The globalisation and internationalisation of production are inevitably leading to a growth in the demand for international transportation. This is compounded by a rapid increase in tourism as in the industrialised world people enjoy rising personal incomes, better health, and longer retirements and are more adventurous in their leisure pursuits. The result is increased amounts of international traffic and more international personal mobility. The forecasts are that the trend is far from being transient but that longer-term growth in international trade and in international travel will continue into the foreseeable future. There are many different types of border that can impact on the efficiency of transportation systems; some are natural but many are artificial. Borders can fragment transportation networks and reduce the cost gains enjoyed through economies of density and scope and the additional revenues generated from economies of widespread market presence. Impediments to trade restrict the economies that can come from countries or regions being able to fully exploit their natural comparative advantages. There are, however, increasingly moves to reduce the problems that can result from such inefficiencies, be they technical or institutional, at border points. In some cases these are bilateral actions involving just a pair of countries, but with the emergence of the E.U. and NAFTA, there are also multilateral changes taking place. The gradual increase in powers being given to global bodies such as the World Trade Organisation may represent the next movement forward.
Samenvatting