Transportation

TRASPORTATION TAKES PEOPLE where they need or want to go, and brings them the goods they need or want. Without transportation, trade would be impossible. Without trade, there could be no towns and cities. Towns and cities are traditionally the centers of civilization. Therefore, transportation has helped make civilization possible.

Although transportation has benefited people in many ways, it has also created problems. For example, it uses great quantities of fuel and so strains the world’s energy supplies. Cars jam many streets and motorways making travel slow. In addition, there exhaust fumes pollute the air. Such problems are so difficult to solve that government have become increasingly involved in transportation.

Traffic congestion on streets and highways increases transportation times and can also make driving more dangerous. Scientist and engineers have been developing intelligent transportation systems to deal with congestion. One development, an electronic toll system, automatically identifies vehicles and charges their owners or drivers for the use of roadways and bridges.

Cars are the chief cause of traffic congestions in urban areas, and their exhaust fumes contribute heavily to urban air pollution. Many cities plagued by traffic jams and air pollution have taken steps to reduce car traffic in their busier areas. In addition, increasingly strict pollution control standards are being introduced for new vehicles. There standards require carmakers to manufacture cars that five off cleaner exhausts that earlier models.