December 7, 2013 — Powered transportation like steamships, railway, cars and planes were first developed only 250 years ago and we would be completely lost without these modes of transport. Some major milestones include:
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- The first steamship built in the 1770s
- The first steam-powered train in 1798
- The modern car born in 1886
- The first powered flight in 1903
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Yet people did get around before modern transportation, albeit slower. They simply walked or rode on camels and horses. It wasn’t convenient, fast, reliable, safe or even comfortable. In most cases, you could only go 20 miles a day and carry a limited amount on your back or on the pack animal. But it was all that was available to get from one place to the next to trade goods or find food and water.
Something amazing happened starting in the late 1700s – with the invention and adoption of modern transportation. Standards of living of people around the world radically increased because for the first time trade was easier, safer, faster, more reliable and convenient. Goods could be shipped around the world and traded for other products.
Just as ships and trains could cover long distances in days instead of the months these trips took by camel or sail, by the mid-1900s, planes could cover the same distances in just a few hours. By the 1960s, aviation was the preferred way of getting across the US and abroad to Europe. Faster and faster planes carrying more and more people – for reasonable airfares – helped us to travel, explore and invest around the globe.
With each advancement in transportation technology, the standard of living for everyone around the world has increased dramatically. Supersonic transportation will have an equally astounding impact on the world. Flight times will be reduced by 50%, bringing the world much closer together and making destinations more accessible in a shorter amount of travel time.
What it also means is that investors can visit destinations that they wouldn’t have considered otherwise. Businesses can manage global operations better, and spend more time with their customers. Vacationers can take a weekend trip around the globe and be back in time for work on Monday morning.
This is truly an exciting time in the history of transportation.
