At 2.68 million tons, air traffic in Austria caused 40 percent more climate-damaging emissions in 2023 than in 2022. Only in 2019, the year before Corona, were these emissions higher.
There is potential for savings, for example on business flights, and more cross-border rail links in the EU are crucial. Other countermeasures include reducing bureaucratic and technical hurdles in rail and air traffic and abolishing the tax exemption for kerosene.
In Austria, for example, Asfinag has reduced the number of business flights from 661 in 2019 to 188 in 2023. Erste Group is increasingly relying on video conferencing instead of business flights and is encouraging business travel by train within Austria.
“Europe needs more rail. In addition to expanding and modernizing the infrastructure and more international connections, booking and planning international train trips should also become much easier,” emphasizes VCÖ expert Katharina Jaschinsky.
Accelerate the phasing out of fossil energy
The aviation fuel kerosene is still exempt from tax on mineral oils. Before the pandemic, a study commissioned by the European Commission estimated this subsidy in the EU at around 30 billion euros per year.
There is also the VAT exemption for international airline tickets, which before the pandemic amounted to around €40 billion per year across the EU.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
