What would persuade frequent fliers to fly less?

[hippospot]

I read this very article and liked the suggestion of having to pay more for each subsequent flight you take in a year. Maybe a family who take one holiday a year won't be penalised but the people who fly multiple times a year would face increased penalties the more they fly. Currently 5% of the population is taking 33% of the flights!

I worry so much about climate change but people around me seem to not be making any adjustments to their carbon-heavy lifestyles. What could be the solution in your view?

I don't really want to debate whether flying is the biggest cause of climate change. It isn't. But it's one of the biggest discretionary changes we can make to our impact on the climate as individuals.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2026/oct/03/heathrow-third-runway-climate-warnings-economic-reality?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

I mean, it makes sense as a Labour policy. They love to tax the middle classes and yet the properly rich wouldn’t even notice. Same as VAT on school fees. The people I know in the middle class have pulled out their kids and tutored for grammar places while the properly rich barely noticed the increase.

So yes, if you want flying multiple times to be only for the very rich, this is a great policy.

My DH flies regularly for business and it wouldn’t affect him as our business pays. If it had to pay more for flights, ok, then we will make less profit and pay less tax, no biggie.

this, I would be far more likely to take a train to euope if a. it was cheaper than flying (it makes no sense to me that it can be approximately double the cost, sometimes more) b. endless strikes/engineering work often make it less reliable than a flight and seats never seem to be guaranteed

yes it takes longer but within reason I'd put up with it if they sorted out a and b

Subsidised or not-for profit train travel in the UK. I'd love to get the train to Europe but not when it costs me £200+ for an off-peak single train ticket to London just to get to St Pancras for the Eurostar.

Nope. Why do you single out leisure?

My leisure flights are much more meaningful for me then many of my work flights were.
Similarly, living far from family is a choice, not more valuable than living close to family and going for holidays together.

I am all for some kind of reduction, but targeting leisure first is very lazy.

What does flying your private jet to COP conferences come under, business or leisure? because until people see change coming from those who lecture the rest of us while dong what they like, they won't stop flying.

Making the UK trains more reliable and more affordable. I live in the UK, travel to Europe by train and have a French railcard because the discount is worth it but every time getting to and from London St Pancras for the Eurostar is expensive and unreliable so have to allow more time than should be necessary and to be honest if it's a shorter trip I can understand why people would fly rather than face that. Eurostar can be affordable if booked in advance but glad they will soon have competition.

Most frequent flyers are travelling for a reason, work, family etc. Also need to take flights varies depending on where you live, my in laws have to take a flight to see the consultant for medical conditions or it’s a 14 hour ferry! If i lived in London I would take the train to near Europe but from where I live it takes far longer, requires an awkward tube transfer and is very expensive

I fly from one end of the UK to the other where I previously took the train. The train now takes 25-50% longer (usually the latter), costs 50% more and is noiser, smellier and hotter than 10years ago. Flights have remained the same and are possibly even cheaper now.

Also where travelling for in face meetings disappeared for a while when everyone realised they didn't have to, a significant minority of workplaces are intent on returning. I'm sure airlines and airports are lobbying in favour of this.

You’re OK with businesses flying people all over the world in business class, but not with ordinary leisure travellers taking a few flights in economy?

And you don’t want to return to the days when only the very wealthy can travel, but you want to price ordinary folk out of their trip because they only want to look good on Instagram?

Make it make sense.

Just add on significant environmental taxes and use them to subsidise net zero.

I don't think you've really thought this through OP

Yes, my former employer had to be badgered to let me take a train back from European meetings, and I had to take annual leave for the extra time it took! That stopped when colleagues had a massive flight delay and I kicked off at the unfairness.

So getting through to key employers would help. Fines/taxes on them to begin with.

Magically make the European country I live in and the UK where some of my family live an easily drivable distance from each other? Rather then at least 12 hours non stop driving and a ferry or channel tunnel journey?
Make my job to have no travel requirements but they would mean restructuring the whole company or selling off manor parts of it.

Stop my mum having cancer and subsequent treatment and my dad having dementia.
Just things like that.

Yes I agree. I would argue that most of frequent flyers are work related (myself and mum husband included). The other thing is we now live abroad so we fly very often.

Most emissions are caused by a minority of travellers, and yes it is a choice because you can afford it... Many people with family abroad can't, so don't.

neweconomics.org/2025/06/introducing-the-ultra-frequent-flyer

I'm exhausted by Joe Bloggs being expected to solve all the worlds problems by living a cruddy, moralistic and inconvenienced life. Meanwhile, the millionaires and billionaires are fuelling up their private jets and yachts, Amazon are putting an oak tree a week into their oversized packaging and toxic waste is being propelled into our oceans. But I'll use my paper straw and take a 8 hour train, with 3 station stops and wash out my milk carton before binning it - that'll help.

I have Stage 4 cancer and would fly every week if I could.

Decent, affordable trains would be a great start!

All those very important people flying for work - can't uou just have a zoom meeting or something? Some of the time at least.

That's the most succinct summing up of my POV I think I've ever read.

And the banana bread. Don't forget the banana bread.

I’m guessing nothing would stop them.

That is fine as long as they don’t then bemoan the fact that their children and grandchildren will be living on a burning planet.

Better train services.

But why would you expect to stop people travelling for leisure when people are flying frequently for business meetings which could take place virtually?

In terms of train travel, we have actually taken 3 short breaks this year by train and will do another couple next year. We’ve been able to do this though because we are retired and have the extra time, and no children travelling with us.

Stop meddling in other people's lives. You do you.

This to be honest
I always fly to Scotland because the trains are expensive, dirty and unreliable.