Heavy industries are traditionally linked with rail transport systems, although containerization has improved the flexibility of rail transportation by linking it with road and maritime modes. They have an average level of physical constraints, and a low gradient is required, particularly for freight. In light of recent technological developments, rail transportation also includes monorails and maglev. Railways are composed of a traced path on which wheeled vehicles are bound. With containerization, road transportation has become a crucial link in freight distribution between ports and commercial hinterlands. They are mainly linked to light industries and freight distribution, where rapid movements of freight in small batches are the norm. Road transport systems have high maintenance costs, both for the vehicles and infrastructures, which are related to low life spans. Road transportation has average operational flexibility as vehicles can serve several purposes but can rarely operate outside roads. While historically road transportation was developed to support non-motorized forms of transportation (walking, domestic animals, and cycling at the end of the 19th century), it is motorization that has shaped most of its development since the beginning of the 20th century.
However, physiographical constraints are significant in road construction with substantial additional costs to overcome features such as rivers or rugged terrain. Road infrastructures are large consumers of space with the lowest level of physical constraints among transportation modes.
Atomization versus Massification in Transportation Modes.Performance Comparison for Selected Freight Modes.The demand for transport and the ownership of modes are dominant commercial characteristics, as transportation modes are used to support economic activities and generate an income. Technical characteristics relate to attributes such as speed, capacity, and motive technology, while operational characteristics involve the context in which modes operated, including speed limits, safety conditions, or operating hours. Each mode is characterized by a set of technical, operational, and commercial characteristics. For instance, an automobile has the capacity to carry some freight while a passenger plane has a bellyhold that is used for luggage and cargo. Transport modes are designed to either carry passengers or freight, but most modes can carry a combination of both. They are mobile transport assets and fall into three basic types land (road, rail, pipelines), water (shipping), and air. Transport modes are the means of supporting the mobility of passengers and freight.
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