Transport systems develop in leaps and jumps, going from one technology to another. In the nineteenth century, for instance, rail transport began to take over from water transport. It was a process that greatly increased the speed of transport. In more recent times, road transport has become the dominant form of transport. At present, developments would appear to point in the direction of a certain saturation level being reached where road transport is concerned. There is even evidence that the numbers of car kilometres covered by people is beginning to level out. It is not, however, the case that road traffic speeds are already decreasing. The traffic jam problem is indeed increasing but elsewhere speeds are increasing to such an extent that there is evidence of a general increase in the speed of road traffic. At the end of this article, the possible importance of the further speeding up the transport system is discussed. (A)
Abstract