While working on the project of building an electronic prime mover, Elon Musk postulated that, “if we drive down the transportation cost, we are destined to achieve greatness.” Whether it is international trade through the high seas or haulage networking amid countries through land, the imperativeness of transportation is pivotal for ripening success. In short, transportation is the life blood of an economic system and it is necessary for it to evolve over a period of time.
The transport network of Pakistan, specifically road transportation has dwindled to be in an agonizing sphere. Worsening status of transportation and haulage has plunged the country to bite the bullet. Consequently, Pakistan’s economy is in a sluggish trajectory that has innumerable negative implications. Geostrategic location of Pakistan synthesizes the country to have better economic prospects, but myriad of factors thwarts economic progress. Incidentally, abating economy of the country had negative implications upon the transport sector. Sordid collaborators and myopic initiative from both the public and private sector obliterate it. Gradually, the infrastructure of road transportation slowed-down the process of speedy tactics for hauling cargo with safety. As a result, it had an impact on the consumer industry of the country. On top of that, the depressed condition of the infrastructure adds insult to the injury. A dearth of development in infrastructure of the transport industry engenders difficulty, not only for the transporters but also for the manufacturers. Moreover, needless delays upset the apple cart for just in time production mechanism and there are hindrances in regulating this industry. Thus, a shrewd governmental mechanism is required that alleviates transport woes in the country for a propulsion in adequate economic activity.
A paucity of professionalism
The industry of transportation immensely lacks professional disposition to carry-out operations. In other words, there are less prospects that understands the importance of being professional in this field. Unlike the shipping industry, inland transportation of general and project cargo faces a challenge of having a proper process of handling procedures. For instance, the industry does not require a professional degree or diploma that ensures safe haulage; anyone can enter this industry and work while espousing sleazy techniques to earn more. To give an example, vendors usually load more weight on their trailers to procure abnormal profits. Hence, this is detrimental to the infrastructure spawning chances of fatal accidents. Furthermore, no availability of training programs for drivers and their employers artlessly amplifies chaos within the industry. Indeed, there are innumerable private owners working on professional lines, but that is only beneficial to their own organization. All in all, a lack of professionalism in the transport industry aggravates the condition of transport industry.
Depressed infrastructure
Economic growth and development are interdependent concepts. Abating economy directly influences developmental prospects. Pakistan has rarely experienced economic growth, summoning to destabilize ingredients for an adequate infrastructure. Indeed, an advanced infrastructure will bestow its blessings on the transporters and decrease the operational cost. To illustrate, vehicles require a consistent installation of tires. And decumbent condition of roads may upsurge this cost. The current road network is 260,000 km and there are 11 million vehicles of all sorts. Moreover, the road carries 96% of inland freight and 92% of passenger traffic. With these figures in view, Pakistan not only requires dexterous road infrastructure, a towering need for alternatives for freight movement is required. In a nutshell, development of infrastructure multiply the stumbling blocks for a swift and agile transport network.
Absence of an industry
The lackluster transport sector is a depiction of an inefficient and ineffective transport industry. A defined industry fashions the parameters around it. By this, myriad of aspects can be taken into consideration and ameliorate industrial condition. In short, an adequate industrial setting benefits all the stakeholders involved and collectively trailblazes growth. Unlike shipping, banking, or construction sector, the industry of transport is disintegrated and unable to function as a whole body. This spawns it to be spineless and incompetent. Consequently, the industry of transportation is incapable to face innumerable challenges. To give an instance, recent disagreements on the contention of weight limit on trailers delineates surging topsy turviness within the disunited industry. By and large, the transport sector of Pakistan has an absence of ingredients that optimizes it to become a proper industry, that can catalyze development.
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Areas of improvement in infrastructure
The transport industry of Pakistan is in profound exigency of developed infrastructure, professionalism and a regulated industry. Indeed, the Chinese Belt and Road initiative ripens myriad of benefits to the sector, but there are still elements that thwart progress of this industry. Pakistan has experienced a surge in infrastructural development with the incoming Chinese investments and collaboration of public-private partnership. Old roads and national highways have been extended and new motorways have been constructed. Although, there are still heightened challenges within the ambit of transportation ranging from governance to construction of the infrastructure. Gradual improvement in the infrastructure that can catalyze prospects for building enriched infrastructure. To sum up, the infrastructure development is a work under progress that still requires towering efforts for its betterment.
Shrewd prospects for professionalism
Not only infrastructural development will catalyze progress in the transport industry but espousing professional skills, ranging from managerial functions to operational management, will generate success and divulge the industry from lack of specialized clout. Professionalism requires consistency, skills, and experience. Presently, the transport sector only catches benefits by the blessings of experience. It is profoundly vulnerable in accumulating skills and that result in inconsistency. Establishing training organization as part of governmental program will dwindle such woes. Ergo, commingling aspects of professionalism with transport industry will be instrumental in synthesizing reimbursements for this sector.
The ministry of transportation at federal level
The domain of road transport is adjusted under the Ministry of Communication in Pakistan. Undoubtedly, road transportation is based on links and connectedness. But communication, as a matter of fact, is a commingling of myriad of components; encompassing them with a single commissioning can become problematic. To actualize, there is a heightened exigency of synthesizing a separate ministry of road transportation. This will bring into play a separate budgetary allocation possessing innumerable benefits. For instance, a new commissioning specified for this sector will channel the transportation woes into plausible and implementable solutions. Not only this but tax collection from the industry of transportation will become easier to regulate giving a whip-hand to the ministry and fashioning a possibility for clear oversight. Comparatively enough, the new transport ministry will delineate a system set by department of transportation in the United States. All in all, commissioning a dichotomic Ministry of Transportation at the federal level will espouse to alleviate present road transportation woes and propel the country into the trajectory of success.
Conclusion
To conclude, Pakistan is going through the animus of decumbent transport mechanism. This has plunged the country into the turbulent waters of worsening economy. A proper disposition to elevate this sector may also cultivate vanquishing economic results at large. There are myriad of stumbling-blocks that are connected to the present condition of transport industry. Which amalgamate to diverge it into three areas that require immediate and adequate response from the stakeholders that will gradually alleviate issues connected to road transportation. A dearth of professionalism, worsening condition of infrastructure and a chaotic industrial structure upsurges issues related to the sector in discussion. The Chinese Belt and Road initiative vanguards a potent prospect to ameliorate the transport sector of Pakistan. Nevertheless, the country is in aggrandized need to proliferate a separate ministry that can protect the stakeholders and alleviate transport despairs.