Advantages and Disadvantages of Road Transport in India

Advantages and Disadvantages of Road Transport in India are as follows!

Advantages of Road Transport:

1. Less Investment:

Roads need less capital than the railways. Laying of railway line needs much capital than road. So it is cheaper.

2. Door to Door Service:

Railways have the drawback that they cannot go to each village while road transport provides door to door service. So it is more beneficial.

3. Flexibility in Service:

Unlike railways, the road transport provides flexible service to men and materials.

4. Employment:

Road transport provides emplo3mient to many persons directly and indirectly.

5. Useful for Small Distances:

While railways are useful in long distances, road transport is useful in small distances.

6. Complementary to Rail Transport:

Road transport is helpful to rail transport. People reach railway station taking the help of road transport so it provides feeder service to rail transport.

7. Personal Service:

Rail transport is managed by Govt. alone while road transport has private and public carriers. So there is completion in road transport. Even people have their own vehicles. So it is also a kind of personal service.

8. Helpful in Production of Perishable Goods:

Road transport is helpful in production of perishable goods as it facilitates the distribution of perishable goods from point of production to point of consumption.

9. Beneficial to Industries:

Industries which are situated away from railway links, the road transport helps them a lot. It facilitates the mobility of men and materials for these industries.

Disadvantages of Road Transport:

The following are the disadvantages of road transport system:

1. Frequent Accidents:

Road transport system is dotted with frequent accidents. According to an estimate, there are large number of deaths due to road accidents. So it is not safer mode of transport.

2. Inadequate Roads:

Most of the roads are in bad shape and are inadequate. There are only 34 km long roads per 100 sq. km area in India while in Japan 270 km roads per 100 sq. km.

3. Heavy Taxes:

There is heavy tax burden on motor transport in India. Tax burden per motor vehicle in India is Rs. 3500 while in America it is Rs. 860.

4. Poor Maintenance of Roads:

Roads are not maintained properly in India. Less than 0.1 percent of national income is spent on the maintenance of roads in India, while in Japan it is 3 percent of the national income.

5. Rising Cost of Petrol and Diesel:

Due to high prices of petroleum products and diesel, operational costs of road transport are rising and making the mode of transport more costlier.

6. Unsuitable for Long Distances and Bulky Goods:

Road transport is unsuitable for long distances as it is uncomfortable as compared to railways. It is also not suitable for bulky goods.