Trains catch a lot of flak in this country. Sure, some of it is deserved. Train travel is often expensive and unreliable (and fares are set to increase), but is it really all that bad? You can still usually get where you need to go with relative urgency, and in some cases going by rail is actually faster than catching a flight or driving. Plus, it’s always more eco-efficient.
Travel tech company SilverRail has been crunching the numbers, and it’s discovered 10 UK routes where it’s not only faster to hop on a train, it’s actually cheaper, too.
For instance, a flight from Gatwick to Edinburgh will set you back around £70, while the same from Heathrow can cost as much as £153, while a train is only £66. The flight, including all the faff of security and check in, takes around 315 minutes, where the rail journey is only 297. No brainer.
Similarly, flying from London Heathrow to Glasgow will take 295 minutes and set you back £106, where a train journey takes only a little longer, at 310 minutes, but costs only £63. Once again, the decision is made easy. You’ll find a similar deal at most other airports in the capital including Gatwick, Luton, Stansted, all of which are slightly faster by plane, but more expensive and much worse for the environment.
To get to Newcastle from Heathrow is £147 by air, but only £45 by rail, which is also about an hour quicker. Manchester to London (yes, you can fly between the two) it’s more than £60 cheaper and more than an hour and a half faster.
Here are all of SilverRail’s findings, split by airport.
Gatwick to Edinburgh
- Air: 315 minutes, £70
- Rail: 297 minutes, £66
Heathrow to Edinburgh
- Air: 340 minutes, £153
- Rail: 297 minutes, £66
Luton to Edinburgh
- Air: 310 minutes, £61
- Rail: 297 minutes, £66
Stansted to Edinburgh
- Air: 319 minutes, £45
- Rail: 297 minutes, £66
Heathrow to Glasgow
- Air: 295 minutes, £106
- Rail: 310 minutes, £63
Gatwick to Glasgow
- Air: 300 minutes, £71
- Rail: 310 minutes, £63
Luton to Glasgow
- Air: 295 minutes, £64
- Rail: 310 minutes, £63
Stansted to Glasgow
- Air: 299 minutes, £74
- Rail: 310 minutes, £63
Heathrow to Newcastle
- Air: 297 minutes, £147
- Rail: 228 minutes, £45
Heathrow to Manchester
- Air: 278 minutes, £94
- Rail: 173 minutes, £31
Time Out and the UK’s train stations
We Brits love moaning about this country’s rail services (and with fares set to increase, who can blame us?) but it isn’t all bad. This tiny northern train station (sadly, not Denton) has been named the best in the UK for 2024 – plus, check out Time Out’s top 12 train stations in the UK.
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