Road transport is an integral part of the tourism system. Used to move both goods and people, road transport is essential to everyday life, the economy and the tourism industry. But why exactly is it so important?
This article gives an overview of the road transport industry and its place within the wider transport sector, before explaining the importance of road transport and its negative impacts.
What is road transportation?
Put simply, road transport is the movement of people or goods via road.
Many countries require licences and safety regulations for road transportation, and road networks are a great way of linking different areas.
The importance of road transport is huge. It is a vital way of connecting people, and moving goods.
The history of roads
Roads have existed as long as humanity has.
In the early days, humans carrying goods from A to B created earth tracks. Where there was heavy traffic (more people walking between certain points) these tracks became more defined.
These were, in essence, the first roads.
Trade increased and animals such as donkeys, horses and oxen were domesticated to carry goods, so these tracks were widened to allow for animal traffic.
In the 4th or 5th millennium BC, wheeled vehicles drawn by animals were introduced.
Historians have found that they were most likely developed in the Ancient Near East at this time, spreading to Europe and India shortly after and to China a while later.
Wheeled transport meant that wider (and better) roads were needed. Some of the earliest paved streets have been found in Ur, a Sumerian city-state in ancient Mesopotamia, dating back several thousand years BC.
In the UK, the Sweet Track in the Somerset Levels – a timber walkway built across marshland around 3800 BC – is one of the oldest known engineered trackways in Europe.
Around the same time, brick-paved roads were built in the Indus Valley Civilisation.
With the creation of the Roman Empire, even better roads were required.
The Romans needed roads that weren’t constantly muddy so that their armies and traders could move quickly and safely.
They replaced the existing roads with new and improved ones, introducing the use of deep roadbeds. These were made of crushed stone and this bottom layer meant that water could flow through when it rained rather than turning to mud and slowing the armies down.
Some of these original Roman roads are still used today!
Roman road designs were used elsewhere too. They were also adapted; additional layers were used to stop the dust and drag from wheels and, in the 8th century, the first tar-paved roads were created in Baghdad, Iraq.
In England, the first turnpike (toll road) legislation was passed in 1663, and turnpike trusts later improved many of the country’s main roads.
Generally, roads were (and are) better in cities than they are in suburban or countryside areas.
Types of road transport
There are many types of road transport. Just like there are different types of tourism organisations, there are different types of transport.
From private transportation such as cars, bicycles and motorbikes to public transport such as buses and coaches, there are many different ways to travel via road.
Private transportation
Around three-quarters of households in England have access to at least one car, according to the Department for Transport’s National Travel Survey.
Because many car-owning households include several people, a large majority of the population has access to a car.
This allows for freedom and independence when it comes to accessing schools, shops, leisure facilities, medical centres and more.
The same goes for bicycles, scooters and motorbikes. The freedom they allow should not be underestimated, which highlights the importance of road transport.
Taxis and ride-hailing services such as Uber fall in the middle of private and public transport – essentially they are cars, so they are technically a form of private transport. They allow for private booking, so you can get from A to B if you do not own a car, or if you do not want to drive to/from a particular place.
Public transport
Buses are the most popular form of public road transport.
Bus services in Great Britain outside London were deregulated in 1986 following the Transport Act 1985, meaning that most are run commercially by private operators. However, this is changing: Greater Manchester brought its buses back under public control through franchising in its Bee Network, and the Bus Services Act 2025 gives all local transport authorities in England the power to do the same. In the USA, most city buses are run by publicly funded transit agencies.
Running on a timetable, buses allow for citizens to travel within towns and nearby cities. This means that people who do not have access to a car can easily connect with areas outside of their immediate vicinity, and it is often more affordable to do so.
Public transport reduces congestion, and bus lanes help buses to avoid traffic and keep to their timetables.
Coaches are another form of public transportation.
Coaches are similar to buses but tend to be reserved for either hired local travel (such as school trips) or for long-distance travel between major cities. Coach travel is often much more affordable than train travel, and operators such as National Express and FlixBus run extensive networks across the UK and Europe.
The importance of road transport
Road transport is important for so many reasons.
Roads are a primary method of transportation, used daily all around the world to transport people and cargo.
There are different types of roads for different needs, and each plays an important part in general transportation.
The importance of road transportation comes from the ease with which roads allow people to get from one place to another for a variety of purposes.
Roads make a huge contribution to economic development, and bring important social benefits too.
Roads allow people to travel for employment and leisure purposes – commuting to their job, visiting friends or accessing a town or city for shopping, eating out, and other entertainment. This has positive economic and social impacts.
Without roads, movement of people would be much more difficult. It is difficult for a nation to grow and develop without roads. They take children to school, they transport produce, they allow for easy movement between different areas which is important in terms of widening culture and more.
The use of roads in transporting goods
The importance of road transport is significant when it comes to transporting goods.
Whether it’s moving produce from farms to supermarkets, or delivering online shopping orders, roads are incredibly important.
Fast food can be delivered via roads, and haulage companies use trucks to transport goods between warehouses and shops.
If there were no roads, and therefore nowhere for trucks and vans to travel, it would take much longer for products to get from A to B.
In the era of instant (or near-instant) gratification, it is vital to be able to quickly and easily transport goods.
The use of roads in transporting people
When it comes to people, the importance of road transport should not be underestimated.
Road networks allow people to move freely between different areas. People who live in more remote areas, such as farms or in the countryside, are able to access towns and cities.
This is important as it allows them to trade, work and enjoy entertainment.
The economic and social impact of roads on society is huge.
Roads allow children to access schools and therefore become well-educated, and they allow sick people to access medical care.
The list is endless, and roads truly do provide an important infrastructure in terms of local and world economy.
Roads allow for inter-city travel. For example, you can travel by coach to and from different cities, for cultural gain and also for leisure.
A staycation in one’s home country is likely to involve road transport.
Road trips are also a popular form of tourism in their own right, from Route 66 in the USA to the North Coast 500 in Scotland and the Great Ocean Road in Australia.
But even to travel further afield, roads are vitally important. To access train stations, ferry terminals and airports, most travellers must first travel by road.
Roads ensure that people are not isolated and, to an extent, have freedom of movement.
The negatives of road transport
As with any system, there are also negatives. The importance of road transport is huge, but roads do come with problems.
Roads can be harmful to the environment. They cut through wildlife habitats and act as physical barriers, fragmenting the territories of animals that need large areas to roam. Roads also cause many wildlife deaths through collisions with vehicles.
In the Amazon rainforest, for example, roads – many of them built illegally – are one of the main drivers of deforestation. Research has found that the vast majority of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon takes place within a few kilometres of a road. This can be devastating for wildlife and the ecosystem.
Roads also indirectly cause pollution.
The more roads there are, the more cars and other types of road transportation that are in use at any one time.
This is harmful to public health and the environment. Road transport is a major source of air pollution and of greenhouse gas emissions; in the UK, domestic transport is the largest emitting sector, and cars account for the largest share. The shift to electric vehicles is helping to reduce tailpipe emissions, although congestion and pollution from tyres and brakes remain.
Road transport also causes accidents. According to the World Health Organization, around 1.19 million people die in road traffic crashes each year, and road traffic injuries are the leading cause of death for children and young people aged 5-29.
So while the importance of road transport cannot be ignored, it is necessary to consider the negative impacts of road transportation too.
The importance of road transport: To conclude
There are many reasons why road transport is so important. Both within the tourism industry and in everyday life, roads provide the freedom and access people need for work, education, healthcare, leisure and travel. Good road infrastructure helps to maximise social and economic opportunities, although its environmental and safety impacts must also be managed.
Road transport: FAQs
Below are answers to some of the most common questions about road transport.
What is road transport?
Road transport is the movement of people or goods by road, using vehicles such as cars, buses, coaches, lorries, motorbikes and bicycles.
Why is road transport important?
Road transport connects people to work, education, healthcare and leisure, moves goods from producers to consumers and supports tourism by linking destinations, airports, ports and stations.
What are the types of road transport?
Road transport includes private transport such as cars, motorbikes and bicycles, public transport such as buses and coaches, taxis and ride-hailing, and freight transport such as lorries and vans.
What are the disadvantages of road transport?
Disadvantages include air pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, congestion, habitat loss and fragmentation, and road traffic accidents, which kill around 1.19 million people a year worldwide.
How is road transport used in tourism?
Tourists use roads for staycations, road trips, coach tours, car hire, airport transfers and travel to stations and ports, making road transport a key part of the tourism system.
Further reading
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- The relationship between transport and tourism
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- Types of air transport
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