Transport Models and Road Transport
There has always been a need for human change. The process of transferring persons or goods from one point to another is called ⁇ transportation ⁇ . Transportation activities are carried out through land, sea, air and railways today. Each type of transport is shaped by the amount of cargo or passengers carried, distance and speed. The modern logistics sector offers integrated solutions by combining these different modes of transport.
The Role of Transportation in the Global Economy
With the development of world trade, the importance of the logistics and transportation sectors has also increased. Today, logistics services, which are directly connected to almost all branches of industry, play a key role in achieving an international competitive advantage. Delivering products or services to target markets faster and more economically than competitors is the main goal of global logistics activities.
Scale and Distance Economics
In the transportation sector, the decrease in the unit transportation cost as the amount of freight transported increases is called ⁇ scale economy ⁇ . Similarly, the longer the transport distance, the lower the unit cost per ton/km; this is defined as the ⁇ distance economy ⁇ . Therefore, it is of great importance to choose the most suitable type of transport so that transport can be both fast and economical.
Comparison of Transport Types
The table below presents a comparison of different types of transport in terms of cost, speed, distribution network, load diversity, frequency of travel and adaptation to terminals:
| Type of transport | The cost of | The speed of | the Distribution Network | Variety of Load | Frequency of Expedition | Compliance with Terminals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| the Black Road | It is high | It is fast | It is very wide | It is high | It is high | It is high |
| the Air Way | It's too high | It's too fast | It is wide | Limited to | It is high | It is high |
| the Railway | It's a low | Slow down, slow down. | Limited to | It is high | It's a low | It is high |
| the Sea Road | It's too low | It's too slow | Limited to | It's too high | It's too low | the Middle East |
| the Pipeline | It's a low | Slow down, slow down. | It is very limited | It is very limited | the Middle East | It is high |
As can be seen in this table, each type of transport has its own advantages and disadvantages. For example, road transport has a large distribution network and high frequency of flights, while airline costs are higher, ensuring fast delivery.
The Impact of the Value of the Cargo Carried
In the selection of the appropriate type of transport, the value of the transported load also plays an important role. When we look at the average value of 1 kg of cargo carried in Turkey's foreign trade, it is seen that air transportation is the most expensive option. In contrast, sea freight offers a lower-cost alternative.
| Years and years | Road (import) | Road (export) | Airway (import) | Airline (export) | Sea route (Import) | Sea route (Export) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 4,59 $ | 1,76 $ | 184,65 $ | 21,10 $ | 0,63 $ | 1,02 $ |
| 2017 | 4,36 $ | 1,79 $ | 259,32 $ | 18,15 $ | 0,66 $ | 1,03 $ |
| 2018 | 4,27 $ | 1,80 $ | 253,14 $ | 13,10 $ | 0,68 $ | 1,07 $ |
| 2019 | 4,00 $ | 2,06 $ | 245,54 $ | 11,35 $ | 0,55 $ | 0,89 $ |
| 2020 | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| 2021 | – | |||||
| 2022 | – | |||||
| 2023 | – |
These data show that it would be more convenient to transport high-value products by air, and lower-value products by sea or road.
Preferred Modes in Foreign Trade Transports of Turkey
Between 2010 and 2019, it is seen that the most preferred type of transport in Turkey's foreign trade transports is the sea route. During this period, the share of maritime transport %He watched over 85.
| Years and years | the Sea Road | the Railway | the Black Road | the Air Way | Pipe and Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 85,6% | 0,8% | 12,5% | 0,3% | 0,8% |
| 2011 | 85,8% | 0,8% | 11,8% | 0,4% | 1,2% |
| 2012 | 87,0% | 0,6% | 10,6% | 0,4% | 1,4% |
| 2013 | 86,4% | 0,5% | 11,4% | 0,4% | 1,3% |
| 2014 | 86,2% | 0,4% | 11,2% | 0,5% | 1,7% |
| 2015 | 87,7% | 0,5% | 10,7% | 0,4% | 0,7% |
| 2016 | 88,0% | 0,5% | 10,8% | 0,3% | 0,4% |
| 2017 | 88,5% | 0,4% | 10,3% | 0,3% | 0,5% |
| 2018 | 88,7% | 0,4% | 10,3% | 0,4% | 0,2% |
| 2019 | 88,6% | 0,4% | 10,3% | 0,4% | 0,3% |
| 2020 | |||||
| 2021 | |||||
| 2022 | |||||
| 2023 |
These statistics show that the geographical location of Turkey is suitable for sea transportation. However, there has also been an increase in the share of road transport in recent years.
Basics of Road Transport
Road transport is the process of transporting an item, service or passenger between two points using road vehicles and equipment. There are four basic components of this type of transport:
- The presence of the goods, services or passengers to be transported
- Undertaking the transport business
- Performed for a certain fee
- Use of roads in the transport process
Geostrategic Position of Turkey
The geographical structure of Turkey, its socio-economic position, its role as a bridge between Western and Eastern civilizations and its location on transit transportation routes have made the country one of the important actors of the region, especially in road transportation.
Turkey, which has an area of approximately 776 thousand km2 between the continents of Asia, Europe and Africa, looks like a rectangular bridge with a length of 500 km from north to south and 1500 km from east to west. This geography, which has been home to many civilizations since prehistoric times, has also cradled various road networks. The Silk Road, Spice Road and King's Road are some of these important routes.
Since Turkey is located at the intersection of Europe, Asia and Africa, it is located on important corridors in terms of east-west axis transportation activities and international road routes. In addition to east-west axis road mobility, combined transportation activities where road and sea transportation are applied together are also carried out thanks to the ports in the Black Sea, Mediterranean and Aegean Sea.
Changes in Turkey's Foreign Trade Activities
Export-based economic growth policies implemented since the 1980s have led to a structural transformation in Turkey's foreign trade activities. In this period, the goods groups subject to foreign trade diversified and industrial products began to replace agricultural and mining products. The volume of goods transported also reached billions of dollars in a short time.
These structural changes in foreign trade have caused load types to change and shipments to take on a more flexible structure. This has led to the shift of some of the shipments from sea transport to road transport.
Development of Road Transport in Turkey
From the foundation of the Republic until the 1950s, the number of vehicles used on the road in Turkey was quite limited. Therefore, the investments were mainly focused on rail transport. Although the Road Liability Law was enacted in 1925 for road construction, the desired goals were not achieved. The main reason for this is the inadequacy of tools, equipment and equipment needed in road construction.
When it comes to the near term, the situation has changed. According to TURKSTAT data, the number of trucks, which was 257,000 in 1990, was approximately at the beginning of 2021. %It increased by 333 percent to 860 thousand. By 2020, road transport has become the dominant transportation system in Turkey.
Today, passenger transportation in domestic transportation ⁇ si, while freight transportation ⁇ u is carried out by land. The road length, which reached 387 thousand km as of the end of 2020, provides a very wide distribution network in the country. Approximately 23,000 km ⁇ of these roads are divided road, 67,000 km ⁇ is state-province road and 323,000 km ⁇ is village road.
Advantages of Road Transport
The presence of a more advanced infrastructure network compared to other types of transportation in the country allows all transportation to be carried out by road without transferring. Some of the K Advantages include:
- It has a flexible structure that allows the transportation of the product at the desired time and quantity, and provides access to more points compared to other transportation types
- The transportation of goods and passengers requires a lower investment cost than other types of transportation such as sea, air, railway and pipeline
- Regular and frequent transportation of goods and passengers
- Realization of road transportation at more affordable costs in favor of the customer in countries where competition is intense
- Reduced risk of loss and damage due to non-stop door-to-door transport (no handling of the item except at loading and unloading points)
- Freights that need to be delivered in a short time can be shipped quickly
- Ease of shipment planning and finding suitable flights thanks to high frequency of flights
- Flexible and fast transport of low-volume products over short and medium distances
- There is less need for terminals.
- Flexibility to load, unload and travel 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
- More efficient and economical over short distances
Disadvantages of Road Transport
Although it is a type of transport that has many advantages, there are also some disadvantages of road transport:
- With the increase in global competition, countries are trying to protect national transport companies and apply transition quota practices for this purpose
- High unit load carrying costs, especially over long distances
- Less amount of load that can be carried at one time
- Economic damage to carriers in case of non-compliance with weight restrictions
- High risk of accidents
- Leading to environmental pollution
- Risk of traffic density
- More land use and infrastructure needs
- Long transit times and high transit costs
- Inability to transport very heavy and bulky loads
- Prolonged customs clearance in transit
- Inability to make voyages due to lack or lack of load (especially return load)
Despite these disadvantages, road transport remains the most common type of transport in Turkey.
