Please refer to below Exam Question for Class 12 Geography Chapter 8 Transport and Communication. These questions and answers have been prepared by expert Class 12 Geography teachers based on the latest NCERT Book for Class 12 Geography and examination guidelines issued by CBSE, NCERT, and KVS. We have provided Class 12 Geography exam questions for all chapters in your textbooks. You will be able to easily learn problems and solutions which are expected to come in the upcoming class tests and exams for standard 10th.

Chapter 8 Transport and Communication Class 12 Geography Exam Question

All questions and answers provided below for Exam Question Class 12 Geography Chapter 8 Transport and Communication are very important and should be revised daily.

Short Answer Type Questions

Question. Why is Rhine the world’s most heavily used waterway? Explain any three reasons. 
Or ‘The Rhine waterways is the world’s most heavily used inland waterway’. In the light of this statement, examine the significance of waterway.
Answer. The reasons for the Rhine to be the world’s most heavily used waterway are
(i) The river Rhine is navigable for 700 km from Rotterdam in Netherlands to Basel in Switzerland.It flows through a rich coalfield which has made the whole region a prosperous manufacturing area.
(ii) The waterway links the industrial areas of Germany,France, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands with North Atlantic sea routes.
(iii) The Ruhr river joins the Rhine from its East. There is movement of huge volumes of freight to the South of Ruhr river. More than 20,000 ships and 20,00,000 inland vessels exchange their cargoes annually in this region.

Question. Mention the three major regions of the world which have a very dense network of railways.
Answer. Three major regions of the world having a very dense
network of railways are
(i) North America It accounts for 40 per cent of the world’s total railway network. The densest rail networks are present in the highly industrialised and urbanised region of East Central USA and adjoining Canada.
(ii) Europe There are about 4,40,000 km of railways in Europe. London, Paris, Brussels, Milan, Berlin and Warsaw are some of important rail headquarters.
(iii) Asia The rail network is dense in the thickly populated areas of Japan, China and India.

Question. Air transport has brought about a connectivity revolution in the world. Explain this statement.
Answer. Air transport has brought a connectivity revolution in the world in the following ways.
– More than 250 commercial airlines offer transport services throughout the world.
– The areas which were previously inaccessible due to difficult terrain and harsh climate can now be accessed easily by air transport services. For example,the airplanes supply various items of common use to the Eskimos living in regions where the ground is permanently frozen and roads and railways cannot reach there.
– The areas in mountain regions, which become inaccessible due to landslide and avalanches can be reached by air transport.
– The travelling time has reduced from months to days and hours. With new developments such as supersonic aircrafts, the distance between places is reduce greatly like between London and New York.

Question. Discuss briefly the North Atlantic Sea Route and the South Atlantic Sea Route.
Answer. The North Atlantic Sea Route connects the two industrially developed regions of the world which are North-Eastern
USA and North-Western Europe. It accounts for one-fourth of world’s foreign trade. It is the busiest route in the world. The other name of this route is Big Trunk Route.This route has highly advanced ports and harbour facilities.The South Atlantic Sea Route links West European and West African countries with Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay in South America. There is limited development and population in South America and Africa. Hence, there is little traffic on this route. The traffic is very low on the route between Rio de Janeiro and Cape Town.

Question. Write briefly about inter-continental air routes.
Answer. Inter-continental air routes are the routes that connect different parts of the world by air routes. A distinct East-West belt of inter-continental air routes is found in
the Northern Hemisphere. Eastern USA, Western Europe and South-East Asia have a dense network of air routes. USA accounts for almost 60 per cent of the
airways of the world.
These air routes are important for transporting goods and passengers between two continents. It has reduced the travel time and improved trade, commerce as well as relations between various countries in the world.The important nodal points where air routes converge or radiate to all continents are New York, London,Paris, Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Rome, Moscow, Karachi,New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangkok, Singapore, Tokyo, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Chicago.

Question. Mention the famous oil pipeline of the USA. How are pipelines one of the most convenient modes of transport?
Answer. Big Inch is the famous pipeline in USA among a dense network of oil pipelineswhich run fromthe oil producing areas to consuming areas. It carries petroleum from the oil wells of the Gulf of Mexico to the North-Eastern states.
Pipelines are one of the most convenient modes of transport in the following ways.
– They are used extensively to transport liquids and gases such as water, petroleum, oil and natural gas.
– They can carry liquid and gaseous materials for long distances without any interruption or delays.
– The pipelines directly link the producing areas to the consuming areas.

Question. In modern times, communication has become specialised. Explain.
Ans It is true that Communication has become specialised in modern times as earlier people majorly used transport system not only for movement of goods and people but also to send their messages through men. Communication system was not much developed in that period.Gradually, communication developed and use of different means came into existence, like telegraphs, pagers, telephones, etc. In modern times, new forms of communication like mobile phones, satellite communication, internet, television, radio have been developed which have enhanced the connectivity and brought people more closer to each other. These specialised and modern communication systems have globalised the world.

Question. Describe any three major problems of road transport in the world.
Answer. Major problems of road transport in the world are
(i) During rainy days, the roads which are unmetalled are damaged seriously. Even unmetalled roads are washed away by floods, which results in breaking up the road network.
(ii) The road transport system records heavy traffic.When roads cannot cope up with the demands of traffic on the road, roads are heavily congested.
(iii) Huge amounts of money is required for construction and maintenance of roads which affects the quality of roads, mainly in developing countries. Road networks of the world are not fully developed.

Long Answer Type Questions

Question. State any three characteristics of water transport. Why is traffic far less on the South Atlantic sea route? 
Answer. Three characteristics of water transport are
(i) Water transportation does not require route construction. The oceans are linked with each other and offer smooth routes travelable in all directions with less maintenance costs.
(ii) It is cheaper means of transportation because the friction of water is less than that of the land and energy cost is lower.
(iii) Very heavy cargo like coal, cement, timber and metallic ores can be transported through inland waterways.
The reasons for less traffic on South Atlantic Sea route are
(i) The population is very less in South America and Africa. There is less development in the countries of South America as well as Africa. Due to this, the demand in these regions is very less and trade is very low.
(ii) Both South America and Africa have similar products and resources. Due to this, the trade declines as trade of similar products is not economically feasible.
(iii) There are very few industrial regions in both the continents. Only parts of South Africa and South-Eastern Brazil and Plata Estuary have industrial regions. This leads to lesser trade between these regions and tesser traffic on the South Atlantic Sea route.

Question. Describe the journey of development of land transport from the days of humans as carriers and the cable ways of today. 
Answer. There is a significant development of land transport from the days of humans as carriers to the cable ways of today. In older days, human and animals were important carriers. For example, Palanquin (palki/doli) was used to carry brides by four persons (Kahars in North India).
Later, animals were used as means of transport. For example, mules, horses, camels, oxen, etc were used in rural areas.With the invention of the wheel, the use of carts and wagons became important.
The 18th century marks the revolution in transport which came about only after the invention of the steam engine. In the 19th century, railways became the most popular and fastest form of transport with the opening of the first public railway line in 1825 between Stockton and Darlington in Northern England.
The invention of the internal combustion engine revolutionised road transport in terms of road quality and vehicles (motor cars and trucks) flying over them.
The newer forms of land transportation have also emerged in recent times. It includes are pipelines,ropeways and cableways. These are faster and more efficient as compared other means of transport.

Question.‘The Suez and the Panama canals are two vital man-made navigation canals, which serve as the gateways of commerce for both the Eastern and Western worlds.’ In the light of this statement,explain the economic significance of these two canals. 
Answer. The Suez and Panama Canals are very important navigational canals that are significant for the Eastern as well asWesternWorlds. The Suez canal connects Mediterranean Sea and Red Sea. It was constructed in 1869 in Egypt between Port Said in North and Port Suez in South. The significance of this canal is
– After the opening of this canal, the sea distance between Europe and Asia has reduced. This has lead to rise in trade between both the continents.
– It is important for the economies of Europe as well as African nations as ships carrying essential goods part through this canal.
– It has boosted the economy of the region by generating employment opportunities.
– Railway lines have also been constructed from the Suez canal to supply goods and improve trade even in the interior parts of the region.
The Panama Canal joins the Atlantic Ocean in the East to the Pacific Ocean in the West. The significance of this canal is
– It is important for the economies of North America as well as Latin America as it is used for carrying out trade between these regions.
– Many European countries use the Panama canal to supply their products to the Latin American countries.
– The distance between Eastern and Western coasts of USA is significantly reduced due to the opening up of this canal. It has resulted in boosting the US economy and easing World Trade.
– There has been a significant reduction in the distance between Western Europe and America. This results in improvements in their trade and commercial relations.

Question. Explain the importance of ‘communication services’ in the world. 
Answer. The importance of communication services is
– Communication connects the people in different parts of the world. They can exchange, information, ideas and make it easy to send or receive message.
– Communication through optic fibre networks allows large amount of datas to be transmitted rapidly, securely and error free.
– Development of communication networks has become a crucial factor in developing urbanisation in various countries. e.g. in America.
– In developing countries, use of cell phones has made it possible to connect the rural areas of the country.
– New technologies such as satellite communication has made it possible to communicate with anyone anywhere in the world. Thus, communication has become faster.
– The use of internet for communication has made the concept of global village a reality.

Question. What is the significance of inland waterways?
Explain the three factors responsible for the development of inland waterways in the world.
Or Analyse the three factors that affect the development of inland waterways. Explain the significance of Rhine inland waterwasys. 
Answer. The significance of inland waterways is
– Inland waterways are suitable for transportation with the help of rivers, canals, creeks etc.
– These are used for carrying both passengers and cargo.
– These are the only means of transport in the dense forests.
– They are suitable for carrying heavy cargo like coal,cement, timber, metallic ores etc.
The three factors responsible for the development of inland waterways in the world are
(i) Navigability This means proper width and depth of the inland waterway that makes navigation possible.
(ii) Water Flow If there is continuous flow of water throughout the year then ships, boats can easily move in the waterways so waterflow is an essential factor.
(iii) Transport Technology Development of proper technology so that heavy cargo like coal, timber, metallic ores can also be easily transported factor for development of inland waterways.
The significance of Rhine waterway is
– It flows through a rich coal field which has made the whole region a prosperous manufacturing area of Germany.
– The waterway links the industrial areas of Germany,France, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands with North Atlantic sea routes, which boosts the industries.
– Ocean going vessels can reach up to cologne through this waterway as it is navigable for 700 km .
– It is the busiest waterways as 20,000 ships and 2,00,000 inland vessels exchange cargos marking it a centre of international trade and commerce.

Question. What is the importance of railways as a mode of land transport? Explain any four main features of the railway network in Europe.
Or Explain any five characteristics of rail transport in Europe. 
Answer. Importance of railways as a mode of land transport are
– Railways provide the cheapest and most convenient mode of passenger transport both for long distance and sub-urban traffic.
– Railways have played a significant role in development and growth of industries. These help in supplying raw materials and other facilities to the factory sites and finished goods to the market.
– They also form the connecting link between the ocean vessels, barges, boats, motor trucks and pipelines.
– Railways are specially suited for transport of bulky materials like coal, petroleum and ores over long distances.The characteristics of rail transport in Europe are
– The density of rail network is high in Europe. It is considered as one of the most dense rail networks in the world.
– The rail network is either double tracked or multiple-tracked. The total length of rail network is 4,40,000 km.
– Railways carries more passenger traffic as compared to freight in European countries.
– The rail network has underground railways in Europe.For example, underground railways in London, Pairs, Moscow.
– There are various cities that form important nodes in the rail network. These are London, Paris, Milan, Berlin, Warsaw etc.