Alternative to short-haul flying
Ignorant airport staff and lack of resource management (eg inadequate number of scanners in use for the passenger flow, etc) are two of the main reasons why I now use Eurostar and the other high speed trains to get to many Eurpean destinations. City centre station locations is one feature that airports obviously cannot match, but I've yet to meet any train service staff who are anywhere as bad as the majority of the airport staff. The train journeys are a real pleasure and for many destinations, more than match the overall travelling times achieved by flying.