Question

What are the major means of transport? Explain each of them.

Answer 1

Hint: Transportation is essential for the movement of people and goods across the globe. With the advancement in technology the efficiency of transportation also increased. Motor based means of transportation revolutionized the sector.

Complete answer:
The four important means of transport are road transport, rail transport, water transport, and air transport. Road transport is the most commonly used means of transport in most parts of the world. In some low-lying areas like Venice water transport is the primary means of transport.
1. Roadways is the most commonly used means of transport used by common people. We have all-weather roads and mud roads which are inaccessible during the rainy season. The plains have a dense network of roads whereas hilly areas are having less dense networks. We have a large network of National Highways in India but most of the village roads in India are still not all-weather roads.
2. Railways are used for the transportation of people and freight movement. The railway network is well developed in all terrains of India. The Indian railway network is one of the largest in Asia. We were able to develop well-connected railway networks in rugged and hilly terrains including the Konkan region. It’s the biggest public sector undertaking in India.
3. Waterways are the cheapest mode of transport. Inland waterways and Sea routes are the two types of water transport. Oceanic routes are used for transporting large cargoes over long distances.
4. Airways are the most expensive means of transport but it is also the fastest and safest mode of transport. It is a mode of transport that ensures last mile connectivity in inaccessible terrains. Helicopters are used especially in spearheading disaster response operations.
5. The advancement in technology has led to the development of new modes of transport including pipelines, cable transport, and space transport. We also have developed different kinds of rail transport including underwater railways. Hybrid models that travel through more than one medium have been developed in the twenty-first century.

Note: Hyperloop is a proposed mode of transportation that uses the vacuum tube train concept developed by Tesla and SpaceX. A prototype of the Hyperloop system is under construction in Dubai. It transports people in pods through vacuum tunnels or tubes.