Green Travel with FlixBus

At Flix, our goal is to provide green and smart mobility options as alternatives to the private car. Bus travel is one of the most eco-friendly modes of transportation, and at Flix we take sustainability to the next level.

Carbon-Neutral Bus Travel

Every bus in the FlixBus network meets a high level of efficiency in terms of fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. However, it’s difficult to travel without producing any CO₂ emissions at all, even in the greenest bus, so we have collaborated with atmosfair to offer you the option to travel climate friendly on your FlixBus journey.

Based on the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) by the United Nations (UN), you’re given the option to purchase “CO₂ Compensation” tickets, thereby making a voluntary environmental contribution when completing your booking. The CO₂ emissions from your journey are then calculated based on the duration and distance of your journey.

Traveling with Flixbus emits around 36 grams of CO₂ per kilometer, compared to car travel which emits around 168 grams per km (EPA). For example, taking a FlixBus between Boston and New York City saves the environment 46,200 grams of CO₂ – that's 366%! - compared to the same journey by car.

How Do FlixBus Carbon Offsets Work?

When booking your FlixBus ticket, simply click the “Compensate Trip” button before you proceed to payment to offset your carbon emissions produced during your journey. The cost of traveling green will be added to your ticket price; the contribution is approximately 1-3% of your original ticket.

75% of your climate contribution donation in the United States and Canada is invested in atmosfair’s UN-accredited Gold Standard Climate Protection Project Cleaner Cook Stoves in Rwanda.

The remaining 25% flows into the “Future of Mobility Fund” set up together by Flix and atmosfair, to drive sustainable mobility and decarbonization in the cities and communities where we operate. Here your donation helps to take emerging carbon-neutral technologies out of the lab and onto the road for real impact. You will also support local communities, NGOs and volunteer groups to make eco-friendly living choices accessible to everyone.

UN Gold Standard Rwanda Project: Saving CO₂ emissions brings cookstoves to African families

With the money donated through this initiative, Flix customers regularly support our offsetting partner atmosfair, an NGO engaged in pursuing climate protection with various projects around the world.

Atmosfair uses these funds to make everyday life easier for hundreds of people. Thanks to Flix customers’ contribution, they provide highly efficient cookstoves to people living in Rwanda, including refugees from Congo and Burundi.

The efficient stoves reduce the amount of wood needed for cooking by up to 80%, helping to prevent forest fires and continued deforestation in the region, boosting household income, and dramatically helping to reduce carbon emissions from everyday activities.

In order to strengthen local value creation, the production of these efficient stoves was transferred from Germany to Rwanda. The new factory located in Kigali, constructed in 2021, started operations in early 2022 and supplies 40,000 cookstoves a year.

All in all, Flix customers have contributed an amazing €1.8 million to the Rwanda Project since 2015, helping to save close to 88,000 tons of CO₂. We really appreciate their big contribution in helping us foster environmental protection in line with our vision of a greener world. Together with atmosfair, we strive to enhance the growth of local communities.

Regular updates on the project can be found here.

Leading the green mobility revolution: FlixBus E-Buses

Carbon offsets are just one way that Flix is committed to driving safe and sustainable mobility for generations, safeguarding high business ethics and integrity, and contributing positive impact on our planet, people and society as a whole.

While carbon offsets make a real difference in the present, Flix is looking to the future to help develop the next generation of carbon neutral transportation technology through targeted programs with our local bus partners and manufacturers to take zero emissions vehicles (ZEVs) from the testing ground to full-time passenger routes.

FlixBus has become a green travel leader in Europe through targeted investments and pilot programs in biogas, solar and hydrogen-powered buses. In North America, FlixBus has realized a series of major zero emissions milestones thanks to targeted electric bus pilot programs in the United States and Canada:

In 2018, FlixBus ran the first intercity electric bus pilot in U.S. history between Sacramento and San Francisco.
In 2021, FlixBus ran the first inter-state electric bus pilot in U.S. history between Oregon and Washington State.
In 2022, FlixBus ran the first international electric bus pilot in U.S./Canadian history between Seattle, Washington and Vancouver, British Columbia.
In 2022, FlixBus ran our first East Coast pilot between Washington, D.C., and Philadelphia to test ZEVs on the busiest traffic corridor in North America.
Our goal is to launch the first, full-time zero emissions intercity bus line in North America.

These programs are essential in supporting a turning point in mobility and a future of travel that is less reliant on fossil fuels. We look forward to making FlixBus even greener in the years to come.

More information on Sustainability at Flix can be found here.