Transport and Communication: Definition and Importance/ Advantages

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Transportation and communication are means or processes of overcoming distance. Transportation usually involves carrying or moving goods and people from place to place, while communication involves the passing of news and information from one person to another.

Transportation involves such modes as roads, water, air, and pipelines, while communication involves the use of telephone, telegraphs, email, fax, newspapers, radio, television, etc. Transport and communication are both substitutes and complements; it might be possible that sufficiently advanced communication could be substituted for transportation. For instance, one could telegraph, telephone, fax, or mail a customer or a friend rather than paying a personal visit.

It has been established that these modes of communication generate more total interactions including inter-personal interaction. Long before now, Communication was solely dependent on transportation as, in the absence of electronic communications; it depended on the speed and efficiency of transportation. Messages either orally or written were delivered from one place to another only by traveling and most people traveled in the same vehicles as passengers and merchandise. Communications were also tied to the speed of the horse, oxen, barge, or a man on foot.

However today, the growth of transportation may not still be possible without communication which is vital for advanced transportation systems. For instance, railway roads which want to run trains in two directions on a signal track, air traffic control which requires the knowledge of aircraft in the sky. Thus, it has been found that the increase of one generally leads to more of the other.

Transportation definition

Transportation means the movement of people and goods from one place (location) to another. This movement can be through roads, railways, water air, and pipelines. An efficient transportation system is in many ways the livelihood of an economic system because it is the means whereby the friction of space is overcome. The need to move goods and people from place to place is imperative and this has made possible the changes in transportation technology in order to improve the efficiency of movements.

The effects of transportation improvement are seen in the progressive alternation of spatial dimensions, which have resulted in the shrinkage of the world. The shrinkage is however not the same everywhere. The transportation revolutions have led to an increase in speed of movement and thus reduces the time distance separating places. The major development in the transportation industry has also reduced transportation cost and as the result of the positive changes in transportation, the overall spatial economic system has undergone a degree of spatial reorganization which are as follow

The spatial pattern of production has been transformed from a dispersed to a concentrated pattern. There has been an increased differentiation between locations on the basis of their intrinsic qualities. The degree of geographic specialization and spatial extent of production have both increased

Communication Definition

Communication is very necessary for human existence; it is a medium of sending and receiving information through various means. Communication is a very vital aspect of society in which without it, it will be difficult for spatial interaction to take place and if our messages are not clearly delivered, we may not get what we need to survive. The needed thing could be information, money advice, or just emotional support.

A communication system helps industrialists and business communities to make the right decisions at the right time by providing them information and news related to business and financial matters. It is possible to know about the price of the commodity prevailing at any part of the world in no time and it also helps to operate their business according to that through the communication system.

However, a communication system facilitates economic development by sending information to various locations. Communication brings about change and modernization in the outlook and lifestyle of the people according to the changing conditions of the world.

Modes of communication

  1. Phone
  2. Fax
  3. Email
  4. Courier
  5. Handwritten
  6. Television
  7. Radio
  8. Social networking

Importance of Transportation and Communication in Economic Development

  1. Both transportation and communication play some major roles in the economic uplift of a country as they promote internal and external trade.
  2. Transportation and communication systems help to promote the use of natural resources, mobility of skilled labor force, diversification of markets, provision of fuel, increase in agricultural and industrial production.
  3. Efficient transport and communication systems help to establish relationships among people in different parts of the world, these have also strengthened the feeling of unity among people in different cultural backgrounds.
  4. Transport and communication systems help to create job opportunities for people living in the rural areas by connecting laborers and creating employment for them in the industries, however, these have also solved the needs of industries and reduced unemployment.
  5. The development of transport systems also leads to the development of industries because the transport system utilizes the product of industries and both complement each other in different ways.
  6. Efficient means of transport and communication have indeed shortened time, distance, and cost that would have been used to move and to deliver goods and information from one person to another.
  7. Transportation and communication help to increase the size of the market of your products by helping you to transport your products across different countries which will help you to increase your sales in those countries by penetrating new markets.
  8. Through effective transport and communication systems, one will know how to strategize in terms of war and also curtail crisis from taking place at any point in time.
  9. Government can swiftly evacuate or inform its people against any occurrence of natural disaster, an outbreak of diseases, and other social problems through the means of transportation and communication systems.
  10. The production and distribution units (farms, factories, central places) that are under primitive or high-cost transport conditions, had to be scattered to serve distant markets, have tended to become spatially concentrated in areas of greatest advantage. Market areas, therefore, have become even more extensive as transportation has improved. Similarly, supply areas have expanded. For instance, agricultural production has become more profitable and so wider areas of production are opened up from the central markets.
  11. The transportation revolution has therefore significantly improved the accessibility of places and therefore brought more developments and growth. This is because transportation is the main vein through which developmental facilities and services are channeled. The level of transport development of many areas is therefore positively correlated to the level of economic growth and development.
  12. Transportation plays a major role in the economy, which increases production efficiency and links to logistic systems.