乘着列车的“翅膀”

To get to Europe, you still have to take a plane. But to get around, some savvy travelers are finding a much smoother -- and sometimes quicker -- ride on the train.

High-speed rail operators in Europe are ambitiously adding routes and cutting travel times, looking to snatch customers from the short-haul airline market. They are also adding perks, such as DVD and movie rentals and free newspapers. Plush high-speed trains are luring customers weary of the bare-bones service offered on the many discount airlines that have proliferated throughout Europe: Eurostar Group Ltd. trains (which run in the United Kingdom, France and Belgium) have 33 inches of leg room in coach, for example. Discount airline Ryanair has 30 inches of leg room -- and the seats don't recline.

Spain, which is at the forefront of the rail boom, got high-speed service connecting Madrid and Barcelona last month. The journey was slashed by two hours: Now it takes just two hours, 35 minutes. Switzerland in January saw the opening of a $3.5 billion, 22-mile tunnel that passes through the Alps, cutting travel time by 45 to 75 minutes within the country and between Switzerland and Italy.

In November, Eurostar reduced the travel time by 20 minutes on its popular London-to-Brussels and London-to-Paris routes. As of late January, there were more than 2,600 miles of high-speed lines under construction in Europe, including some 1,400 miles in Spain alone, plus an additional 5,300 miles planned, according to the International Union of Railways.

Consumers are flocking to the comfortable, speedy trains -- while growth is slowing in parts of the airline industry. Eurostar reported a 15% rise in ticket sales for 2007, with much of the increase occurring after the London enhancements. Meanwhile, airport passenger-traffic growth has fallen to 2% in Britain for the past two years, according to the country's Civil Aviation Authority. Prior to that, traffic had been growing 6% a year since the 1970s.

While the nearly 200-mph trains are of particular use to long-distance commuters and other European-based consumers, U.S. travelers also can take advantage, whether they want to visit multiple stops across the Continent or just avoid the hassle of taking connecting flights.

Frank Giaccio, a 60-year-old investment analyst from King of Prussia, Pa., did the latter during a recent trip to Italy. He needed to get to San Giovanni Valdarno, a little town a half-hour south of Florence, where he planned to spend two weeks studying Italian. He didn't want to fly to Florence, which would have required connecting from Milan and, in his opinion, increased the odds of his luggage getting lost. And he definitely didn't want to rent a car and take his chances reading road signs. 'I was studying Italian very unsuccessfully,' he says.

So he took the trains. A high-speed one got him from Milan to Florence in under three hours, and a local one covered the remaining distance to San Giovanni Valdarno. The train from Milan made just a brief stop or two, and he got to gaze at the rural countryside along the way. 'How can you complain?' Mr. Giaccio says, although he wasn't thrilled about the euro-dollar exchange rate, which made his one-way fare the equivalent of $48.

Train travelers can also avoid airport security hassles and some of the delays that have plagued flights lately. Last year was the fourth straight year that delays increased on intra-European flights, according to the Association of European Airlines. Train stations are often more convenient: They tend to be located in city centers. Airports are often more remote, especially those where discount airlines tend to fly. For example, Barcelona International Airport is about 20 minutes from the city center, but Barcelona Girona Airport, which Ryanair flies into, is 90 kilometers (55 miles) away.

And as no-frills airlines have become increasingly prevalent in Europe, passengers are being charged for checking bags, checking in at the airport, and even for using credit cards. Rail has gone the reverse route, offering more perks. Eurostar's trains have power sockets and offer free newspapers and magazines in business and premium economy classes on-board. The TGV Med, a French high-speed train that travels from Paris to destinations near the Mediterranean coast, has DVD-player and movie rentals. SNCF, France's high-speed rail operator, is launching a youth-aimed overnight service to Biarritz and the French Riviera later this year. The service, called IDnight, will have music, dancing and an all-night bar.

Weldon Thompson, a Helsinki resident and frequent train traveler, raves about another creature comfort: an easier customs process. On a recent ride he took between Basel, Switzerland, and Frankfurt, Germany, a customs agent boarded the train during a stop to check the passengers, allowing them to avoid standing in lines, as is often the case at the airport. 'I've cleared customs sitting in the dining car eating lunch,' Mr. Thompson says. This has a downside, too, however. During customs checks, the whole train stops and waits until all passengers are cleared.

For now, trains are also better for those who want to stay connected while they travel. Train passengers already can use cellphones where a cell signal is available. But European airlines soon may offer voice services too; Ryanair plans to begin testing in-flight cellphone service in the second quarter of this year.

Price and route structure remain drawbacks for train travel. The low-cost airlines can be flown more cheaply on many routes, including London-to-Paris ($83 on easyJet in April, $180 on Eurostar), even though Eurostar owns two-thirds of that route's market share. Despite the 3,400 miles of high-speed lines already operating in Europe, many major cities still aren't directly connected. A one-way trip from Amsterdam to Berlin, for example, costs $205 via Rail Europe, a rail-booking agency, and takes a prohibitive six hours even though the cities are only 350 miles apart. On Transavia, a Netherlands low-cost airline, the trip takes 1 hour and 20 minutes and costs $129 -- round trip.

High-speed trains are most popular on routes that run relatively straight and cover shorter distances. Rail operators say customers have historically chosen trains for trips of three hours or less. But Guillaume Pepy, chairman of Eurostar, says travelers are now willing to take trains for longer trips. He points out that trains have a 65% market share on the Paris-to-Toulon route, which the TGV covers in just under four hours. 'It's extremely comfortable, easy to use and seamless,' Mr. Pepy says. 'You can use the time exactly as you want: sleep, read, work on the computer. It's useful time.'

Still, some in the discount-airline industry scoff at the so-called high-speed competition. 'I don't think there's any concern on our part,' says Peter Sherrard, head of communications at Ryanair Holdings PLC, pointing out that Ryanair's average fare for a 1 1/2-hour flight is the equivalent of $60. 'That's knocking the socks off anything the trains are offering. We're doing it faster and lower-cost.'

But a growth in fees and surcharges is causing the low-cost airlines' fares to swell. Ryanair in Jan. raised its fees for checking a bag to 9s and checking in at the airport to 4 euros, and the airline said it will keep increasing fees until it gets at least 50% of its passengers to travel with hand luggage only and use free Web check-in. Airport and government taxes also cause costs to balloon. So while the round-trip fare for a Ryanair flight from London Stansted Airport to Perpignan, France, in late March was $60 as of yesterday, the cost with taxes jumps to $132. And that doesn't include a nearly GBP 3 (about $6) credit-card 'handling fee' per flight segment.

On Eurostar, however, you can carry two bags (plus one handbag) free. Additional bags cost GBP 12; bicycles and other oversize items are GBP 20.

But Michael Zagurek of Merrimack, N.H., already has decided to use the high-speed trains for a trip he is considering taking to Europe later this year. The cramped seats on the discount carriers are foremost on the 6-foot computer consultant's mind. 'Am I supposed to sit sideways?' he says.

要从美国到欧洲，目前人们除了乘飞机之外尚无其他选择。但到了欧洲之后，一些聪明的游客发现，还有一种更平稳、有时甚至更快捷的交通方式，那就是：搭火车。

欧洲高速铁路运营商眼下正雄心勃勃地计划再增加多条线路、缩短开行时间，以图从短途航空市场争夺乘客。运营商们还计划在列车上增加额外的服务，比如提供DVD和影片租赁服务，免费供应报纸等等。

很多游客对抠门的廉价航班上少得可怜的服务项目再也难以忍受，此时，豪华而舒适的高速列车正对他们的胃口。比如，“欧洲之星”(Eurostar Group)的铺位间隙足足有33英寸（约合84厘米），而廉价航空Ryanair是30英寸，而且座椅还不能放倒。

在欧洲大陆这波火车旅行热中，西班牙可谓一马当先，上个月新开通了马德里至巴塞罗纳间的高速列车，全程只需35分钟，比原来整整缩短了两个小时。1月份，总造价35亿美元、从瑞士穿越阿尔卑斯山的22英里隧道宣布贯通，从而使瑞士境内及瑞士与意大利之间的行程缩短了45-75分钟。

去年11月，深受欢迎的“欧洲之星”伦敦－布鲁塞尔线路和伦敦－巴黎线路缩短了20分钟。据国际铁路运输联盟(International Union of Railways)的数据，截至1月末，整个欧洲的在建高速铁路总里程已超过2,600英里，其中有1,400英里在西班牙境内，有关部门还计划再铺设5,300英里。

舒适而快捷的高速铁路一时间引得游客趋之若鹜，与此同时，航空业部分领域的发展却在减速。据欧洲之星公布，其2007年机票销售额增加了15%，其中，伦敦上述线路提速后增长尤其明显。而据英国民航管理局的数字，过去两年英国航空旅行增幅却下降到只有2%的水平。

虽然这些时速接近200英里的火车对上、下班需长途跋涉的人及有其他出行目的的欧洲本土人士特别适宜，但对美国赴欧游客来说，不论他们计划游历欧洲大陆多个目的地，还是只为避免飞机旅行时航班换乘的繁琐，这种旅行方式都很便利。

广告家住宾夕法尼亚州普鲁士王市的投资分析师弗兰克•乔休(Frank Giaccio)最近在意大利旅行时就选择了火车。当时他是要到San Giovanni Valdarno去，这是位于佛罗伦萨以南半小时路程的一座小城。今年60岁的乔休计划在那里呆两周时间学习意大利语。他当然不想坐飞机到佛罗伦萨，因为这样不仅要从米兰转机，而且他觉得，发生行李丢失的机率也会增加。当然他也不打算租车前往，因为这要考验他识别路牌的水平，而当时他的意大利语实在不怎么样。

于是，他选择了火车。从米兰到佛罗伦萨乘高速列车用了不到3小时，之后再换当地普通列车到达了San Giovanni Valdarno。米兰至佛罗伦萨的行程中间只停了一、两站，而且时间很短。一路行来，沿线的田园风光让乔休目不暇接。他说，还有什么可抱怨的呢。虽然欧元兑美元汇率升得很快，但他仍毫无怨言，因为即使这样，一路下来车票也只合48美元。

乘火车旅行还有两大优点，那就是能免掉机场安检的麻烦，也不至于动辄遇到航班延误，而这事最近时有发生。据欧洲航空业协会(Association of European Airlines)透露，去年，泛欧航班连续第四年航班延误率上升。此外，相比机场，去火车站也更方便，它们大多在市中心附近，而机场则比较远，特别是那些有廉价航空起降的机场。比如巴塞罗纳国际机场离市中心大约20分钟车程，而Ryanair起降的巴塞罗纳吉罗那机场离市中心足有55英里。

随着不提供额外服务的廉价航空公司在欧洲越来越多，乘客不论是办行李手续还是登机手续都要收费，甚至使用信用卡也要另外付钱。而铁路运输正相反，各种“甜头”却越来越多。欧洲之星的列车上不仅有电源接口，在商务座和特惠经济座还提供免费报纸和杂志。

从巴黎开往地中海海滨度假地的法国高速列车TGV Med甚至提供DVD和影片出租业务。今年晚些时候，另一家法国高铁公司SNCF将面向年轻人推出至比亚里茨和蔚蓝海岸的夜车路线IDnight。车上会播放音乐，可以跳舞，还设有通宵酒吧。

家住赫尔辛基的威尔登•汤普森(Weldon Thompson)对乘火车旅行的另一大好处倾心不已，那就是简便的海关手续。汤普森前不久乘火车从德国的法兰克福到瑞士巴塞尔。过边境停车的时候，有海关办事员上车检查乘客的证件，这样乘客就无需像在机场那样排队等候边检。汤普森说：我是坐在餐车吃午饭的时候办理通关手续的。不过这也有缺点，通关的时候，整列车都要停下来，等所有人检完了才能继续行驶。

目前来说，坐火车出行对那些希望旅行期间与别人保持联系的乘客也是一个较好的选择。火车上手机信号不受影响。不过，欧洲的航空公司不久也要推出机上通话服务了。Ryanair计划今年二季度开始试行在飞机上提供手机服务。

当然，在价格和线路分布方面火车还存在一些缺点。许多线路如果乘廉价航班会更便宜。以伦敦至巴黎线路为例，4月份easyJet的机票是83美元，而欧洲之星是180美元。不过，这条线路上三分之二的乘客还是选择了欧洲之星。虽然高速列车已覆盖欧洲境内3,400英里长的线路，但还是有很多大城市不能直接抵达。

比如，火车票代理公司Rail Europe提供的从阿姆斯特丹到柏林的火车票单程是205美元，虽然两地距离只有350英里，但火车却要足足开行6个小时。而乘坐荷兰航空公司Transavia的航班，这段行程只要80分钟，而且双程票价才129美元。

在那些路线比较顺而距离又不远的线上，高速列车最受欢迎。铁路运营公司说，人们在路途不超过三个小时的情况下一般会选择乘坐火车。而欧洲之星董事长吉罗密•佩皮(Guillaume Pepy)说，现在人们即使时间再长一点也愿意坐火车。他举例说，在巴黎至土伦线路，65%的乘客选择火车，TGV运行这段距离耗时接近4个小时。他说，这段时间你可以随意安排：睡觉、读书或用电脑工作都行。不会浪费掉。

不过，廉价航空业的一些人对所谓来自高速列车的竞争很不以为然。Ryanair Holdings外联部负责人彼德•谢拉德(Peter Sherrard)说：我觉得从我们自己来说没什么要担心的。他说，Ryanair一个半小时的航班平均来说票价是60美元，这跟火车相比简直是天壤之别。我们是既快又便宜。

不过，随着手续费和附加费上涨，廉价航空的票价也不得不水涨船高。Ryanair 1月份将行李手续费上调到每件9欧元，登机手续费上调到4欧元。该公司表示，将继续提高手续费，直到随身携带行李、采用电子登机的乘客超过半数。从目前公布的价格看，由伦敦斯坦台德机场到法国佩皮尼昂机场的往返航班三月底之前的票价是60美元，但加上税收和其他费用，实际费用要132美元。此外，对使用信用卡的乘客，每个单程还有近3英镑的信用卡手续费。

而搭乘欧洲之星的话，你可以免费携带两件行李，外加一件随身背包。超出这个数字则加收12英镑；如有自行车或其他超大行李要付20英镑。

计划今年晚些时候到欧洲旅行的迈克尔•萨格瑞克(Michael Zagurek)已打算到时候选择高速列车。对这位家住新罕布什尔、身高6英尺的电脑业咨询师来说，廉价航班上的座位实在太憋屈了。“难道要让我侧着身坐吗？”，他反问道。