STUDENTS' CORNER - 224

Roads constitute transport system and the system must be sustainable economically as well as environmentally. This is obvious though not so easy to adhere to it. No need to say, the roads must be safe, and easily accessible. Of course when highways projects are planned, the planning takes into account all these basic facts that roads must be accessible, safe and environmentally friendly and above all affordable. If any one of the four basics is missing, then, transport does not guarantee the benefits of transport. Inaccessible roads are waste of assets; unsafe roads pose threat to life; not affordable roads cost the country at the expense of other crucial projects. Unfriendly to environment brings in untold harm to the lives of the people.  So the basic four facts are well taken into consideration while executing transport system.

Roads must be maintained for economic benefits and to maintain, there must be a good efficient workforce with proper tools. The cost of maintenance varies depending on the length of the road network and the density of the traffic.  Naturally, they differ from country to country; in fact from one place to another within the country itself. Toll collection is one common tool for revenue generation to maintain the roads. Users pay is an accepted pattern of revenue generation.

Roads are assets to the nation and as assets, they require maintenance and management. It is a very complex thing and more importantly, the complexity of the fact keeps growing because it is directly related to the development of a nation’s economy.  Adequate people with efficient understanding of the issues involved in maintaining road assets,  adequate equipment, adequate funding  and above all adequately responsible use of the assets--- all these are required and no country, however developed, can be credited with all these adequate necessities.

One thing is very important to achieve all these adequate essentials: awareness of the people who use roads.  Countries have begun to attend to the projects that focus on creating public awareness towards responsible use of the roads as assets.  But awareness is again a complex psychological phenomenon.  You cannot think of, rather expect all the people manifesting required level of awareness in the use of roads. All one can do is one can be aware of the use of roads as assets and to the extent, the roads are maintained.

Incidentally, awareness teaches one how to use roads ill maintained.

We will move on to another subject in logistics in our next.