5 Modes of Transportation

In order to have easy mobility of persons and goods, it is necessary to

have a sophisticated and widespread transportation system. This system is made
up of five primary areas of transportation, which are:
· Motor vehicles
· Railroad transportation
· Air transportation
· Water transportation
· Pipelines
Each of these five modes consists of different subsystems which make up the syst
em. Each mode is used to transport persons or goods, but in many instances, one
mode may be favored over the others. All five modes require some primary sourc
e of funds for building and maintaining the infrastructure. These funds may com
e from a number of different places such as the federal government, state, or th
e city through which the system runs. Different government agencies have jurisd
iction over the modes. These agencies focus on maintaining and improving safety
of each system. The individual states also have certain obligations to the ope
ration and regulation of the different modes of transportation.
Each mode is made up of primary subsystems. The subsystems of railroad
transportation include freight trains and passenger trains. Freight trains are
used to transport goods and materials between cities while passenger trains are
used to transport people. Although freight trains are still used all across the
nation, rail intercity freight has accounted for a decreasing share of the tota
l ton mileage over the past 30 years. This is mostly due to the increase in tru
ck transport. Rail passenger traffic had also declined over the years until bet
ter service was offered by Amtrak and the price of fuel increased. Much of the
decline in rail passenger traffic has been due to the increasing number of air p
assengers.
Air transport can also be divided into the subsystems of passenger and f
reight transport. Passenger air travel has rapidly increased over the years due
to:
· Increasing Gross National Product
· Increasing wealth of the middle-income groups
· Increasing number of nonprimary industry in the economic system
· Increasing amount of general aviation
· Improved technology
The areas for air transport of express and freight and mail has also increased r
apidly over the years. This is due mostly to improved technology which has stea
dily lowered the cost of air transport.
Like rail and air transport, water transportation can also be broken dow
n to passenger and freight transport. Passenger transportation by water only ac
counts for a very small percentage of water transport because it is very slow an
d relatively inconvenient for most people. This is primarily used by people for
vacation purposes. Most often, water transport is used for freight movement of
items that are bulky and of low cost per unit volume.
Pipelines can be divided into two principle classes including oil and na
tural gas pipelines. Oil pipelines are used to transport oil and oil-products.
Gas pipelines differ from oil pipelines in that they are not in competition wit
h other carriers.
Each mode is used to convey certain goods or materials. Highways are mo
st often used to carry motor vehicles. These vehicles may be privately owned, c
ompany owned, or even state owned. They may range in size from single passenger
vehicles such as motorcycles to large freight vehicles such as triple-trailer t
rucks. The transport of freight may include anything from raw materials to fini
shed products.
Railroads are used to carry freight and passenger trains. In both cases
, the number of railroad cars may vary between destinations. However, it would
not be practical to haul a single car for a long distance , therefore, many cars
are usually hauled on each trip.
Passenger trains are designed to haul passengers, while freight trains are desig
ned to haul materials ranging from raw goods to finished products.
Air transport is used in the transportation of passengers and freight.
Aircraft used to transport passengers come in many different sizes. They range
from small single passenger aircraft to large jumbo jet aircraft. Transportatio
n of freight is another area of air transport. Most common is the express and f
reight and mail carriers. Most of this material is carried by local passenger/c
argo carriers. Some military aircraft is used in the transportation of much lar
ger freight. The materials transported by air may include anything from raw mat
erials to finished products.
Another mode of transporting passengers and freight is by water. The tr
ansportation of passengers is slow and inconvenient, therefore it is not used ve
ry often except for pleasure. The size of water craft may vary from small singl
e seater jet skis to large cruise ships. The most common use of water transport
ation is for freight. The type of freight moved is usually limited to those cla
sses that are bulky and of low cost per unit volume.
Pipelines are mainly used to transport oil and oil products or natural g
as. Oil pipelines are divided between gathering lines and trunk lines, while ga
s pipelines are divided between field lines and trunk lines.
Each mode must have sufficient funds for building and maintaining the in
frastructure. For the highway system, funds come from several different areas.
The United States highway system is publicly owned, therefore much of the funds
are received from the federal government, however, most of the funds are recei
ved from highway user taxes. Federal highway funds are available for constructi
on and improvement of the federal primary system. The state is responsible for
the upkeep of most primary and secondary roads. State highway systems may overl
ap federal systems. The funds for most state primary systems come from the stat
e, while local and county authorities are responsible for secondary systems. Lo
cal and other systems usually receive funds from the local authorities for maint
enance, improvement, and construction. Toll roads receive funds for upkeep by c
harging people a small fee to travel on the highway.
Railroad systems are usually privately owned. Most railroad systems are
built and maintained by the company, but funds are also provided by the federal
government.
The air transportation system obtains much of its funds from federal aid
if the facility is owned by local governments (in most cases they are). The ai
rlines themselves are also responsible for much of the funds required to maintai
n the facility. Small general aviation aircraft are usually privately owned and
used for recreational purposes, or owned by businesses which do a large amount
of traveling. These facilities are usually paid for by the local area and the u
sers of the airport.
The construction, maintenance, and operation of waterways is paid for by
the federal government since the United States Coast Guard assumes responsibili
ty for the supply and operation of navigational aids. While the federal governm
ent pays for the waterways, most of the vessels are company or privately owned,
with the exception of U.S. Coast Guard vessels. Improvement to ports is usually
is usually funded by state or city aid or from borrowing.
The pipeline transportation system is the only mode of transportation th
at gets no direct aid from the federal government. Most of the funds required t
o construct and maintain the pipelines comes from the company which owns the pip
eline.
Different government agencies from the U.S. Department of Transportation
have primary jurisdiction over each mode of transportation. The Federal Highwa
y Administration (FHWA) provides funds to states for highway construction, impro
ving, and management. FWHA also provides funds for several state-administered s
afety programs. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) foc
uses on maintaining and improving safety of motor vehicles and equipment and con
ducts test programs to evaluate and guarantee compliance with the standards. Th
e Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) develops and administers programs to ach
ieve safe operating practices in the industry. Primary jurisdiction of airways
is controlled by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The FAA issues and
enforces air safety regulations, develops and operates the airways, and inspects
and certifies aircraft. The United States Coast Guard enforces federal laws re
garding navigation, port safety and security, inspection of vessels, and protect
ion of the marine environment. All construction and safety standards are enforc
ed by the U.S. Coast Guard. Pipeline transportation is controlled by the Federa
l Energy Regulatory Commission of the Department of Energy.
Many transportation organizations exist at the state level. Each state
has certain roles in the operation and regulation of the different modes. State
s must follow the regulations set by the federal government, but each state can
also make its own set of regulations. An example of this would be the N.C. seat
belt law.
The United States transportation system is made up of several different
modes of transportation. Each of these modes are operated and regulated to diff
erent degrees by federal, state, and local governments. All of these modes of t
ransportation give a great deal of mobility for the people and goods and materia
ls of each state.