Lecture 2.

Transportation Modes.

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 1. ROAD TRANSPORT
1.1. ADVANTAGES:

1.Less Capital Outlay:

Road transport required much less capital Investment as
compared to other modes of transport such as railways
and air transport. The cost of constructing, operating and
maintaining roads is cheaper than that of the railways.
Roads are generally constructed by the government and
local authorities and only a small revenue is charged for
the use of roads.
2.Door to Door Service:
The outstanding advantage of road transport is that it
provides door to door or warehouse to warehouse service.
This reduces loading and unloading expenses.
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3.Service in Rural Areas:
Road transport is most suited for carrying goods and people to and
from rural areas which are not served by rail, water or air transport.
Exchange of goods, between large towns and small villages is
made possible only through road transport.

4.Flexible Service:
Road transport has a great advantage over other modes of transport
for its flexible service, its routes and timings can be adjusted and
changed to individual requirements without much inconvenience.

5.Suitable for Short Distance:

It is more economic and quicker for carrying goods and people over
short distances. Delays in transit of goods on account of
intermediate loading and handling are avoided. Goods can be
loaded direct into a road vehicle and transported straight to their
place of destination.
6. Saving in Packing Cost:
As compared to other modes of transport, the process of
packing in motor transport is less complicated. Goods
transported by motor transport require less packing or no
packing in several cases.
1.2. DISADVANTAGES:
1.Seasonal Nature:
Motor transport is not as reliable as rail transport. During
rainy or flood season, roads become unfit and unsafe for
use.

2.Accidents and Breakdowns:

There are more chances of accidents and breakdowns in

case of motor transport. Thus, motor transport is not as
safe as rail transport.
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3.Unsuitable for Long Distance and Bulky
Traffic:

This mode of transport is unsuitable and costly for

transporting cheap and bulky goods over long
distances.

4.Slow Speed:

The speed of motor transport is comparatively slow

and limited.

5.Lack of Organization:

The road transport is comparatively less organized.

More often, it is irregular and undependable.
 Rail Way Transport
2.1. ADVANTAGES:

1.Dependable:

The greatest advantage of the railway transport is that it is the most

dependable mode of transport as it is the least affected by weather
conditions such as rains, fog etc. compared to other modes of
transport.
2.Better Organized:
The rail transport is better organized than any other form of
transport. It has fixed routes and schedules. Its service is more
certain, uniform and regular as compared to other modes of
transport.

3.High Speed over Long Distances:

Its speed over long distances is more than any other mode of
transport, except airways. Thus, it is the best choice for long
distance traffic.

4.Suitable for Bulky and Heavy Goods:

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Railway transport is economical, quicker and best suited for
carrying heavy and bulky goods over long distances.
5.Cheaper Transport:

It is a cheaper mode of transport as compared to other modes of

transport. Most of the working expenses of railways are in the
nature of fixed costs. Every increase in the railway traffic is
followed by a decrease in the average cost.

6.Safety:

Railway is the safest form of transport. The chances of accidents and

breakdowns of railways are minimum as compared to other modes of
transport. Moreover, the traffic can be protected from the exposure to
sun, rains, snow etc.
7. Larger Capacity:

The carrying capacity of the railways is extremely large. Moreover,

its capacity is elastic which can easily be increased by adding more
wagons.
2.2. DISADVANTAGES
1.Huge Capital Outlay:
The railway requires is large investment of capital. The
cost of construction, maintenance and overhead expenses
are very high as compared to other modes of transport.
Moreover, the investments are specific and immobile. In
case the traffic is not sufficient, the investments may
mean wastage of huge resources.
2.Lack of Flexibility:
Another disadvantage of railway transport is its
inflexibility. Its routes and timings cannot be adjusted to
individual requirements.

3.Lack of Door to Door Service:

Rail transport cannot provide door to door service as it is
tied to a particular track. Intermediate loading or
unloading involves greater cost, more wear and tear and
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wastage of time. The time and cost of terminal
operations are a great disadvantage of rail transport.
4.Unsuitable for Short Distance and Small Loads:
Railway transport is unsuitable and uneconomical for short distance
and small traffic of goods.

5.Booking Formalities:
It involves much time and labor in booking and taking delivery of
goods through railways as compared to motor transport.
6.No Rural Service:
Because of huge capital requirements and traffic, railways cannot be
operated economically in rural areas. Thus, large rural areas have
no railway service even today. This causes much inconvenience to
the people living in rural areas.
7. Under-utilized Capacity:
The railway must have full load for its ideal and economic
operation. As it has a very large carrying capacity, under-utilization
of its capacity, in most of the regions, is a great financial problem
and loss to the economy.
 3. SEA TRANSPORT
3.1. ADVANTAGES

1.Low Cost:
Rivers are a natural highway which does not require any cost of
construction and maintenance. Even the cost of construction and
maintenance of canals is much less or they are used, not only for
transport purposes but also for irrigation, etc. Moreover, the cost of
operation of the inland water transport is very low. Thus, it is the
cheapest mode of transport for carrying goods from one place to
another.

2.Larger Capacity:
It can carry much larger quantities of heavy and bulky goods such
as coal, and, timber etc.

3.Flexible Service:
It provides much more flexible service than railways and can
be adjusted to individual requirements.

4.Safety:
The risks of accidents and breakdowns, in this form of transport,
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are minimum as compared to any other form of transport.
3.2. DISADVANTAGES
1.Slow:
Speed of Inland water transport is very slow and therefore this mode of
transport is unsuitable where time is an important factor.

2.Limited Area of Operation:

It can be used only in a limited area which is served by deep canals and
rivers.
3.Seasonal Character:
Rivers and canals cannot be operated for transportation throughout the
year as water may freeze during winter or water level may go very much
down during summer.

4.Unreliable:
The inland water transport by rivers is unreliable. Sometimes the river
changes its course which causes dislocation in the normal route of the
trade.

5.Unsuitable for Small Business:

Inland water transport by rivers and canals is not suitable for small
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traders, as it takes normally a longer time to carry goods from one place
to another through this form of transport.
 4. AIR TRANSPORT
Air transport is the most recent mode of transport. It is the gift
of the 20th century to the world. The two world wars gave a
great impetus to the development of air transport in almost all
the countries of the world. The peculiar characteristic of air
transport is that is does not need a specific surface track for its
operations.

4.1. ADVANTAGES
1.High Speed:
The supreme advantage of air transport is its high speed. It is
the fastest mode of transport and thus it is the most suitable
mean where time is an important factor.

2.Comfortable and Quick Services:

It provides a regular, comfortable, efficient and quick service

3.No Investment in Construction of Track:

It does not require huge capital investment in the construction
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and maintenance of surface track
4.No Physical Barriers:
It follows the shortest and direct route as seas, mountains or forests
do not come in the way of air transport.
5.Easy Access:
Air transport can be used to carry goods and people to the areas
which are not accessible by other means of transport.

6.Emergency Services:
It can operate even when all other means of transport cannot be
operated due to the floods or other natural calamities. Thus, at
that time, it is the only mode of transport which can be employed
to do the relief work and provide the essential commodities of
life.
7. Most Suitable for Carrying Light Goods of High Value:
It is most suitable for carrying goods of perishable nature which
require quick delivery and light goods of high value such as
diamonds, bullion etc. over long distances.
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4.2. DISADVANTAGES
In spite of many advantages,
air transport has the following
limitations:

1.Very Costly:
It is the costliest means of transport. The fares of air
transport are so high that it is beyond the reach of the
common man.

2.Small Carrying Capacity:

Its carrying capacity is very small and hence it is not
suitable to carry cheap and bulky goods..

3.Breakdowns and Accidents:

The chances of breakdowns and accidents are relatively
high as compared to other modes of transport (Sea +Rail).
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Hence, it involves comparatively greater risk.

4.Large Investment:
It requires a large amount of capital investment in the
construction and maintenance of aero planes. Further, very
trained and skilled persons are required for operating air
service.

5. Unsuitable for Cheap and Bulky Goods:

Air transport is unsuitable for carrying cheap, bulky and
heavy goods because of its limited capacity and high cost.

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