Land transport
Human-powered transport remains popular for reasons of cost-saving, leisure, physical exercise, and environmentalism; it is sometimes the only type available, especially in underdeveloped or inaccessible regions.
The rails are anchored perpendicular to ties (or sleepers) of timber, concrete or steel, to maintain a consistent distance apart, or gauge.
The rails and perpendicular beams are placed on a foundation made of concrete or compressed earth and gravel in a bed of ballast.
Propulsion is commonly provided by a locomotive, that hauls a series of unpowered cars, that can carry passengers or freight.
Intercity trains are long-haul services connecting cities;[6] modern high-speed rail is capable of speeds up to 350 km/h (220 mph), but this requires specially built track.
Short-distance systems exist for sewage, slurry, water, and beer, while long-distance networks are used for petroleum and natural gas.
Typical solutions include aerial tramways, elevators, escalator and ski lifts; some of these are also categorized as conveyor transport.
Airport-based services are sometimes used to shuttle people to nearby hotels or motels when overnight stay is required for connecting flights.
Transportation is often a natural monopoly and a necessity for the public; roads, and in some countries railways and airports are funded through taxation.
Because of poor forecasting and overestimation of passenger numbers by planners, there is frequently a benefit shortfall for transport infrastructure projects.
Most infrastructure used is publicly owned, and vehicles tend to be large and efficient to maximize capacity and profit margins.
However, other uses exist, such as the strategic and tactical relocation of armed forces during warfare, or the civilian mobility construction or emergency equipment.
Long-haul transport involves the use of the automobile, trains, coaches and aircraft, the last of which have become predominantly used for the longest, including intercontinental, travel.
[11] Logistics refers to the entire process of transferring products from producer to consumer, including storage, transport, transshipment, warehousing, material-handling and packaging, with associated exchange of information.
[13] Containerization, with the standardization of ISO containers on all vehicles and at all ports, has revolutionized international and domestic trade, offering huge reduction in transshipment costs.
[14] Bulk transport is common with cargo that can be handled roughly without deterioration; typical examples are ore, coal, cereals and petroleum.
The first forms of road transport were horses, oxen or even humans carrying goods over dirt tracks that often followed game trails.
Until the Industrial Revolution, transport remained slow and costly, and production and consumption were located as close to each other as feasible.
Both speed and capacity increased rapidly, allowing specialization through manufacturing being located independent of natural resources.
After World War II, the automobile and airlines took higher shares of transport, reducing rail to freight and short-haul passenger.
After the introduction of the Shinkansen in 1964, high-speed rail in Asia and Europe started taking passengers on long-haul routes from airlines.
[15] Early in U.S. history, most aqueducts, bridges, canals, railroads, roads, and tunnels were owned by private joint-stock corporations.
Most such transportation infrastructure came under government control in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, culminating in the nationalization of inter-city passenger rail service with the creation of Amtrak.
Commerce requires the transport of people to conduct business, either to allow face-to-face communication for important decisions or to move specialists from their regular place of work to sites where they are needed.
On the operative level, logistics allows owners of cargo to plan transport as part of the supply chain.
Because of the negative impacts made, transport often becomes the subject of controversy related to choice of mode, as well as increased capacity.
Automotive transport can be seen as a tragedy of the commons, where the flexibility and comfort for the individual deteriorate the natural and urban environment for all.
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—the viability of the old mobility solutions is increasingly being questioned.
Other environmental impacts of transport systems include traffic congestion and automobile-oriented urban sprawl, which can consume natural habitat and agricultural lands.
By reducing transportation emissions globally, it is predicted that there will be significant positive effects on Earth's air quality, acid rain, smog and climate change.
