Long-distance train travel for work: colleagues share their tips
Reserve a seat, pack a nice lunch and leave a little extra time if you need to change trains. These tips come from colleagues who recently travelled by train for work. They found it a comfortable, productive and greener way to travel. ‘Just give it a try, to me it’s not very different from working from home for a day.’
Making international work trips by train instead of plane is key to reducing our university’s carbon emissions. We aim to cut carbon emissions from business travel by 25% in 2027.
Roy de Kleijn, Assistant Professor
‘I travel for work a few times a year, just recently to Zurich for Una Europa. Flying would have taken seven hours from door to door and by train it was ten. From a practical perspective, I chose the train. I thought: OK, it may take a bit longer but as I can travel first class by train, I get to stretch my legs and do some work. I could also have worked during the one-hour flight but that doesn’t get you very far.
‘As I can travel first class by train, I get to stretch my legs and do some work’
‘My tip for colleagues travelling by train is to book a seat. That’s often optional on international trains but is essential if you want to work. If you have to change trains, there’s more chance of things going wrong. That’s worth bearing in mind.
‘Would I recommend the train to colleagues? Definitely! You often find that flights are cheaper, but as you spend more of the journey on the train, it can be easier to work there. People need to work it out for themselves.’
Andrea Reyes Elizondo, researcher
‘I have been reading about climate justice. We in the West consume and produce at very high levels, while people in other regions suffer most from climate change, despite contributing little to global emissions. I try to do as much as I can in my small area of influence.
‘I love that you just go to the platform and get on – no need to go through security!’
Travelling by train is one action that I hope will become more common among colleagues. I‘ve travelled to Berlin, Aarhus and Barcelona by train for work. I love that you just go to the platform and get on – no need to go through security! There’s also more space. That makes it easier to work. In an airplane, someone will recline their seat and there goes your working time. Lastly, I enjoy seeing the landscape and being aware of distances. Airplane travel blurs that out.
The challenging part is changing trains. I usually take an earlier train at the start of my journey to allow for any delays. I also pack a nice lunch. At first you might feel like you are ‘wasting time’. Don’t see it as a substitute but as doing things differently. We all need to adapt to confront the climate crisis and a few extra hours in a comfortable seat is minor compared to floods and heatwaves that others already face.’
Karin Horsman, Director of Strategy and Academic Affairs
‘As a member of the Una Europa Research Strategy Group, I had to go to Zurich last year. I had another meeting the day before, so had the choice of a late-night flight or the night train. I decided to sit back, take the train and see what it was like. It was cheaper than a flight plus a night in a hotel.
‘The carriage had air conditioning and I could get a cup of tea if I fancied one’
‘I was a bit apprehensive because you often hear negative things about trains. But it all went well. The carriage had air conditioning and I could get a cup of tea if I fancied one. As I’m quite tall, I’m always folded double in planes but I had more space on the train. The only thing was that the sofa bed wasn’t that comfortable.
‘To colleagues who aren’t quite sure, I would say: try it for yourself and see what you think. Lots of people choose not to go by train because of the time it takes but you can easily bring your work with you. It’s not that different from a day working from home. So next time you’re considering flying think about how you could get the train to work for you. You may be pleasantly surprised.’
Booking guidance
At Leiden University, second-class train travel is the norm for destinations which can be reached within six hours by rail. If your destination is over 500 kilometers away – or will take more than six hours to reach – then you can also book a first-class ticket or a sleeping place on a night train.
Use our interactive travel map to help plan your journey. It gives you travel times to various European cities, plus CO2 emissions per trip and how a journey by train compares.
Sustainability is one of our university’s ongoing development themes for 2022-2027. Together we are creating a sustainable work and study environment, integrating sustainability in our teaching, and carrying out sustainability research across many faculties and domains. Learn more about how we are contributing to a sustainable future.
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