Topic A: Road transport

Types of road transport

 Cars
 Bicycles
 motorcycles
 trucks
 taxis
 buses
 vans
Types of specialized road transport
 road tanker
 cement mixer
 car transporter
 refrigerated van
 tractor
Advantages of road transport
 faster and cheaper over short distance due to less maintenance and handling costs
 provides door to door service therefore less handling of goods and lowers risk of theft
 does not follow fixed route and timetable which makes it more flexible
 roads are accessible to anywhere unlike other methods of transport such as rail
 suitable for fragile good such as fruits and vegetables
Disadvantages of road transport
 slow and expensive over long distance
 lorries and their loads can only reach a certain size and weight, not suitable for
transporting bulky goods
 can be caught in traffic or breakdown of vehicles which delays the duration of
transporting the goods
 cause air and noise pollution and easily affected by weather
Advantages of company vehicles
 cheaper (more economical) in the long run if there are regular and sufficient loads to
be transported
 firm can employ its own drivers which reduces risk of theft
 provides direct contact to customers so customers’ needs and wants can be sorted out
quickly
 own vehicles can carry out free advertising, logos, contact number and company name
can be done on both sides of the vehicle
 delivery schedules can be arranged to suit the customers
  less documentation (less documents) needed as compared to transport company
Disadvantages of company vehicle
 more capital needed to buy motor vehicles
 additional costs for maintenance, repair, fuel and insurance
 need to employ someone to manage the transport fleet
 money spent on owning transport may be spent on
Rail transport
 passenger train- suitable for carrying small quantities and urgently needed goods over
long distance
 goods wagon eg. Tank wagon, mineral wagon and flat wagon
Advantages of rail transport
 faster and cheaper to carry heavy and bulk goods over long distance
 will not be caught in traffic jam and is not affected by bad weather
 safe to carry dangerous goods eg. nuclear waste and oil because there are specialized
wagons to carry them
 produces less air pollution
Disadvantages of rail transport
 slow and expensive over short distance
 expensive to install railway system and to maintain railway tracks and trains
 does not provide door to door delivery, good have to be transported from rail
transport to road transport which causes increase in cost, damage and risk of theft
 follows fixed timetable unlike road transport which can be used at any time
Sea transport
 Usually for foreign trade
Types of sea transport
 Cargo liner- carries variety of cargoes (goods), passengers and mails. Follows fixed
route and timetable
 Tramp- carries one types of cargo in bulk and does not follow fixed route and
timetable
 Oil tanker- ship specially designed to carry oil, gases or chemical in bulk
 Bulk carrier- carries specific type of cargoes/goods such as iron ore, grains etc.
 OBO ship (ore, bulk and oil)- vessel which can carry cargo in both liquid and dry form in
bulk at one time and a typical use of OBO ship is to transport crude oil and coal.
 Container ship- carries containers where goods are stored in them, follows a fixed
route and timetable
Advantages of sea transport
 Cheap to carry heavy, bulky goods like coal and timber of low value over long distance
 Carries containers where goods are stored in them which reduces handling, damage,
theft and being spoilt from bad weather
 Can carry perishable goods over long distance as refrigerated facilities are provided
Disadvantages of sea transport
 Not suitable for sending urgent good as it is a slow method of transport
 Does not provide door to door service, goods have to be transferred between road and
sea transport which increases the cost, handling of goods, theft and damage
 High insurance, packing and storage cost because goods are at risk for a longer
duration journey
 Affected by weather so it will cause delay in sending goods
 Complex documentation will have to be completed if goods are set by sea transport
Air transport
Types of air transport
 Passenger aircraft
 Corporate jets
 Cargo plane
 Helicopters
 light aircraft
 seaplane or float aircraft
Advantages of air transport
 fastest method of transport over long distance as it takes the shortest straight line
route and s not blocked by hills or mountains
 safer compared to sea as there will be less handling, damage and theft due to shorter
duration of journey hence, insurance, storage and packing cost is reduced
 suitable to carry urgent needed goods such as food and medical supplies because of its
speed
 suitable to carry light, fragile and expensive goods like diamonds
 simpler documentation compared to sea transport
 useful for transporting to inaccessible areas such as forests where even road transport
is difficult
Disadvantages of air transport
 expensive due to high cost of aircraft and maintenance
 does not provide door to door service, goods have to be transported between air and
other forms of transport to reach customers
 affected by weather which causes delay of transport in goods
 limited load of capacity which is not suitable for carrying heavy and bulk goods
Pipelines
 used to carry liquids such as oil, water and gas example: Liquefied Natural Gas(LNG)
over long distance
 can be installed overland, underground or put underwater
 moves liquids between cities, countries and continents
Factors affecting choice of goods
Cost / Budget
 Business will choose the most economic method of transport unless urgently needed
 Road transport is the cheapest method of transport over short distances where rail
and sea transport are cheaper to send goods over longer distances. Air transport is the
most expensive method of transport.
Quantity of goods 
 Bulky goods such as coal, timber, iron ore etc can be carried by both rail and sea
transport.
 Road and air transports have limited load capacity.

Nature of the goods/ Types of goods 

 Heavy bulky goods (of low value) are sent by sea transport so air transport is not
suitable as it carries limited load capacity only. 
 Expensive and perishable goods e.g. vegetables, meat, flowers and etc, are suitable to
send by refrigerated trucks because it provides door-to-door service thus, quicker
delivery and less handling of goods.
 Urgently needed goods such as food and medical supplies for flood victim are best send
by air transport due to its speed.
 Specialised cargoes (goods) needed to use specialised containers e.g. oil tanker carry oil
over long distances, road tanker and pipeline carry oil within the country.
Urgency 
 If goods are required urgently e.g. food and medical supplies for flood victim, air
transport is the quickest method of transport.
 Rail and sea transport are not suitable to send urgent goods.

Security / Safety
 Expensive goods may be transported by road or air transport due to less handling of
goods, damage and theft.
 Road transport is used because it is faster over short distances and it provides door-to-
door delivery which reduces handling, damage and theft.
 Air transport is used because the fastest method of transport due to its speed. Goods
will be safer due to its shorter duration of journey so less damage and theft. 
 Oil, gases, chemicals are dangerous goods which might catch fire hence,  required
specialised containers to be stored and carried by specialised transport e.g oil stored in
 specialized container carried by tanker over long distances to prevent accident which will
be a loss for the owner if accidents incurred.

Distance
 Road is often used for short distances where rail is used for long distances locally. 
 Sea transport is cheaper for carrying heavy bulky goods of low value over long distances.
 Air transport is suitable to send goods over long distances but have limited load capacity.