Transport or transportation is the movement of people and goods from one place to another. The term is derived from the
Latin trans ("across") and portare ("to carry"). Industries which have the business
of providing equipment, actual transport, transport of people or goods and services used in transport of goods or people make up
a large broad and important sector of most national economies, and are collectively referred to
as transport industries.
Aspects of transport
The field of transport has several aspects: loosely they can be divided into a triad of infrastructure, vehicles, and operations. Infrastructure includes the transport networks (roads,
railways, airways, waterways, canals, pipelines, etc.)
that are used, as well as the nodes or terminals (such as airports, railway stations, bus stations and seaports). The vehicles generally ride on the networks, such as automobiles,
bicycles, buses, trains,
aircrafts. The operations deal with the way the vehicles are operated on the network
and the procedures set for this purpose including the legal environment (Laws, Codes, Regulations, etc.) Policies, such as how to
finance the system (for example, the use of tolls or
gasoline taxes) may be considered part of the operations.
Broadly speaking, the design of networks are the domain of civil engineering and
urban planning, the design of vehicles of mechanical engineering and specialized subfields such as nautical engineering and aerospace engineering, and
the operations are usually specialized, though might appropriately belong to operations
research or systems engineering.
Modes and categories
-
Modes are combinations of networks, vehicles, and
operations, and include walking, the road transport system, rail transport, ship transport and modern aviation.
Categories of (non-human) animal-powered transport
Non-human animal-powered transportis a broad category of the
human use of non-human working animals (also known as
"beasts of burden") for the movement of people and goods. Humans may ride some of the larger of these animals directly, use them
as pack animals for carrying goods, or harness them, singly or in teams, to pull (or haul)
sleds or wheeled vehicles.
Air transport
-
A fixed-wing aircraft, commonly called airplane or aeroplane, is a
heavier-than-air craft where movement of the wings in relation to the aircraft is not used to generate lift. The term is used to
distinguish from rotary-wing aircraft, where the movement of the lift surfaces relative to
the aircraft generates lift. A more rare type of aircraft that is neither fixed-wing nor rotary-wing is an
ornithopter. A heliplane is both fixed-wing and
rotary-wing.
Fixed-wing aircraft include a large range of craft from small trainers and recreational aircraft to large airliners and military cargo aircraft. Some aircraft use fixed wings to provide lift only part of the time and
may or may not be referred to as fixed-wing.
The current term also embraces aircraft with folding the wings that are intended to fold
when on the ground. This is usually to ease storage or facilitate transport on, for example, a vehicle trailer or the powered
lift connecting the hangar deck of an aircraft carrier to its flight deck. It also
embraces aircraft, such as the General Dynamics F-111, Grumman F-14 Tomcat and the Panavia Tornado, which can vary the sweep angle of their wings during flight. These aircraft are termed "variable geometry" aircraft.
When the wings of these aircraft are fully swept, usually for high speed cruise, the trailing edges of their wings about the
leading edges of their tailplanes, giving an impression of a single delta wing if viewed in
plan. There are also rare examples of aircraft which can vary the angle of incidence
of their wings in flight, such the F-8 Crusader, which are also considered to be
"fixed-wing".
Two necessities for all fixed-wing aircraft (as well as rotary-wing aircraft) are air flow over the wings for lifting of the
aircraft, and an open area for landing. The majority of aircraft, however, also need an airport with the infrastructure to
receive maintenance, restocking, refueling and for the loading and unloading of crew, cargo and/or passengers. While the vast
majority of aircraft land and take off on land, some are capable of take off and landing on ice, snow and calm water.
The aircraft is the second fastest method of transport, after the rocket. Commercial jet
aircraft can reach up to 875 km/h. Single-engined aircraft are capable of reaching 175 km/h or more at cruise speed. Supersonic
aircraft (military, research and a few private aircraft) can reach speeds faster than sound. The record is currently held by the
SR-71 with a speed of 3,529.56 km/h (2193.17 mph, 1905.81 knots).[1]
Rail
-
Rail transport is the transport of passengers and goods along railways or railroads. A typical railway (or
railroad) track consists of two parallel steel (or in older networks, iron) rails, generally anchored perpendicular to beams (termed sleepers or ties) of timber, concrete, or
steel to maintain a consistent distance apart, or gauge. The
rails and perpendicular beams are usually then placed on a foundation made of concrete or compressed earth and gravel in a bed of ballast to prevent the track from buckling (bending out of its original configuration) as the ground settles over time beneath and under the
weight of the vehicles passing above. The vehicles traveling on the rails are arranged in a train;
a series of individual powered or unpowered vehicles linked together, displaying markers. These vehicles (referred to, in
general, as cars, carriages or wagons) move with much less friction than on rubber tires on a paved road, and the
locomotive that pulls the train tends to use energy far more efficiently as a result.
In rail transport, a train consists of rail vehicles that move along guides to transport
freight or passengers from one place to another. The guideway (permanent way) usually
consists of conventional rail tracks, but might also be monorail or maglev. Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate
locomotive, or from individual motors in self-propelled multiple units. Most trains are powered by diesel engines or by
electricity supplied by trackside
systems. Historically the steam engine was the dominant form of locomotive power
through the mid-20th century, but other sources of power (such as horses, rope (or wire), gravity, pneumatics, or gas
turbines) are possible.
Road transport
-
Automobile
An automobile is a wheeled passenger vehicle that carries its own motor. Different types of automobiles include cars, buses,
trucks, and vans. Some include motorcycles in the category, but cars are the most typical automobiles. As of 2002 there were 590 million
passenger cars worldwide (roughly one car for every ten people), of which 170 million in the U.S. (roughly one car for every two people) [1].
The automobile was thought of as an environmental improvement over horses when it was first introduced in the 1890s. Before
its introduction, in New York City alone, more than 1,800 tons of manure had to be removed from the streets daily, although the manure was used as natural fertilizer for crops and to build top soil. In 2006, the
automobile is recognized as one of the primary sources of world-wide air pollution and a
cause of substantial noise pollution and adverse health
effects.
See also
Water transport
-
Watercraft
A watercraft is a vehicle designed to float on and
move across (or under) water for pleasure, physical exercise (in the
case of many small boats), transporting people and/or goods, or military missions.
The common need for buoyancy unites all watercraft, and makes each one's hull a
dominant aspect of its construction, maintenance, and appearance.
Most watercraft would be described as either ships or
boats; although nearly all ships are larger than nearly all boats, the distinction between those
two categories is not one of size per se.
- A rule of thumb says "a boat can fit on a ship, but a ship can't fit on a boat", and a
ship usually has sufficient size to carry its own boats, such as lifeboats,
dinghies, or runabouts.
- Often local law and regulation will define the exact size (or the number of masts) that distinguishes a ship from boats.
- Traditionally submarines were called "boats", perhaps reflecting their cramped conditions:
small size reduces the need for power, and thus the need to surface or snorkel for a supply of the air that running diesel
engines requires; in contrast, nuclear-powered submarines' reactors supply
abundant power without consuming air, and such craft are large, much roomier, and classed as ships.
Another definition says a ship is any floating craft that transports cargo for the purpose of earning revenue; in that
context, passenger ships transport "supercargo", another name for passengers or persons not working on board. However, neither
fishing boats nor ferries are considered ships, though both carry cargo (their catch of the day or
passengers) (and for that matter lifeboats).
English seldom uses the term watercraft to describe any specific individual object (and probably then only as an
affectation): rather the term serves to unify the category that ranges from small boats to the
largest ships, and also includes the diverse watercraft for which some term even more specific than
ship or boat (e.g., canoe, kayak, raft, barge, jet ski) comes to mind first. (Some of
these would even be considered at best questionable as examples of boats.)
Ship transport
-
Ship transport is the process of moving people, goods, etc. by barge, boat, ship or sailboat over a sea, ocean, lake, canal
or river. This is frequently undertaken for purposes of commerce, recreation or military
objectives.
A hybrid of ship transport and road transport is the historic horse-drawn boat. Hybrids of ship transport and air transport are
kite surfing and parasailing.
The first craft were probably types of canoes cut out from tree
trunks. The colonization of Australia by Indigenous
Australians provides indirect but conclusive evidence for the latest date for the invention of ocean-going craft; land
bridges linked southeast Asia through most of the Malay Archipelago but a
strait had to be crossed to arrive at New Guinea, which was
then linked to Australia. Ocean-going craft were required for the colonization to
happen.
Early sea transport was accomplished with ships that were either rowed or used the wind for
propulsion, and often, in earlier times with smaller vessels, a combination of the two.
Also there have been horse-powered boats, with horses on the deck providing power [2].
Ship transport was frequently used as a mechanism for conducting warfare.
Military use of the seas and waterways is covered in greater detail under navy.
In the 1800s the first steam ships were developed, using a
steam engine to drive a paddle wheel or
propeller to move the ship. The steam was produced using wood
or coal. Now most ships have an engine using a slightly refined
type of petroleum called bunker fuel. Some specialized
ships, such as submarines, use nuclear power to produce
the steam.
Recreational or educational craft still use wind power,
while some smaller craft use internal combustion engines to drive one or more
propellers, or in the case of jet boats, an inboard water jet. In shallow draft areas, such as
the Everglades, some craft, such as the hovercraft, are
propelled by large pusher-prop fans.
Although relatively slow, modern sea transport is a highly effective method of transporting large quantities of non-perishable
goods. Transport by water is significantly less costly than transport by air for
trans-continental shipping.
In the context of sea transport, a road is an anchorage.
See also
Transport and communications
Transport and communication are both substitutes and complements. Though it might be
possible that sufficiently advanced communication could substitute for transport, one could telegraph, telephone, fax, or email a
customer rather than visiting them in person, it has been found that those modes of communication in fact generate more total
interactions, including interpersonal interactions. The growth in transport would be impossible without communication, which is vital for advanced transportation systems, from railroads which want to run trains
in two directions on a single track, to air traffic control which requires knowing the location of aircraft in the sky. Thus, it
has been found that the increase of one generally leads to more of the other.
Transport and land use
The first Europeans who came to the New
World brought with them a culture of transportation centred on the wheel. North America's
Aboriginal peoples had developed differently, and moved through their country by
means of canoes, kayaks, umiaks,
coracles, and other water-borne vehicles, constructed from various types of bark, hide, bone, wood, and other materials; as well, the snowshoe, toboggan and sled were essential during the winter conditions that prevailed
throughout the northern half of the continent for much of the year. Europeans quickly adopted all of these technologies
themselves, and therefore were able to travel to the northern interior of Canada via the many
waterways that branched out from the St. Lawrence River and from Hudson Bay.[2]
There is a well-known relationship between the density of development, and types of
transportation. Intensity of development is often measured by area of floor area ratio
(FAR), the ratio of usable floorspace to area of land. As a rule of thumb, FARs of 1.5 or less are well suited to automobiles,
those of six and above are well suited to trains. The range of densities from about two up to about four is not well served by
conventional public or private transport.
Many cities have grown into these densities, and are suffering traffic problems.
Land uses support activities. Those activities are spatially separated. People need transport to go from one to the other
(from home to work to shop back to home for instance). Transport is a "derived demand," in that transport is unnecessary but for
the activities pursued at the ends of trips. Good land use keeps common activities close (e.g. housing and food shopping), and
places higher-density development closer to transportation lines and hubs. Poor land use concentrates activities (such as jobs)
far from other destinations (such as housing and shopping).
There are economies of agglomeration. Beyond transportation some land uses
are more efficient when clustered. Transportation facilities consume land, and in cities, pavement (devoted to streets and
parking) can easily exceed 20 percent of the total land use. An efficient transport system can reduce land waste.
Transport in cities
Because of the much higher densities of people and activities, environmental,
economic, public health, social and quality of life considerations and constraints are important
in cities.
Urban transport has been led by professional transport planners and traffic experts, who have made use of the same forecasting
and response tools that they have used to good effect in other transport sectors. This has led in most cities to a substantial
overbuilding of the road and supporting infrastructure, which has maximized throughput in terms of the numbers of vehicles and
the speeds with which they pass through and move around in the built-up areas.
Too much infrastructure and too much smoothing for maximum vehicle throughput means that in many cities there is too much
traffic and many - if not all - of the negative impacts that come with it. It is only in recent years that traditional practices
have started to be questioned in many places, and as a result of new types of analysis which bring in a much broader range of
skills than those traditionally relied on – spanning such areas as environmental impact analysis, public health, sociologists as
well as economists who increasingly are questioning the viability of the old mobility solutions. European cities are leading this
transition.
See also
Transport, energy, and the environment
-
Transport is a major use of energy, and transport burns most of the world's petroleum. Transportation accounts for 2/3 of all U.S. petroleum consumption.[3]
The transportation sector generates 82 percent of carbon monoxide and 56 percent of NOx emissions and over one-quarter of
total US greenhouse gas emissions.[4] Hydrocarbon fuels also produce carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas widely thought to be the chief
cause of global climate change, and petroleum-powered engines, especially inefficient
ones, create air pollution, including nitrous oxides and particulates (soot). Although vehicles in developed countries
have been getting cleaner because of environmental regulations, this has been offset
by an increase in the number of vehicles and more use of each vehicle.
Other environmental impacts of transport systems include traffic congestion and automobile-oriented urban sprawl, which can consume natural habitat and
agricultural lands.
Toxic runoff from roads and parking lots that can also pollute water supplies and aquatic ecosystems.
Alternative propulsion can reduce pollution. Low pollution fuels may have a
reduced carbon content, and thereby contribute less in the way of carbon dioxide emissions, and
generally have reduced sulfur, since sulfur exhaust is a cause of acid rain. The most popular low-pollution fuels at this time are biofuels: gasoline-ethanol blends and biodiesel. Hydrogen is an even lower-pollution fuel that produces no carbon dioxide, but producing and storing it
economically is currently not feasible. Plug-in hybrids are energy-efficient vehicles that are going to be in the mass-production.
Efficiency
- See also: Fuel efficiency in
transportation
Another strategy is to make vehicles more efficient, which reduces pollution and waste by reducing the energy use.
Electric vehicles use efficient electric motors, but their range is limited by either
the extent of the electric transmission system or by the storage capacity of batteries. Electrified public transport generally uses overhead wires or third rails to transmit
electricity to vehicles, and is used for both rail and bus transport. Battery electric
vehicles store their electric fuel onboard in a battery pack. Another method is to
generate energy using fuel cells, which may eventually be two to five times as efficient as
the internal combustion engines currently used in most vehicles. Another
effective method is to streamline ground vehicles, which spend up to 75% of their energy on air-resistance, and to reduce their
weight. Regenerative braking is possible in all electric vehicles and recaptures the
energy normally lost to braking, and is becoming common in rail vehicles. In internal combustion automobiles and buses,
regenerative braking is not possible, unless electric vehicle components are also a part of the powertrain, these are called
hybrid electric vehicles.
Shifting travel from automobiles to well-utilized public transport can reduce energy consumption and traffic congestion.
Walking and bicycling instead of traveling by motorized
means also reduces the consumption of fossil fuels. While the use of these two modes generally declines as a given area becomes
wealthier, there are some countries (including Denmark, Netherlands, Japan and parts of Germany,
Finland and Belgium) where bicycling comprises a significant
share of trips. Some cities with particularly high modal shares of cycling are Oulu (25%),
Copenhagen (33%) and Groningen (50%). A number of
other cities, including London, Paris,
New York, Sydney, Bogotá,
Chicago and San
Francisco are creating networks of bicycle lanes and bicycle paths, but the value of such devices for utility
cycling is highly controversial.
