Question

Why the importance of road transport vis-?-vis rail transport is growing in India?

Answer 1

Dear Student,
Answer to your question is as follows :

India has one of the largest road networks in the world, aggregating to about 2.3 million km at present.
In India, Roadways have preceded Railways.
They still have an edge over railways in view of ease with which they can be built and maintained.
The growing importance of Road Transport vis-a-vis Rail Transport is rooted to the following reasons :

• Construction cost of roads is much lower than that of railway lines,
• Road Transport also provides door-to-door service, thus the cost of loading and unloading is much lower,
• Roads can traverse comparatively more dissected and undulating topography,
• Roads can negotiate higher gradients of slopes and as such can go across mountains such as the Himalayas,
• Road Transport is economical in transportation of few persons and relatively smaller amount of goods over short distances,
• Road Transport is also used as a feeder to other modes of transport such as they provide link between Railway Stations, Air and Sea Ports.

Regards