For some destinations, it may not be obvious when trains are a good alternative to flying. That’s why last year, we began rolling out train route suggestions when you look for flights on Search. In the coming months, you’ll also see these train route suggestions when you’re using Google Flights, so it’s easy to find the more sustainable option no matter where you begin your search.
Better understand emissions from flights
Sometimes, flying really is the only practical way to get from A to B, but the environmental impact of your trip can vary quite a bit based on which flight you choose. With Google Flights, you can already see estimated emissions for nearly every flight in the search results and filter by lower-emitting options.
These estimates are powered by the Travel Impact Model (TIM), a methodology we published in 2022 for predicting per-passenger flight emissions. To make this information even more accessible, TIM estimates are now also available through a developer API that allows any app or website to display flight emissions, as well as a Google Sheets add-on and a calculator on the TIM website.
While there’s still a long road ahead when it comes to sustainable travel, today’s updates will give more people the information they need to choose lower-carbon alternatives.