TRANSPORTATION

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Transport or transportation is the movement of people, animals

and goods from
one
location
to
another. Modes
of
transport include air,rail, road, water, cable, pipeline and space. The field
can be divided into infrastructure, vehicles and operations. Transport is
important because it enables trade between persons, which is essential
for the development of civilizations.
Transport infrastructure consists of the fixed installations including roads,
railways, airways, waterways, canals and pipelines and terminals such as
airports, railway stations, bus stations, warehouses, trucking terminals,
refueling depots (including fueling docks and fuel stations) and seaports.
Terminals may be used both for interchange of passengers and cargo and
for maintenance.
Vehicles traveling on these networks may include automobiles, bicycles,
buses, trains, trucks, people, helicopters, watercraft, spacecraft and
aircraft. Operations deal with the way the vehicles are operated, and the
procedures set for this purpose including financing, legalities and policies.
In the transport industry, operations and ownership of infrastructure can
be either public or private, depending on the country and mode.
Passenger transport may be public, where operators provide scheduled
services, or private. Freight transport has become focused on
containerization, although bulk transport is used for large volumes of
durable items. Transport plays an important part in economic growth and
globalization, but most types cause air pollution and use large amounts of
land. While it is heavily subsidized by governments, good planning of
transport is essential to make traffic flow and restrain urban sprawl.

MODES OF TRANSPORTATION
A mode of transport is a solution that makes use of a particular type of vehicle,
infrastructure and operation. The transport of a person or of cargo may involve
one mode or several of the modes, with the latter case being called intermodal

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or multimodal transport. Each mode has its own advantages and disadvantages,
and will be chosen for a trip on the basis of cost, capability, and route.

Human-powered
Human powered transport, a form of sustainable transportation, is the transport
of people and/or goods using human muscle-power, in the form of
walking, running and swimming.Modern technology has
allowed machines to
enhance human power. Human-powered transport remains popular for reasons of
cost-saving, leisure, physical exercise, and environmentalism; it is sometimes the
only type available, especially in underdeveloped or inaccessible regions.

Although humans are able to walk without infrastructure, the transport can be
enhanced through the use of roads, especially when using the human power with
vehicles, such as bicycles and inline skates. Human-powered vehicles have also
been developed for difficult environments, such as snow and water, by watercraft
rowing and skiing; even the air can be entered with human-powered aircraft.

Animal-powered
Animal-powered transport is the use of working animals for the movement of
people and commodities. Humans may ride some of the animals directly, use
them as pack animals for carrying goods, or harness them, alone or in teams, to
pull sleds or wheeled vehicles.

Air
A fixed-wing aircraft, commonly called airplane, is a heavier-than-air craft where
movement of the air in relation to the wings is used to generate lift. The term is
used to distinguish this from rotary-wing aircraft, where the movement of the lift
surfaces relative to the air generates lift. A gyroplane is both fixed-wing and
rotary-wing. Fixed-wing aircraft range from small trainers and recreational aircraft
to large airliners and military cargo aircraft.

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Two things necessary for aircraft are air flow over the wings for lift and an area
for landing. The majority of aircraft also need an airport with the infrastructure to
receive maintenance, restocking, refueling and for the loading and unloading of
crew, cargo and passengers. While the vast majority of aircraft land and take of
on land, some are capable of takeof and landing on ice, snow and calm water.
The aircraft is the second fastest method of transport, after the rocket.
Commercial jets can reach up to 955 kilometres per hour (593 mph), singleengine aircraft 555 kilometres per hour (345 mph). Aviation is able to quickly
transport people and limited amounts of cargo over longer distances, but incur
high costs and energy use; for short distances or in inaccessible
places helicopters can be used.As of April 28, 2009 The Guardian article notes
that, "the WHO estimates that up to 500,000 people are on planes at any time

Rail
Rail transport is where a train runs along a set of two parallel steel rails, known
as a railway or railroad. The rails are anchored perpendicular to ties (or sleepers)
of timber, concrete or steel, to maintain a consistent distance apart, or gauge.
The rails and perpendicular beams are placed on a foundation made of concrete,
or compressed earth and gravel in a bed of ballast. Alternative methods
include monorail and maglev.

A train consists of one or more connected vehicles that operate on the rails.
Propulsion is commonly provided by a locomotive, that hauls a series of
unpowered cars, that can carry passengers or freight. The locomotive can be
powered by steam, diesel or by electricity supplied by trackside systems.
Alternatively, some or all the cars can be powered, known as a multiple unit.

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Also, a train can be powered by horses, cables, gravity, pneumatics and gas
turbines. Railed vehicles move with
much less friction than rubber tires on paved roads, making trains more energy
efficient, though not as efficient as ships.
Intercity trains are long-haul services connecting cities; modern high-speed rail is
capable of speeds up to 350 km/h (220 mph), but this requires specially built
track. Regional and commuter trains feed cities from suburbs and surrounding
areas,
while
intra-urban
transport
is
performed
by
highcapacity tramways and rapid transits, often making up the backbone of a city's
public transport. Freight trains traditionally used box cars, requiring manual
loading and unloading of the cargo. Since the 1960s, container trains have
become the dominant solution for general freight, while large quantities of bulk
are transported by dedicated trains.

Road
A road is an identifiable route, way or path between two or more places. Roads
are typically smoothed, paved, or otherwise prepared to allow easy
travel; though they need not be, and historically many roads were simply
recognizable routes without any formal construction or maintenance. In urban
areas, roads may pass through a city or village and be named as streets, serving
a dual function as urban space easement and route

The most common road vehicle is the automobile; a wheeled passenger vehicle
that carries its own motor.
Other
users
of
roads
include
buses, trucks, motorcycles, bicycles and pedestrians. As of 2010, there were
1.015 billion automobiles worldwide. Road transport ofers a complete freedom
to road users to transfer the vehicle from one lane to the other and from one
road to another according to the need and convenience. This flexibility of
changes in location, direction, speed, and timings of travel is not available to
other modes of transport. It is possible to provide door to door service only by
road transport.

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Automobiles provide high flexibility with low capacity, but require high energy
and area use, and are the main source of noise and air pollution in cities; buses
allow for more efficient travel at the cost of reduced flexibility. [8] Road transport
by truck is often the initial and final stage of freight transport.

Water
Water transport is movement by means of a watercraftsuch as
a barge, boat, ship or sailboatover
a
body
of
water,
such
as
a sea, ocean, lake, canal or river. The need for buoyancy is common to
watercraft, making the hull a dominant aspect of its construction, maintenance
and appearance.

In the 19th century the first steam ships were developed, using a steam
engine to drive a paddle wheel or propeller to move the ship. The steam was
produced in a boiler using wood or coal and fed through a steam external
combustion engine. Now most ships have an internal combustion engine using a
slightly refined type of petroleum called bunker fuel. Some ships, such as
submarines,
use nuclear
power to
produce
the
steam. Recreational or educational craft still use wind power, while some smaller
craft use internal combustion engines to drive one or more propellers, or in the
case of jet boats, an inboard water jet. In shallow draft areas, hovercraft are
propelled by large pusher-prop fans. (See Marine propulsion.)
Although slow, modern sea transport is a highly efficient method of transporting
large quantities of goods. Commercial vessels, nearly 35,000 in number, carried
7.4 billion tons of cargo in 2007.[9] Transport by water is significantly less costly
than
air
transport
for
transcontinental shipping;[10] short
sea
shippingand ferries remain viable in coastal areas

ROAD TRANSPORT IN INDIA

India has a road network of over 4,689,842 kilometres (2,914,133 mi) in

2013, the second largest road network in the world. At 0.66 km of roads
per square kilometre of land, the quantitative density of India's road
network is similar to that of the United States (0.65) and far higher than
that of China (0.16) or Brazil (0.20). However, qualitatively India's roads

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are a mix of modern highways and narrow, unpaved roads, and are being
improved. As of 2011, 54 percent about 2.53 million kilometres of
Indian roads were paved.

Adjusted for its large population, India has less than 3.8 kilometres of
roads per 1000 people, including all its paved and unpaved roads. In terms
of quality, all season, 4 or more lane highways, India has less than 0.07
kilometres of highways per 1000 people, as of 2010. These are some of
the lowest road and highway densities in the world. For context, United
States has 21 kilometres of roads per 1000 people, while France about 15
kilometres per 1000 people predominantly paved and high quality in
both cases. In terms of all season, 4 or more lane highways, developed
countries such as United States and France have a highway density per
1000 people that is over 15 times as India.

As of April 2015, India had completed and placed in use over 24,000
kilometres of recently built 4 or 6-lane highways connecting many of its
major manufacturing centres, commercial and cultural centres.The rate of
new highway construction across India accelerated after 1999, but has
slowed in recent years. Policy delays and regulatory blocks reduced the
rate of highway construction awards to just 500 kilometers of new road
projects in 2013.Major projects are being implemented under the National
Highways Development Project, a government initiative. Private builders
and highway operators are also implementing major projects - for
example, the Yamuna Expressway between Delhi and Agra was completed
ahead of schedule and within budget,while the KMP Expressway started in
2006 is far behind schedule, over budget and incomplete

Road transport is vital to India's economy. It enables the country's transportation

sector to contribute 4.7 percent towards Indias gross domestic product, in
comparison to railways that contributed 1 percent, in 20092010. Road transport
has not gained in importance over the years despite significant barriers and
inefficiencies in inter-state freight and passenger movement compared to
railways and air. The government of India considers road network as critical to
the country's development, social integration and security needs of the country.
India's road network carries over 65 percent of its freight and about 85 percent of
passenger traffic.
Indian road network is administered by various government authorities, given
India's federal form of government. The table below describes the regulating
bodies.
Road classification

Authority responsible

Total kilometres (as

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of 2011)

National Highways

State Highways

Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (Central

government)

State governments (state's public works

department)

Major and other district

Local governments, panchayats and

roads

municipalities

Rural roads

Local governments, panchayats and

municipalities

92,851

1,63,898

17,05,706

27,49,805

Transportation equipment
Transport equipment is used to move material from one location to another (e.g.
between workplaces, between a loading dock and a storage area, etc.) while
positioning equipment is used to manipulate material at a single location.The
major subcategories of transport equipment are conveyors, cranes, and
industrial trucks. Material can also be transported manually using no equipment.

Conveyors
Conveyors are used when material is to be moved frequently between specific
points over a fixed path and when there is a sufficient flow volume to justify the
fixed conveyor investment.[4] Diferent types of conveyors can be characterized
by the type of product being handled:unit load or bulk load; the conveyors
location: in-floor, on-floor,
or overhead,
and
whether
or
not
loads
can accumulate on the conveyor. Accumulation allows intermittent movement of
each unit of material transported along the conveyor, while all units move
simultaneously on conveyors without accumulation capability

Conveyors are used:

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When material is to be moved frequently between specific points

To move materials over a fixed path

When there is a sufficient flow volume to justify the fixed conveyor

investment

Conveyors can be classified in diferent ways:

Type of product being handled: unit load or bulk load

Location of the conveyor: overhead, on-floor, or in-floor

Whether or not loads can accumulate on the conveyor

Cranes
Cranes are used to transport loads over variable (horizontal and vertical) paths
within a restricted area and when there is insufficient (or intermittent) flow
volume such that the use of a conveyor cannot be justified. Cranes provide more
flexibility in movement than conveyors because the loads handled can be more
varied with respect to their shape and weight. Cranes provide less flexibility in
movement than industrial trucks because they only can operate within a
restricted area. Most cranes utilize trolley-and-tracks for horizontal movement
and hoists for vertical movement, although manipulators can be used if precise
positioning of the load is required. The most common cranes include the jib,
bridge, gantry, and stacker cranes.

General characteristics of cranes:

Used to move loads over variable (horizontal and vertical) paths within a
restricted area

Used when there is insufficient (or intermittent) flow volume such that the
use of a conveyor cannot be justified

Provide more flexibility in movement than conveyors

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Provide less flexibility in movement than industrial trucks

Loads handled are more varied with respect to their shape and weight
than those handled by a conveyor

Most cranes utilize hoists for vertical movement, although manipulators

can be used if precise positioning of the load is required

Industrial trucks
Industrial trucks are trucks that are not licensed to travel on public roads
(commercial trucks are licensed to travel on public roads[7]). Industrial trucks are
used to move materials over variable paths and when there is insufficient (or
intermittent) flow volume such that the use of a conveyor cannot be justified.
They provide more flexibility in movement than conveyors and cranes because
there are no restrictions on the area covered, and they provide vertical
movement if the truck has lifting capabilities. Diferent types of industrial trucks
can be characterized by whether or not they have forks for handling pallets,
provide powered or require manual lifting and travel capabilities, allow the
operator to ride on the truck or require that the operator walk with the truck
during travel, provide load stackingcapability, and whether or not they can
operate in narrow aisles.

Industrial trucks:

Used to move materials over variable (horizontal) paths with no

restrictions on the area covered (i.e., unrestricted area)

Provide vertical movement if the truck has lifting capabilities

Used when there is insufficient (or intermittent) flow volume such that the
use of a conveyor cannot be justified

Provide more flexibility in movement than conveyors and cranes

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Not licensed to travel on public roads"commercial trucks" are licensed to

travel on public roads

Unit Load Formation Equipment

Unit load formation equipment used to restrict materials so that they maintain
their integrity when handled a single load during transport and for storage. The
major types of unit load formation equipment are

1. Self-restraining (no equipment)

10.Bulk load containers

2. Pallets

11.Crates

3. Skids

12.Intermodal containers

4. Slipsheets [+]

13.Strapping/tape/glue

5. Tote pans

14.Shrink-wrap/stretch-wrap

6. Pallet boxes/skid boxes

15.Palletizers

7. Bins/baskets/racks
8. Cartons
9. Bags

Advantages of unit loads:

More items can be handled at the same time, thereby reducing the
number of trips required and, potentially, reducing handling costs, loading
and unloading times, and product damage.

Enables the use of standardized material handling equipment.

Disadvantages of unit loads:

Time spent forming and breaking down the unit load.

Cost of containers/pallets and other load restraining materials used in the

unit load

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Empty containers/pallets may need to be returned to their point of origin.

Storage equipment
Storage equipment is used for holding or bufering materials over a period of
time. The design of each type of storage equipment, along with its use
in warehouse design, represents a trade-of between minimizing handling costs,
by making material easily accessible, and maximizing the utilization of space (or
cube).[12] If materials are stacked directly on the floor, then no storage equipment
is required, but, on average, each diferent item in storage will have a stack only
half full; to increase cube utilization, storage racks can be used to allow multiple
stacks of diferent items to occupy the same floor space at diferent levels. The
use of racks becomes preferable to floor storage as the number of units per item
requiring storage decreases. Similarly, the depth at which units of an item are
stored afects cube utilization in proportion to the number of units per item
requiring storage.

The most common reason for storing a product allows the other elements
of production to operate more efficiently on a per-unit basis because the
fixed costs associated with utilizing the element can be spread over more
products; e.g., storing up to a truckload of product in a facility reduces the
per-unit costs of shipping; and bufering or storage of WIP enables batch
production which reduces the per-unit setup costs.

Other potential reasons for storage include: time bridgingallows product

to be available when it is needed (e.g., storing spare machine parts at the
facility); processingfor some products (e.g., wine), storage can be
considered as a processing operation because the product undergoes a
required change during storage; and securinge.g., nuclear waste
storage.