How is tourism dependent on transport industry ?

In a vast country like India with extensive geographical diversity, fast and efficient means of transport is very essential to link various places. Tourism as an industry can only be developed if the time taken to cover the long distance is cut short to the minimum. In today’s fast moving life people have

less time, they want to visit more places in less time. A leisure tourist may have only a few weeks while the business tourist can afford to spend only a few days. At present tourists like to maximize the returns of their spendings by covering as many places as possible within the limited time frame work. Business delegates cherish sight seeing and visits to places of historical value at the end of their session.

The road transport plays an important role in short distance travel, but it is inadequately developed as compared to the increase in the number of tourists. The role of luxury coaches and rent-a-car system is virtually insignificant and has only a symbolic existence in and between certain metropolitan cities.

The service offered through this mode offered is lacking in comfort and choice and is thus an impediment in the growth of domestic as well as international tourist traffic. But still it is one of the major modes of transport for inland tourists and tourists visiting mountains and wild life sanctuaries.

The railways have advantages for the long distances between the length and breadth of the country for the tourist traffic. It provides the basic infrastructure for movement of tourists inland, but its popularity and utility for the foreign tourists is very little as they prefer the air transport which provides greatest speed and comfort.

The share of water ways both inland, coastal and overseas is negligible in tourist traffic. The rope ways also have a distinct advantage in hill ranges and rapid streams. Now a new mode of transport is also being developed in India and that is metro services.

Thus surface transport specially roads play an important role in tourism but it suffers from certain shortcomings. These are

• Road transport being stagnant is unable to play its full role in the promotion and growth of tourism.
• The rail system, on the other hand, though fairly extensive is suitable only in certain parts and in good condition in few parts.
• In modern time the short time at the disposal of the average tourist, rail travel is too slow to satisfy the needs of international tourists. The railways are trying hard to cope with these shortcomings.

The foreign tourists mostly prefer to travel by air as it saves time. Even after arriving in India they prefer air transport for their movements within the country because our road/coach systems are not so developed and they do not offer the necessary quality of service and choice. Thus transport plays an important role in the tourism of India.