Trains to Copenhagen getting ready for departure

Monday, 02 November 2009 13:22

In less than a month, the symbolic voyage from Kyoto to Copenhagen begins, and a number of activities are scheduled to take place beforehand.

On the 5-6 November, The International Union of Railways (UIC) and the Asian Regional Assembly are organising a seminar on Climate Change and Rail. The seminar will take place in the Japanese city of Kyoto, which is the birthplace of the current Climate Change protocol, which is due to expire at the end of 2012. From the seminar, the Asian railways and UIC will send a message to COP15 participants on how railways can be part of the solution in the fight against global warming. The message being, that Railways are crucial in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and developing sustainable transport systems, as they provide the most energy efficient performance both in passenger/km and tonne/km.

The message from the seminar will be brought to Copenhagen through a symbolic rail journey from Kyoto to Copenhagen. On 21 November, the train departs from the Russian city of Vladivostok and via the Trans-Siberian Railway it will carry the message to Copenhagen. During the journey, the train will stop in a number of cities, and an environment expert, a NGO and climate campaigners will send eye-witness accounts of global warming signs under way which can be followed at http://www.traintocopenhagen.org.

On 5 December the Climate Express train will depart from Brussels at 09.11 and will arrive in Copenhagen at 22.50, stopping in Cologne at 12.32 and Hamburg at 16.34. On board the train will be a number of key participants including Mr. Ishida UIC President and Vice chairman of Japan East Railways, Mr. Steiner, UN Under-Secretary-General and UNEP Executive Director and Mr. Van Ypersele, Vice-Chair of the IPCC. At arrival in Copenhagen the Climate Express will be welcomed by COP15 hostess and Danish Climate Minister Connie Hedegaard and the CEO of DSB Søren Eriksen.

According to the UIC, the reason why railways are so important in reducing greenhouse gas emissions is that on a global scale, transport is responsible for more than 20% of emissions which cause global warming. While other sectors have managed to reduce their emissions, the emissions of the transport sector have been consistently increasing. Curbing this increase and reducing transport emissions is one of the vital steps in combating global warming.

If you want to travel in a sustainable way you can find the timetable for all European trains at www.ecopassenger.org and compare the carbon footprint between the different modes of transportation.

Source: http://www.traintocopenhagen.org/