ground transportation

Society

2022

We explain what land transport is, its history, types and characteristics. Also, advantages and disadvantages of other transports.

Ground transportation includes a wide variety of collective and individual vehicles.

What is ground transportation?

Land transport is the set of means of transport that operate by land vehicles, that is, vehicles that move on the solid surface of the Earth. Most of them involve vehicles fitted with wheels, either running on rails, or freely on the surface.

Vehicles for land transport can be very diverse in their locomotion system, their transport capacity or the nature of their cargo. Broadly speaking, we could classify them into:

  • Motor vehicles. That is, those that have an engine, generally internal combustion, based on fossil fuels (gasoline, natural gas, etc.). They can be cargo (trucks, vans, etc.) or passenger (cars, buses, motorcycles, etc.).
  • Vehicles on rails. Motorized or electric, unable to move outside the path traced by the tracks. They are generally of the massive type, and can carry cargo and passengers at the same time, such as trains, trams or subways.
  • Blood traction vehicles. That is, driven by animals or by human effort, such as bicycles, carts, etc.

See also:

History and evolution of land transport

The history of land transport has uncertain origins, but it arises from the need to displace persons or goods in a more massive way, over greater distances and / or at higher speeds than can be done on foot.

In this sense, the first versions of this transport had to do with animals: camels, horses, donkeys, cows, llamas ... any animal robust enough to carry a horse on its back. human being or to pull a cart, it was ideal. Obviously, for this the invention of the wheel was a key antecedent.

The great empires and civilizations of antiquity always sought good means of communication, such as extensive road networks. For example, they were necessary for the internal control of the Roman Empire.

Even today these connections are necessary for the development of nations contemporary, since with passable roads and railways it is possible to circulate goods, tools, materials and persons where they are needed, something key in the survival of the Commerce.

This panorama changed dramatically with the Industrial Revolution of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, especially by the invention of the steam. The railway was imposed as a symbol of progress, since it allowed rapid and massive movement over enormous distances. Thus, the railways unified large countries such as the United States, Argentina, Mexico or Russia.

At the end of the 19th century, new mechanisms for transport emerged thanks to the discovery of the Petroleum and its refined derivatives such as gasoline. Thus, for example, the combustion internal. Consequently, a whole new generation of vehicles was born throughout the 20th century, for personal, massive and even warlike use.

Already in the 21st century, the new technologies and the Digital Revolution at the turn of the century allowed the emergence of more refined forms of ground transportation, such as subways and high-speed trains.

Characteristics of land transport

Land transport is, as its name implies, the default for moving on land. In this sense, it always depends on the geographical and meteorological conditions of where it is, at a certain point on the continental surface.

It often requires paved and conditioned roads, known as highways, as well as tunnels and bridges that allow traversing valleys, depressions, moutains, etc. In its entirety, this infrastructure composes the road of a country or a region.

Land transport is one of the preferred methods of transporting goods and passengers throughout the world, which incorporated into the cities allows the existence of urban transport: buses, cars, motorcycles and in some cases trams, trains or subways, which transport the citizens from one point to another in the city daily.

Types of land transport

Rail transport takes various forms in different parts of the world.

Broadly speaking, there are two types of land transport:

  • Road transport. That is, the one that uses wheeled vehicles capable of roaming freely around the land surface, although preferably on paved roads or highways, such as buses, cars or even bicycles, carts and motorcycles.
  • Rail transport. In other words, those vehicles unable to travel except on predetermined paths, such as train, tram or subway tracks, often stopping at stations or fixed stops along the way.

Advantages of land transport

Land transport is perhaps the most advantageous over short distances, generally combining economics, practicality and speed. This versatility also allows it to satisfy collective or individual passenger transport needs, for example, a bus or a car.

On the other hand, it can be used for Freight transport of all kinds (in trucks, railways or rolling containers, for example), even heavy machinery, raw Materials or from products delicate or dangerous.

Disadvantages of land transport

Since its displacement occurs on the surface of the continents, land transport is always faced with geographical and topographic accidents, such as crossing rivers, cliffs or crossing mountains. Therefore, it supposes, on the one hand, the need for an investment in infrastructure, and on the other a series of unavoidable dangers.

On the other hand, the conduction of most of these means of land transport falls on a single driver, of whose responsibility and expertise depends on the well-being of the cargo or passengers, unlike other forms of transportation in which there is a complete team managing the vehicle.

Air Transport

Air transport takes place thanks to vehicles capable of flying. These are airplanes, light aircraft and similar transports, mainly intended for the transport of passengers, but can be adapted for the movement of cargo, in specialized aircraft. It is the most recent of the forms of transport, the most expensive and the one that involves the most cutting-edge technology.

Marine transport

Maritime transport is that which is carried out by means of aquatic vehicles capable of navigating the oceans Y seas, such as ships and various types of ships.

This type of transport is essential for commercial exchange between continents or between islands and the mainland. In that sense, it is the mainstay of the globalized economy, such as cargo ships, oil tankers and vacation cruises, for example.

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