France bans short-haul domestic flights to fight climate change

France has banned some domestic flights in an effort to encourage travelers to use trains instead, to limit the country’s carbon emissions.

Under the new law, flights that can be replaced by a train journey of under two-and-a-half hours should be scrapped.

France’s flagship carrier Air France had already canceled three routes from Paris’ second airport, Orly, serving Bordeaux, Lyon and Nantes. These three cities are all on the country’s high-speed rail network, and taking the train is faster than flying there.

Critics have described the new law as a “symbolic ban,” noting that it will only have a “minimal effect” on climate change.