Transport

 

Welcome to the Transport Eco-topic. Below the Transport facts you will find information on:

• Why Transport is an Eco-topic?
• Transportation (from bikes to aeroplanes)
• What You Can Do 

 

 

Why is Transport and Eco-topic?

 

Transport is something that is a part of our everyday lives. There are many different forms of transportation that we can use to travel over land, through air or through water.

 

The way we travel and the distances we travel in Scotland and throughout the world, has changed dramatically over the years. In the past and in some parts of the world the main vehicle for transport was and is the human legs. Our legs can take us phenomenal distances and walking not only keeps us fit and healthy but it also has very little impact on the environment. More and more people are driving cars for even short distances but this is damaging to the environment.

 

 

 

 

 

(From: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Transport-Travel)

 

Road traffic and aviation are the fastest growing sources of the main greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide. Many pupils are driven to school for a variety of reasons but it would be better for you and the environment if you are able to walk or cycle to school. If you choose the Transport Eco-topic you can create a School Travel Plan. You can learn about how pupils at your school travel to and from school and can work on walking and cycling routes. There is a Dumfries and Galloway School Travel Plan Coordinator to help you.

  

The issue of transport will only become more important as you grow up and it is useful to learn about it now. You might come up with a brilliant invention one day that makes travelling cleaner. Or you may decide to buy a bike instead of a car and start saving the world everyday.

 

Transportation

 

 

 

Here we have a look at a variety of modes of Transport. If you choose the Transport Eco-topic you may learn about some of these vehicles.

 

 

The Bicycle

 

The bicycle was invented by a local Scotsman, Kirkpatrick Macmillian (1812 – 1878) in 1840. Kirkpartrick Macmillian was a blacksmith from Kier Mill, near Thornhill in Dumfries and Galloway. He never patented his idea and was widely copied without receiving much recognition for his creation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Story goes…

 

 

 

“He rode his cumbersome machine 68 miles over rough roads from his tiny smithy home (still intact today at Kier Mill) to Glasgow, visiting his two brothers in the city. In June 1842 the inventor was fined 5 Scots shillings for speeding at 8 mph into the Gorbals in Glasgow and knocking down a little girl in the crush that awaited this 'Devil on Wheels'. The magistrate at the Gorbals Public Bar was sufficiently impressed to ask Macmillan for a figure-of-eight demonstration in the courtyard, and is said to have slipped him the money for the fine.”  

(From: http://www.webscot.co.uk/greatscots/kirkpatrickmacmillan.htm)  

  

The Car

 

 

 

 

The cars that we know today, were not invented in a single day by a single inventor. The invention of cars has been a long process. It is estimated that over 100,000 patented inventions are involved in the modern car. Cars in the past were powered by steam engines, electricity was trialed but found inconvenient and now petrol or diesel engines are widely used.

 

One hundred years ago, most of the essential features that you need to make a car were in use. The big difference between then and now is the number of cars on the road. Very, very few people had a car one hundred years ago, only those families who were extremely rich. Slowly cars have become more affordable for more people and today our roads are getting very busy. There are around 500,000,000 (five hundred million) cars in the world and this number is increasing as people in developing countries rather like them too.

 

 

Nowadays car ownership and usage is widespread in Scotland and more people travel by car than any other mode of transport. The graph below shows that overall each person in Scotland travels over 7,000 miles in a year and most of that distance is travelled by car.

 

 

 

 

(From: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Statistics/Browse/Transport-Travel)

  

Boats

 

 

Travelling by water is a very old practice. Humans throughout history have built their homes near to water. Dumfries, Kirkcudbright and Stranraer are good examples of this. As long ago as 3000BC, both of the earliest known civilisations, the Egyptian and the Mesopotamian people, used boats to travel along the Nile, Euphrates and Tigris rivers. Scottish people have used boats to travel around the world. On the other hand, Scotland has been invaded by those like the Romans and the Vikings, who came by boat. Boats and ships are commonly used to transport products, to transport people and for recreation.

 

Until the mid 19^th Century all boats were made from natural materials, wood being the most common. It was around this time that the wood in Scotland, the UK and Europe was running low and steel was available because of the industrial revolution. Our modern large boats and ships are made from metal. Some boats, mainly used for recreation, are now made from fibreglass or plastic. Boats can be propelled by human power, wind power and motor power. All of these methods are still in use today.

 

 

 

Although transport by boat can mean more people or produce can be moved using less fuel than aeroplanes demand, there are some disadvantages. There have been some terrible environmental disasters with water transport. You may have heard about oil slicks where large oil tankers have had an accident. One litre of oil will pollute one million (100,000,000) litres of sea-water and can harm or kill wildlife.

 

 

The Train

 

 

The train is another mode of transport used by the public and by industry. A train is a rail vehicle that moves along tracks and is confined to their route. Through the mid-20^th century, the steam engine was the popular form of train power. Now trains are powered by electricity or diesel engines. Trains are used to transport goods and are relatively economical compared to road transport as many lorry loads can be taken on the one train. They can also carry many passengers in each carriage and therefore reduce the number of cars in use which is good. Have a look at the variety of trains in different countries below:

  

A British Rail Class 153 DMU

 

An electric Transperth train, Australia

 

 

 

 

  

An SP freight train, Chicago

  

Japanese Shinkansen 500 series (High-speed rail)

 

 

 

 

(From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trains)

 

 

Aeroplanes 

 

 

 

The aeroplane, like the other forms of transport mentioned, is a rather amazing invention. Aeroplanes are used for the transportation of people and products all over the world. Unlike cars and trains, they are not attached to a track but they do follow a path through the air. Aeroplanes are however, the biggest pollutants of our vehicles. Not only is the noise of aeroplanes significant, aeroplanes produce a lot of air pollution. Aviation is actually the fastest growing source of greenhouse gases. The pollution from aeroplanes has been exaggerated because of the cheap cost of flights that has allowed many people to travel by air.

 

The jet-powered Airbus will enter service in 2007 becoming the world's largest commercial airline airliner.

  

A collection of NASA test aircraft

(From:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aircraft)

 

 

 

  

What Can You Do?

 

 

 

Here are some ideas for action that your school may like to take. Can you think of other ideas?

 

• A School Travel Plan is a good place to start. This can change the way you travel to school where change is possible. It might include getting bike racks at your school, improving the signposts around the school or introducing a car-sharing scheme for parents.

    

• Organise a ‘Walk to School Week’. You could also investigate a ‘Walking Bus Scheme’. This would involve having willing parents to accompany pupils to and from school.

    

• Create posters to get the message out to pupils and visitors to the school.

    

• Find out about the air pollution where you live.

    

• Contact the School Travel Plans Coordinator: 

          Fiona Lessels

School Travel Plan Co-ordinator

Infrastructure and Transportation

Militia House

English Street

Dumfries

DG1 2HR

 

01387 260135

fiona.lessels@dumgal.gov.uk