Problems Affecting the Transportation Industry Essay Example

Trade and industries are significant components of an economy of any region. The transport industry is specifically a vital sector of the market. The various forms of transport infrastructure promote trade by facilitating the delivery of goods and human capital. There are however several problems that affect the transportation systems in the majority of the economies, especially in the urban areas. This essay intends to discuss various categories of issues that influence the transportation infrastructure and network. The paper attempts to describe the problems of revenue, congestion, institutional issues and innovation in the industry. The write-up then gives possible strategies to solve the setbacks in the business.

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The growth in per capita in GDP is likely to increase the demand for transport. The population in cities has also grown and is still increasing which also implies the likelihood of pressure on the available transport infrastructure. These pressures are high on the current railway transport system in London. The problem is likely to increase to over 50% in congestion over the next few decades (Wilkinson, 2005). The number of journeys has been rising over the decades since the launch of the railway system in the 1890s. The infrastructure was privatized in the 1990s and has also doubled in the congestion. The development and creation of new journeys have also contributed to the problem in the industry. The total passenger miles are also likely to increase by over 36%. Overcrowding has led to a high demand than the capacity of the system. The railway system that is still serving through the underground infrastructure has been operational over decades without an upgrade. The introduction of light rails and trams can help reduce the congestion problem. This strategy would offer high capability and speedy transportation.

The transportation industry is experiencing problems with its efforts to upgrade to the new technological system. The high cost that the new system requires hinders the implementation of the improvement. The laying down of the infrastructure also needs large physical space which is inadequate especially in the old underground railway infrastructure (Wilkinson, 2005). The design of the old railway infrastructure is narrow, and as such, the expansion for the establishment of the light rail is difficult.

Emergencies are factors that affect the transport industry in the majority of cities around the world. Natural disasters, for instance, lead to significant losses by destroying property under freight or hindering the delivery and exchange of goods. Hurricanes such as Katrina and Rita devastate the infrastructure that requires significant capital to reinstall. Snow also stalls the transportation sector in London when it finds its way into the electric motor. The mitigation strategies of some natural disasters are expensive and as such remain unresolved. Filters, for instance, can help prevent the entry of beautiful snow into the train systems but the capital requirements have made the implementation difficult.

Inadequate revenues are also a problem in the transport industry. The transportation demand has grown and is exceeded the supply of the transportation system. The aging infrastructure also requires revenue for maintenance and upgrading. The financing systems for this needs has been in existence for many years. However, some of these capital collection strategies have failed to satisfy the demands. The unsatisfactory nature of the transport system has resulted in difficulties in trade and timely delivery of production resources including human capital.

Human and innovative capital is significant in the operation of the transportation industry. The investment to foster innovation has shown a reducing trend due to budgetary constraints. These low creative efforts negatively affect the establishment and development of digital infrastructure able to satisfy the demands. The United States, for instance, had the investment in the transport industry in the year 2005 was 0.015 percent of the GDP (Pacione, 2014). This allocation was lower than a value of 0.07 percent in the 1970s which implies a decrease in the capacity to research on new transport techniques and enhancements.

Institutions are essential in the management and strategizing on the efficiency of the transportation industry. However, the institutions that was in existence in the last centuries reveal a mismatch with the mission expectations of the current establishment of the 21st century. The older departments used a modal system in managing the transport system while the existing organizations require systems perspective (Pacione, 2014). For efficiency in the industry, the emphasis should be on the ability of operations and not on the extension. The United States, for instance, has numerous infrastructural networks and as such, complicates the maintenance and management f the industry.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the transport industry requires a concurrent resolution of the problems of finance and institutional reorganization. The enactment f policies such as the deregulation of the industry would promote the satisfaction trade and shipment of goods. The issues have shown a correlation, and as such, the solutions cannot act on individual issues without involving other matters. Moreover, improving the revenue allocation for innovation can provide ultimate solutions through new proposals and resourcefulness that is significant.

References

Pacione, M. (2014). Urban Problems (Routledge Revivals): An Applied Urban Analysis. Routledge.

Wilkinson, N. (2005). Managerial economics: a problem-solving approach. Cambridge University Press.