Transport and Communication TRANSPOR TTT

1 chapter -8 Natural resources, economic activities andmarkets are rarely found in one , Communication and trade establishlinks between producing centres andconsuming centres. The system of massproduction and exchange is complex. Eachregion produces the items for which it is bestsuited. Trade or the exchange of suchcommodities relies on transportation andcommunication. Likewise, the high livingstandards and quality of life depend on efficienttransportation, communications and trade. Inearlier days, the means of Transport andcommunication were the same. But today bothhave acquired distinct and specialised provides the network of links andcarriers through which trade takes place. Transport is a service or facility for the carriageof persons and goods from one place to the otherusing humans, animals and different kinds ofvehicles.

2 Such movements take place over land,water and air. Roads and railways form part ofland Transport ; while shipping and waterwaysand airways are the other two modes. Pipelinescarry materials like petroleum, natural gas, andores in liquidified form. Moreover, transportation is an organisedservice industry created to satisfy the basicneeds of society. It includes Transport arteries,vehicles to carry people and goods, and theorganisation to maintain arteries, and to handleloading, unloading and delivery. Every nationhas developed various kinds of transportationfor defence purposes. Assured and speedytransportation, along with efficientcommunication, promote cooperation andunity among scattered peoples. Several places (nodes) joined together by aseries of routes (links) to form a pattern.

3 The principal modes of world transportation,as already mentioned are land, water, air and2022-23 Fundamentals of Human Geography66pipelines. These are used for inter-regional andintra-regional Transport , and each one (exceptpipelines) carries both passengers and significance of a mode depends on the typeof goods and services to be transported, costsof Transport and the mode movement of goods is handled byocean freighters. Road Transport is cheaper andfaster over short distances and for door-to-door services. Railways are most suited for largevolumes of bulky materials over long distanceswithin a country. High-value, light andperishable goods are best moved by a well-managed Transport system, thesevarious modes complement each TransportMost of the movement of goods and servicestakes place over land.

4 In early days, humansthemselves were carriers. Have you ever seen abride being carried on a palanquin (palki/doli)by four persons (Kahars in north India). Lateranimals were used as beasts of burden. Haveyou seen mules, horses and camels, carryingloads of cargo in rural areas? With the inventionof the wheel, the use of carts and wagonsbecame important. The revolution in transportcame about only after the invention of the steamengine in the eighteenth century. Perhaps thefirst public railway line was opened in 1825between Stockton and Darlington in northernEngland and then onwards, railways becamethe most popular and fastest form of transportin the nineteenth century. It opened upcontinental interiors for commercial grainfarming, mining and manufacturing in invention of the internal combustion enginerevolutionised road Transport in terms of roadquality and vehicles (motor cars and trucks)plying over them.

5 Among the newerdevelopments in land transportation arepipelines, ropeways and cableways. Liquids likemineral oil, water, sludge and sewers aretransported by pipelines. The great freightcarriers are the railways, ocean vessels, barges,boats and motor trucks and general, the old and elementary formslike the human porter, pack animal, cart orwagon are the most expensive means oftransportation and large freighters are thecheapest. They are important in supplementingmodern channels and carriers which penetratethe interiors in large countries. In the denselypopulated districts of India and China, overlandtransport still takes place by human porters orcarts drawn or pushed by humans. Horses are used as a draught animal evenin the Western countries.

6 Dogs andreindeer are used in North America, NorthEurope and Siberia to draw sledges oversnow-covered ground. Mules are preferredin the mountainous regions; while camelsare used for caravan movement in India, bullocks are used for pulling : A horse cart in a village Tefki,in EthiopiaFig. : Ropeway and Cable cars in AustriaThis means of Transport is usually found on steepmountain slopes and mines which are not suitable forbuilding and Communication 67 RoadsRoad Transport is the most economical for shortdistances compared to railways. Freighttransport by road is gaining importancebecause it offers door-to-door service. Butunmetalled roads, though simple inconstruction, are not effective and serviceablefor all seasons.

7 During the rainy season thesebecome unmotorable and even the metalledones are seriously handicapped during heavyrains and floods. In such conditions, the highembankment of rail-tracks and the efficientmaintenance of railway Transport service, is aneffective solution. But the rail kilometrage beingsmall cannot serve the needs of vast anddeveloping countries at a low cost. Roads,therefore, play a vital role in a nation s tradeand commerce and for promoting quality of the roads varies greatlybetween developed and developing countriesbecause road construction and maintenancerequire heavy expenditure. In developedcountries good quality roads are universal andprovide long-distance links in the form ofmotorways, autobahns (Germany), and inter state highways for speedy movement.

8 Lorries,of increasing size and power to carry heavyloads, are common. But unfortunately, theworld s road system is not well world s total motorable road lengthis only about 15 million km, of which NorthAmerica accounts for 33 per cent. The highestroad density and the highest number ofvehicles are registered in this continentcompared to Western Flows: Traffic on roads hasincreased dramatically in recent years. Whenthe road network cannot cope with the demandsof traffic, congestion occurs. City roads sufferfrom chronic traffic congestion. Peaks (highpoints) and troughs (low points) of traffic flowcan be seen on roads at particular times of theday, for example, peaks occurring during therush hour before and after work.

9 Most of thecities in the world have been facing the problemof congestion. Higher Parking FeeMass Rapid Transit (MRT)Improved Public Bus ServiceExpresswaysHighwaysHighways are metalled roads connecting distantplaces. They are constructed in a manner forunobstructed vehicular movement. As suchthese are 80 m wide, with separate traffic lanes,bridges, flyovers and dual carriageways tofacilitate uninterrupted traffic flow. In developedcountries, every city and port town is linkedthrough : Dharmavaram Tuni National Highway,IndiaIn North America, highway density is high,about km per sq km. Every place is within20 km distance from a highway. Cities locatedon the Pacific coast (west) are well-connectedwith those of the Atlantic Coast (east).

10 Likewise,the cities of Canada in the north are linked withthose of Mexico in the south. The Trans-2022-23 Fundamentals of Human Geography68 Canadian Highway links Vancouver in BritishColumbia(west coast) to St. John s City inNewfoundland (east coast) and the AlaskanHighway links Edmonton (Canada) toAnchorage (Alaska).The Pan-American Highway, a largeportion of which has been constructed, willconnect the countries of South America, CentralAmerica and The Trans-Continental Stuart Highway connects Darwin(north coast) and Melbourne via Tennant Creekand Alice Springs in has a large number of vehicles anda well-developed highway network. Buthighways face a lot of competition from railwaysand Russia, a dense highway network isdeveloped in the industrialised region west ofthe Urals with Moscow as the hub.