Essay On Transport Routes

If all commercial goods are taken into account it becomes clear that there is a relatively small number of principal transport routes, and these pass through only a few areas of the oceans. The busiest are the approaches to the ports of Europe and East Asia, particularly Japan but also Shanghai, Singapore and Hong Kong, and the United States. The East Coast of the United States in particular is a major sender and receiver of cargo. Narrow straits further concentrate maritime traffic. Bottlenecks include the Straits of Dover, Gibraltar, Malacca, Lombok and Hormuz, and the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa. Traffic builds up in these areas, making vessels vulnerable to attack by pirates. See the charts of the global shipping routes

Iron ore is transported over long distances in very large vessels, mainly from Brazil to Western Europe and Japan, and from Australia to Japan. The most important coal routes are from the major export countries of Australia and South Africa to Western Europe and Japan and also from Colombia and the East Coast of the United States to Western Europe, as well as from Indonesia and the West Coast of the United States to Japan.

Most of the coal transported is utilized as steam coal to generate electricity in power stations. A third is used as coking coal for smelting in the iron and steel industry.

Dry bulk goods also include grain and oil-bearing seeds (wheat, barley, rye, oats, sorghum and soya beans). Here however, the quantities and direction of transport routes fluctuate much more than other vital commodities depending on harvest seasons and yields. The USA, Canada, Argentina, Australia and France are the major grain exporters. Africa and East Asia are major importers due to frequent local shortages. Although the main grain producers (the United States, Russia, China and India) retain most or even all of their production in their own country, what remains for global trade is still enough to include grain among the bulk