How did transportation advance in the industrial era and how did it impact the economy?
Introduction
Transportation, you use it, I use it, practically everyone uses it, but how did some of these creative inventions come to be? During the Industrial Revolution many advancements were made which saw an improvement in quality of life in many areas. One of these was transportation. Today we will be exploring the ways transport evolved throughout the Industrial Revolution and how those discoveries came to be. Keep in mind this presentation specifies in Britain’s findings in the industrial era.
What Part did roads play?
A crucial point for transport in Britain was the roads. At the beginning of the industrial revolution the roads were poorly kept and generally were not maintained despite a law which was passed in 1555 instructing locals to preserve the surrounding roads. The badly maintained roads caused flooding and slowed factory production down significantly, so something had to be done. By 1670 coal was the most important transported good with around 2 million tonnes of coal relocated around Britain each year. The most common way to transport it was by boat since it was cheaper and efficient. Transporting a tonne of coal over land would require at least 10 pack horses creating mass amounts of traffic making the method expensive and inefficient.
The time came when people started to realise that the road problem would remain so long as there was no profit involved. So many companies called “turnpike Trusts” were born, aiming to profit from the use of roads they had ownership of. The technique for gaining money was to charge those who wanted to use their roads. Unfortunately, the roads varied in quality to a large extent due to companies investing little in repairs and aiming to make the largest profit without having a quality road plan.
Several engineers created new road building techniques that were large successes. John Metcalf built convex roads, causing the water to flow to the edges which would usually result in a flood, but Metcalf, knowing this danger, included ditches and continued to be employed despite his blind condition. A more expensive alternative was found by Thomas Telford taking inspiration from the Romans. His technique was to spread several layers of rocks varying in size, thinking that the vehicles would assist the road by the stones gradually compacting the rocks, forming a successful road. Finally, a Scottish engineer by the name of John Macadam discovered an inexpensive method of building roads. The road would be smooth and have the centre 3 inches higher than the edges causing the water to flow to the edges and so long as there was a gradual slope there would be no flooding.
How did roads affect the economy?
The large number of roads benefitted large transport companies significantly, especially in the coal industry, allowing for mass transportation and higher efficiency. What was before a risky business that might result in loss of money, suddenly became a viable strategy to haul coal. At the time the textile industry was making large improvements and its production was soaring so the need for transport was higher than ever, but would the roads alone be enough to move all the goods?
What is a Canal and what purpose did it serve?
The need for coal was higher than ever and the roads were not doing their job well enough. Francis Egerton, the Duke of Bridgewater owned a large coal mine in Worsley. His main customer was the rapidly expanding town of Manchester. The roads between the two were just like many roads and were poorly maintained. In 1759 one of Bridgewater’s workers by the name of John Gilbert suggested that a canal be built between the provinces. It was a well-known fact that a horse could haul a more substantial load when over water, so the Duke took on the idea. He Hired James Brindley to create the canal and it was completed within an impressive 18 months. Before this time there was no industrial canals. The canal had such a large success that it inspired other companies to begin similar projects. The profit was so significant that soon canals were being built everywhere and Britain was thriving over the popularity of this new-found transport.
Canals increase in popularity when John fitch created and demonstrated the first steam-boat in 1787. The boat consisted of 12 paddles and used the recent and common invention known as the steam engine. The steam-boat saw improvements until the 1830s and became a method to transport people as well as heavy cargo.
How did canals affect the economy?
The introduction of canals dropped the prices of most goods substantially causing record pricing for coal and giving companies plentiful resources. Isolated companies could become mainstream, using the canals to their advantage. This promoted remote areas to have a higher quality of life causing people to move further out into the country due to cheap pricing especially to the west.
What was the origin of the railroad?
Railways were rising in use rapidly because of its success in reaching areas where canals could not at a smaller investment. The original method was to use horse-drawn wagons on iron rails. In 1803 Richard Trevithick created the world’s first steam railway locomotive. This was used widely for short distance travel. George Stephenson made major improvements to Trevithick’s design and created the high-pressure locomotive. This new and improved locomotive quickly rose to the top and railroads were built everywhere to harness the technology.
Locomotives were now hauling mass amounts of goods and this got the people thinking. If mass goods could be transported, then so could people. The introduction of public transport in the form of a railway was a huge success and the fees were not large allowing lower class citizens access to long distance travel at an affordable price. The railway industry was now making insane profit and showed no sign of stopping. Soon enough, railway companies were making higher revenue from passengers rather than freight. The passenger cars had different classes assigned to them. The higher-class cars had luxurious seats and were very spacious, the lower cars had normal seats and were frequently packed with people.
How did the railroads affect the economy?
Railroads provided an even cheaper alternative to canals and could reach more deserted areas at a lower expense. Railroads were easier to lay than canals to build so they became the dominant form of transportation. Their cheap price and high efficiency were so effective it helped Britain to thrive as well as other industries such as the social aspect- allowing low class citizens to travel far at a low price, the textiles- clothing could now be transported to a whole new extent allowing factories to up their production without the chance of excess supply, Food- could be transported and keep for longer and be more fresh and finally coal- The extremely high demanding resource needed everywhere at once having all customers satisfied having their delivery fast.
Conclusion
In conclusion the amount of advancement transportation made in the industrial is extremely significant- The roads going from rubble to smooth bitumen, The canals from a river or two to a whole complex system and finally the railroad. Starting with horse-drawn carriages and ending up with the high-pressure locomotive. The economy had never looked better and things were going very well for Britain.