This paper examines the mounting pressures facing the global transportation industry as international commerce expands, peak oil approaches, and environmental sustainability requirements intensify. Through a review of peer-reviewed and scholarly literature, the paper surveys the state of the global transportation network, the promise and limitations of alternative energy sources such as hydrogen fuel cells and biomass, and the role of supply chain management innovations in improving logistical efficiency. It also addresses inequality concerns raised by critics of globalized trade, challenges in retrofitting maritime fleets, and the reciprocal relationship between transportation capacity and economic development in emerging economies such as China, India, and Brazil.
Innovations in telecommunications have contributed to an increase in global transportation needs as international commerce and business-related travel have grown significantly in recent years. At the same time, the need for environmentally sustainable energy alternatives has become especially pronounced as the current global transportation fleet is weaned from its fossil-fuel sources. Complicating matters further is the growing demand for consumer goods and services in emerging economic powerhouses such as China, India, Malaysia, and Brazil, which adds further pressure to global transportation requirements. In this environment, identifying current challenges to the global transportation industry represents a valuable and timely enterprise, which is discussed below, followed by a summary of the research and important findings in the conclusion.
The need for alternative fuel sources for the global transportation industry has never been greater. In response to this need, considerable progress has been made in recent years in researching and developing potential alternatives such as biomass, wind, solar, and hydrogen-based approaches (Nadeau, 2006), as well as in developing innovative supply chain management approaches that improve business logistics by reducing energy requirements and fossil fuel emissions (Coyle, Novack, Gibson & Bardi, 2011). These trends have forced companies competing in the global transportation industry to reevaluate their corporate strategies to account for the increasingly globalized marketplace. In this regard, Chan and McMillan (2007) report that "a global view of the link between logistics, transportation, trade, and corporate strategy suggests that global supply chains are now a corporate imperative for strategy making and seriously calls into question corporate strategies based on national or regional perspectives of the firm" (p. 37).
The benefits of an efficient global transportation network are multifold, but include what Zey (2001) terms "species coalescence" — a synergistic process comparable to a rising tide that raises all boats. According to Zey, "Mankind is accelerating species coalescence through the development of a global transportation grid, the universal communications network, and other mechanisms" (2001, p. 28).
Not all authorities agree that the increased trade attributable to the global transportation industry is producing comparable effects across the board. For instance, Held (2004) emphasizes that "a report by the United Nations found that inequalities between rich and poor within countries, and among countries, are quickly expanding, and that the global trading and finance system is one of the primary causes" (p. 96). Despite these divergent views, Chan and McMillan (2007) also note that "global trade and global logistics are realities" (p. 37), making the need for informed perspectives on the challenges facing the global transportation network all the more urgent.
Given its breadth and scope, the efficiency of the current global transportation system is an impressive reality. Branch (1999) emphasizes that although mistakes have been made in the past, the global transportation system today is truly a "wonder of the world": "The many components of the transportation system have been created, progressively improved separately, and integrated into a vast network operating successfully around the world. There have been mistakes, missed opportunities, and unnecessary delays, but the record of accomplishment is evident in the operational success of the system" (Branch, 1999, p. 37).
The increasing complexity of managing supply chains at the global level has introduced its own unique challenges in recent years, including the implementation and administration of electronic tracking systems capable of handling the hundreds of thousands of individual computer transactions that occur every day (Erwin, 2002). Fortunately, continuing innovations in telecommunications and computer processing have introduced more efficient methods for tracking the world's transportation fleets in real time, and elaborate, sophisticated networks have emerged that promise to deliver even greater operational efficiencies in the future (Hanley, 2003).
"Hydrogen fuel cells, emissions, and maritime constraints"
"Hull design, sails, routing, and renewable limitations"
The research showed that the global transportation industry is faced with increasing demands for services on the one hand during a period when it is being forced to improve operational efficiency on the other. In response to these needs, the research also showed that innovations in telecommunications and business logistics have facilitated the expansion and efficiency of the global transportation network in recent years, but a number of challenges remain firmly in place. The near-term responses to these challenges will clearly affect the ability of emerging economic juggernauts such as China, India, and Brazil to continue their developmental efforts — a reciprocal process that will continue to fuel the demand for global transportation well into the future.
You’re 63% through this paper. Sign up to read the remaining 2 sections.
Sign Up Now — Instant Access Already a member? Log inAlways verify citation format against your institution’s current style guide requirements.