Transportation is largely regarded as the gateway to the economy thereby, it is pertinent for government to ensure that arrangement are put in place for the gateway to the economy to strive, propose several ways in which the government can use to achieve this

 The transportation industry is a critical hub for economic growth, with improvements in infrastructure boosting commerce and accelerating global investment opportunities aimed at boosting the economy, it's the process of collecting, assembling, moving and distributing commodities, services, and people moving from one area to another in a timely, safe, and secure manner, the sector is described as critical to national growth.

Transportation plays an important role in today's economy and society and has a large impact on growth and employment. The transport industry directly employs around 10 million people and accounts for about 5% of gross domestic product (GDP). Rail transportation, river transportation, air transportation, and road transportation are all part of the transportation sector.

Various ways which government can explore to stimulate the economy through transportation sector are; 

Planning:

Transportation must be coordinated in order to be efficient and provide the greatest advantage. There is a requirement to integrate all types of transportation. There must be multimodal integration; the water must be connected to the road, and the road must be appropriately connected to the train. This is necessary to make goods available to the final consumer on time. i.e no forms of delay in form of the transportation system.  

Modern Technology Innovation & Workshop:

The sector lacks an effective structure with modern regulations, technology, and staffs with the necessary skills and knowledge to effectively manage present difficulties and plan for the future. Government should invest more in technologies e.g CCTV Camera, Country/State transportation layout (stored on Google Earth) that can enhance the operation effectively and conduct time to time workshop training for its staffs.

Giving Public Transport Priority:

The efficiency of public transport could be largely improved by giving priority to buses, trains, and other public vehicles on the road. This can be achieved through the implementation of more public bus lanes, also known as ‘queue jump’ lanes. These lanes are separated from the rest of the road, usually by a thick white line, and can help to improve the reliability and safety of buses. One of the main restrictions of public transport is the strict timetable that vehicles try to adhere to even when there is unpredictably high traffic on the road. The implementation of bus lanes removes this variable and allows more buses to stick to their schedule meaning more people will be likely to trust and use public transport to get them where they need to be on time. These priority lanes can also help to reduce general road congestion, especially if they can be used by motorists outside of operating hours.

Decarbonization Strategy:

The ETP proposes the reduction of transport emissions by switching to low-emissions transport technology and mode-shifting. The focus of the ETP analysis is on passenger vehicles which accounted for 72% of transport emissions in 2020. Additional emissions reduction is obtainable through mode-shifting from gasoline/diesel and hybrid vehicles to electric buses/2-3 wheelers. There is opportunity for bio-fuel blending to serve as an interim decarbonization measure in the transition to an electric-based system. Electric vehicles are considered only realistic post-2030 therefore, in the interim, bio-fuels can help decarbonizes the sector.

Conclusively, after mentioning ways which government can explore to make transportation sector part of major sectors contributing to the growth of the economy, its pertinent to implement the ideas stated above.

WRITTEN BY: Adewale Damilola Samuel

State Code:  OS/23A/0164