Simon Calder, also known as The Man Who Pays His Way, has been writing about travel for The Independent since 1994. In his weekly opinion column, he explores a key travel issue – and what it means for you.
The first time I met Pat Williams from Crewe was on Friday 22 December. At the time, she was enduring a fairly bleak midwinter journey to visit family in southern France. Pat had done the right – if difficult and expensive – thing. Rather than hopping on the 42-minute train from her local station to Manchester airport and flying from there, she was determined to limit her damage to the planet. Pat booked a trip by rail via London and Paris.
