National transport by water and air are the primary alternatives to road and rail modes. Air transport is by aeroplane or helicopter flights, with passenger ferries and freight shipping by sea, or barges on river or canal waterways. But although there has been a great deal of excitement in the UK about reducing air travel, the proportion of domestic passenger miles by aeroplane or helicopter is actually only 1.2% of the annual total travelled. In practice more domestic freight is transported by air in Britain but this is still only 3.6% of the total in contrast to 8.5% by water – according to the latest DfT survey into the potential for increasing freight transport by water. This survey showed that 70% of respondent organisations had a “positive attitude towards water-freight transport as an environmentally-sustainable alternative to road”. In theory, 59% would choose water when considering the environment while 5% of respondents already use water as a transport mode because of environmental concerns.
The movement of containers, recyclable materials, waste and aggregates is hoped to be the main areas in which water may provide and alternative to roads. However, the biggest barrier for freight companies is “the speed of delivery” achievable by water and its effect on just-in-time practices.
This year’s figures show there were 42,413 thousand UK passenger trips (domestic) by all water modes according to the DfT’s maritime statistics. However, in practice, this pails in significance when compared to 4,972 million trips by bus or tram, 1,164 million by national rail, 1,040 million by London underground and 3 million by tramtram – as the latest DfT modal comparisons show. And in practice, 92% of all UK passenger trips are by road of which 86% are in private motor vehicles…