A flight from one city to another might last just over an hour. Add the ride to the airport, the security queue and the trip back into town, and the picture changes quickly.
In a handful of countries, rail planners have built around that gap. The results show up in ticket sales, in airline schedules and, in one case, in national law.
Spain
Spain’s high speed network has become the default choice on its busiest corridors. A record 44.5 million passengers rode high speed trains in 2025, according to the CNMC annual report, nearly double the 2019 volume.[1] On Madrid to València, rail holds 93.7 percent of the combined rail and air market, and Madrid to Sevilla sits at 93.5 percent.[1]
Competition helped. Operators were liberalized on the main corridors from 2020, and daily frequencies rose from 78 to 115.[2] Researchers found that rail’s share against air climbed above eighty percent on most corridors where the two compete.[2]
Madrid to Barcelona shows why. Flights take a little over 70 minutes, while the train takes around two and a half hours, so total journey times end up close.[3] The picture isn’t spotless, though: high speed ridership fell in early 2026 for the first time since the pandemic, with the Adamuz crash, line closures and weather among the reasons cited.[1]
Japan
The Shinkansen opened between Tokyo and Osaka in 1964, and the route still shows what a well run bullet train can do. The Tokaido Shinkansen captures roughly eighty percent of the Tokyo to Osaka market.[4] Older figures from the International High Speed Rail Association put the Tokaido Shinkansen’s share of the Tokyo to Nagoya market at 85 percent.[5]
Airport logistics do much of the work. The flight takes about 65 to 75 minutes, but reaching Haneda or Narita takes 45 to 90 minutes, and airlines recommend arriving at least an hour early.[4] The train runs from Tokyo Station to Shin-Osaka, entirely from one city center to another.[4]
Distance eventually tips the scale back. Flights win clearly on longer routes like Tokyo to Sapporo, while Tokyo to Fukuoka sits in the middle.[4] Budget airlines can still undercut the train on price if you book early and travel light.
China
China runs the largest high speed network on earth. Its high speed mileage grew nearly a third during the 2021 to 2025 plan period, from 37,900 km to 50,400 km.[6] National railways also recorded 4.255 billion passenger trips in 2025, a new high.[6]
The Beijing to Shanghai corridor is the flagship. The train covers 1,302 km in 4 hours 24 minutes, at an average speed of 291.9 km/h.[7] One report on 2024 traffic says more than 52 million people traveled the route by train, against roughly 8.6 million by air.[8]
The wider trend backs this up. Flights of 800 km or less fell from 26.4 percent of China’s domestic flights in 2011 to 15.9 percent in early 2025.[7] A second class seat on the Beijing to Shanghai line costs around CNY550, while a full economy airfare runs above CNY850.[9]
France
France went further than most by writing the preference into law. The short haul flight ban, introduced in June 2023 under the Climate and Resilience Law, suspends flights where a frequent high speed rail alternative of 2.5 hours or less exists.[10] It covers three routes from Paris Orly, to Bordeaux, Nantes and Lyon.[10]
The rail side of the story is strong. Paris to Lyon, Bordeaux and Nantes rank first, third and fourth among the most frequented rail lines.[11] Trainline calculated that a Paris to Lyon flight produces more than 90 kg of CO2 per person, against 0.690 kg by train.[12]
The ban’s climate effect is smaller than the headlines suggested. A study found it less effective than expected, partly because it leaves important domestic air routes outside its scope.[11] Still, on the corridors it does cover, the train is now the practical option.
Italy
Italy’s main north to south axis runs through Milan, Bologna, Florence, Rome and Naples. Frecciarossa and Italo trains link Rome and Milan in roughly three hours, with stations right in the city centers at Roma Termini and Milano Centrale.
Italo, which launched in 2012, was Europe’s first private open access high speed operator. Its arrival put two companies in direct competition on price and frequency, which is a big part of why the rail offer feels so strong today. Meanwhile, a flight between the two cities still has to absorb the airport transfers on both ends.
South Korea
South Korea’s KTX began running in 2004 and reshaped how people cross the country. Seoul to Busan takes roughly two and a quarter to two and a half hours by KTX, depending on the service. Both terminals sit inside their cities, which keeps the door to door time competitive.
Flights between Seoul’s Gimpo Airport and Busan still exist, so this is not a total takeover. Yet the train sets the benchmark for the trip, offering frequent departures with no security lines. For a route of about four hundred kilometers, that combination is hard for a plane to beat.
Taiwan
Taiwan’s high speed rail opened in 2007 along the densely populated west coast. It links Taipei and Kaohsiung, about 345 km apart, in a bit over an hour and a half on the fastest services. The island’s compact geography suits trains well.
Domestic flights along that corridor have shrunk considerably since the line opened. A short flight has little room to compete once the train delivers you downtown in around ninety minutes with frequent departures. Taiwan is a clear example of how quickly aviation can lose ground when the ground alternative is fast and regular.
Where the Train Holds the Edge
In these seven countries, rail wins on routes of roughly a few hundred to about thirteen hundred kilometers where stations sit in the city centers. Beyond that range, planes tend to take back the advantage, as the Tokyo to Sapporo route shows.
