in Comfort 1.
- Car rentals (Partnership with Europcar).
- Hire of e-Solex (Solex electric bikes) at Paris-Nord in partnership with Europcar since 1st July 2008.
Our aim: To make people prefer travelling by train and public transport and thus contribute to reducing pollution.
