The plane is faster door to door. Fastest train 4h04 (Paris-Gare de Lyon → Zürich HB (via Mulhouse, Basel)), ~5 direct trains/day. 3 g CO₂e per passenger-km by train. Checked 2026-11-01.
The comparison
| Fastest train | 4h04Paris-Gare de Lyon → Zürich HB (via Mulhouse, Basel) |
|---|---|
| Trains | ~5 direct trains/day (pickthetrain open-data average 4.9/day)TGV Lyria, SBB |
| Flight | ~1h20 CDG-ZRH (pickthetrain typical-for-distance; Air France and SWISS fly nonstop). Airports add travel, check-in and security time. |
| Door to door | The plane is faster door to door |
| CO₂ | 3 g CO₂e per passenger-km by trainTrain: SNCF Voyageurs Info GES 2024, 'LYRIA' = 3.0 gCO2e/pkm (use phase only). Plane: the same document cites ADEME use-phase values of 159 g/pkm (<500 km flights) and 123 g/pkm (500-1000 km), without contrails; pick the band by flight distance. Left null here to avoid choosing a |
Roughly a draw. pickthetrain.com door-to-door model (its own assumptions: 1h30 airport check-in/security, 20 min to exit, typical-for-distance flight time, public-transport access estimates): plane faster by 31 min (4h33 vs 4h02).
Questions
Is the train faster than flying from Paris to Zurich?
The plane is faster door to door. The fastest train takes 4h04 city centre to city centre; the flight is ~1h20 CDG-ZRH (pickthetrain typical-for-distance; Air France and SWISS fly nonstop). Airports add travel, check-in and security time..
How often do trains run from Paris to Zurich?
~5 direct trains/day (pickthetrain open-data average 4.9/day)
Which emits less, train or plane?
3 g CO₂e per passenger-km by train.
Sources: pickthetrain.com, groupe-sncf.com
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