Transportation in Nigeria – SS2 Geography Lesson Note (Second Term)

Transportation is the movement of people, goods and commodities from one place to another by land, water or air. In Nigeria, the main means are land transport (human portage, animal portage, road and rail), air transport and water transport. Each has advantages, disadvantages and limitations, and together they support the country’s economic development.

Behavioural objectives

By the end of the lesson, students should be able to:

• define transportation and name its main types;
• describe the three classes of roads in Nigeria and give examples;
• state the advantages, disadvantages and limitations of road, rail, air and water transport;
• suggest solutions to the problems of each type of transport;
• explain the contribution of transportation to the economic development of Nigeria.

What are the types of transportation?

There are three main types of transportation: land transport, air transport and water transport.

What is land transport?

Land transport is the movement of people and goods from one place to another by land. The means of land transport include:

• Human portage: the use of human legs for movement, i.e. trekking. It is applicable where the distance is not much.
• Animal portage: the use of animals like horses, donkeys and camels for movement. It is very common in the northern part of Nigeria.
• Road transport: the use of motor cars, buses, motorcycles, lorries and trucks for movement.
• Rail transport: the use of trains.

Road transport in Nigeria

What are the types of roads in Nigeria?

In Nigeria, there are three types of roads.

Advantages of road transport

• It is the most common means of transportation.
• It provides door-to-door services.
• It makes goods available where they are scarce.
• It feeds water, rail and air transportation.

Disadvantages of road transport

• Roads are very expensive to construct and maintain.
• Roads are difficult to construct, especially in the rainy season.
• The amount of goods and passengers carried by road is limited.
• Roads are more prone to accidents than any other means of transportation.
• They require adequate maintenance daily.

Limitations of road transport

• Presence of highlands and other rugged relief.
• Presence of swampy areas.
• Soil erosion caused by heavy rain.
• Lack of finance to construct and maintain the roads.

Solutions to the problems of road transport

• Roads should be constructed on lowlands, passes or gaps around mountain areas.
• Flyovers should be constructed in marshy areas.
• Bridges should be constructed across rivers.
• Funds should be provided for road maintenance.

What is rail transport?

Rail transport is transportation by rail, i.e. the use of trains. Nigeria uses mostly narrow gauge railway lines.

Advantages of rail transport

• It is the most convenient means of transporting bulky goods.
• It is cheap.
• It can move people and goods over a very long distance.
• It helps to open up new lands.

Disadvantages of rail transport

• It involves a high cost of construction and maintenance.
• It is slow, and therefore not suitable for transporting perishable goods.
• Constant stopping at each station and changing of passengers wastes a lot of time.
• It depends on roads to feed it with passengers.

Limitations of rail transport

• Rail transport is too slow.
• It has very low patronage and high competition with other forms of transport.
• Lack of spare parts, and narrow gauge with single tracks.
• Inadequate funding.
• Lack of technical know-how.

Solutions to the problems of rail transport

• A modern rail system with wide gauges and multiple tracks should be developed.
• People should be trained in rail maintenance.
• Rail transport should be properly funded.
• Spare parts should be made available.
• Railway fares should be cheap to attract passengers.

What is air transport?

Air transport is the movement of people, goods and services from one place to another by air. It involves the use of aeroplanes, helicopters, jets and rockets. There are two types of airports:

• International airports: airports where planes that fly outside the country can take off or land. E.g. Murtala Muhammed International Airport (Lagos), Abuja International Airport (Abuja), Port Harcourt International Airport (Port Harcourt).
• Domestic (local) airports: airports where planes that fly within the country, i.e. from one state to another, can take off or land.

Advantages of air transport

• It is the fastest means of transport.
• It uses a direct route.
• It can reach anywhere, provided there are landing facilities.
• Aeroplanes can cross mountains, dense forests and large oceans with ease and great speed.
• Urgently required medical supplies, machine parts, express mail, etc. are easily dispatched by aeroplane.

Disadvantages of air transport

• It is expensive to operate and maintain, especially the aircraft and airport facilities.
• It is very expensive (the most expensive).
• It is easily affected by bad weather, which makes visibility very poor.
• There is a problem of safety, as plane crashes and hijackings are becoming very common.

Limitations of air transport

• There is limited capital to construct an airport.
• There is a problem of inadequate spare parts.
• Weather hazards.
• There is a problem of low patronage due to its expensive nature.
• There is also the problem of poor management and inadequate security.

Solutions to the problems of air transport

• Loans should be sourced for the proper maintenance of airports and aeroplanes.
• Spare parts should be procured.
• Efficient management should be adopted.

What is water transport?

Water transport is the movement of people, goods and services by water. It is divided into two parts:

• Ocean navigation: transportation by water between Nigeria and other countries using the oceans, especially along the coastline.
• Inland water navigation: navigation along the creeks, lakes, lagoons and rivers in Nigeria.

Advantages of water transport

• It is the cheapest means of transport between countries.
• The ocean is free for all nations to use.
• It is used to move bulky goods from one country to another during international trade.
• The cost of construction and maintenance is low and only restricted to ships and ports.
• It is good for transporting goods over a long distance.
• It is relatively safe.

Disadvantages of water transport

• It is the slowest means of transportation when compared to air and land transport.
• The cost of acquiring a ship is very high.
• The cost of ship parts, construction and maintenance is high.
• Lack of technical know-how.

Limitations of water transport

• Presence of waterfalls, rapids and cataracts limits the use of rivers.
• Presence of floating vegetation.
• It is only useful in countries with coastlines and ports, unlike landlocked countries with no oceans or seas.
• Seasonality of most rivers is a problem.
• Shallowness of most rivers is also a problem.
• There is also the problem of sea sickness.
• Limited capital to construct seaports.

Solutions to the problems of water transport

• Rivers should be dredged regularly.
• Loans should be granted to construct and maintain seaports.
• Medical facilities on board should be improved.
• Canals should be constructed to bypass waterfalls and cataracts.

How does transportation contribute to the economic development of Nigeria?

1. Movement of goods and services.
2. Movement of people.
3. Specific purposes, e.g. air transport can be used for surveys.
4. National and international trade.
5. Opening up of new land or areas.
6. National integration.
7. Development of tourism.
8. Employment.
9. Generation of revenue.

What are the problems of transportation?

Physical factors

• Presence of highlands
• Distance, i.e. long distance
• Presence of marshy areas
• Presence of many rivers
• Soil erosion
• Poor visibility

Human factors

• Lack of capital
• Lack of technical know-how
• Low patronage
• Bad roads

Evaluation

1. Define transportation.
2. Name the three types of roads in Nigeria and state who constructs and maintains each.
3. State four advantages of rail transport.
4. Mention three limitations of water transport and suggest a solution to each.
5. List five ways in which transportation contributes to the economic development of Nigeria.

Assignment

On an outline map of Nigeria, locate and name (i) two international airports and (ii) two domestic airports.