Transport and Communication Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 CBSE Notes 2025-26

Human societies rely on the movement of people, goods, and information. Because resources, industries, and markets are seldom located together, Transport and Communication systems have developed to link production areas with consumption centers. 

This exchange sustains high living standards and economic progress. Both transport and communication today have developed into specialized sectors, even though in early history they were closely linked.

Significance of Transport Transport involves moving people and goods via humans, animals, or various vehicles across land, water, or air. Modern transport also includes pipelines for liquid materials like oil and gas. 

Every country has created suitable transport systems for trade and defense, supporting social unity and economic integration. Transport consists of infrastructure, vehicles, and maintenance, enabling mass production and exchange at local and global scales.

What is a Transport Network? A transport network is a pattern formed by joining multiple locations (nodes) through routes (links). Such networks help distribute goods and people efficiently by creating connected pathways within and among regions.

Modes of Transportation Globally, the main modes of transport are land, water, air, and pipelines. Each serves different needs:

• Land – includes roads and railways, further divided into passenger and freight services.
• Water – involves sea and inland waterways for heavy or bulk goods over long distances.
• Air – used for urgent, expensive, or perishable goods and swift passenger travel.
• Pipelines – designed for liquids/gases such as oil, natural gas, and even water.

In well-organized systems, these modes complement each other efficiently.

Land Transport: Development and Features Humans are among the oldest means of transport, especially in rural or mountainous areas where human porters or carts still operate. Animals like horses, mules, camels, dogs, and reindeer are selectively used around the world depending on geography (for example, camels in deserts, reindeer in snow regions). 

The invention of the wheel and, later, the steam engine (first railway in 1825 in England) revolutionized movement. The spread of internal combustion engines further improved road transport through widespread use of cars and trucks. Today, new systems like pipelines and ropeways also enhance land transport.

Roads and Highways Roads are most suitable for short distances and provide door-to-door connectivity. While motorways and highways are better developed in countries like the USA and Germany, developing nations may face limitations in quality or year-round usability. 

Urban traffic congestion is a growing issue due to vehicle increases. Measures like higher parking fees, Mass Rapid Transit, public buses, and expressways are used to reduce city congestion.

Highways link distant cities and ports with metalled, wide, and sometimes multilane roads. Examples include North America's Trans-Canadian Highway (Vancouver to St. John’s City), Pan-American Highway, and Africa’s Cairo to Cape Town route. 

India’s Golden Quadrilateral connects four major cities: Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, and Kolkata. Highways are essential for both national integration and defense, and special border roads are constructed along international boundaries.

Railways Railways provide the cheapest and most efficient solution for transporting heavy and bulky goods over long distances on land. They serve both passengers and freight, and play a critical role in urban and intercity movement—cities like London, Paris, Moscow, and Mumbai are important nodes. 

Globally, rail networks are dense in Europe, Russia, North America, and parts of Asia (Japan, China, India), and less so in Africa and South America except for some industrial zones.

Trans-Continental Railways Some railways stretch across entire continents, linking distant ends for both economic and strategic reasons:

• Trans-Siberian Railway (Russia): St Petersburg to Vladivostok (9,332 km); important for European-Russian trade and communication.
• Trans-Canadian Railway: Halifax to Vancouver, crossing major economic zones.
• Union and Pacific Railway (USA), Australian Trans-Continental Railway, and the Orient Express (Europe to Turkey).

Water Transport: Sea and Inland Waterways Waterways require chiefly the construction of ports, making them less expensive for bulk and heavy goods. Sea routes are vital for international trade:

• Northern Atlantic Sea Route (N.E. USA to N.W. Europe): the world’s busiest sea route.
• Other major routes: Mediterranean–Indian Ocean, Cape of Good Hope, and Pacific routes.

Shipping canals like the Suez (linking the Mediterranean and Red Seas) and the Panama (linking Atlantic and Pacific Oceans) reduce travel distances significantly. Coastal shipping aids trade in countries with long shorelines, while inland waterways (rivers, canals, lakes) such as the Rhine, Danube, Volga, St. Lawrence Seaway, and Mississippi-Ohio remain important where suitable navigation is possible.

Air Transport Airways are the fastest way to travel long distances, though generally costlier and used more for passengers and high-value or perishable goods. 

The USA has the highest air traffic, with dense networks also in Western Europe and Southeast Asia. Key hubs are New York, London, Paris, Frankfurt, Delhi, Mumbai, Singapore, Tokyo, and Los Angeles. Some regions, such as Africa or remote Russia, have limited airways due to sparse populations or low economic development.

Pipelines Pipelines transport liquids and gases like oil, LPG, natural gas, and water over long distances. They are cost-effective for regular and uninterrupted supply. 

For example, the Big Inch pipeline in the USA moves oil efficiently. Europe, Russia, India, and West Asia also have extensive pipeline networks. The proposed Iran-India pipeline is one of the world’s longest pipeline projects.

Communication Systems As human societies grew, so did their need for rapid exchange of information. Early advances included the telegraph and telephone. 

Today, mobile phones and the Internet (aided by satellites and Optical Fiber Cables) have transformed communication, allowing instant interaction across continents. The spread of communication is key to progress in business, governance, and society.

Satellite and Cyberspace Satellites, like India’s Aryabhatt, Bhaskar, and INSAT series, provide services such as phone, television, and Internet. Modern technology means communication costs are less affected by distance. 

The Internet – cyberspace – enables people, organizations, and governments to connect, offering e-learning, e-commerce, and e-governance. The number of users has grown from less than 50 million in 1995 to over 5 billion in 2023, with rising importance in developing countries such as India and China.

Exercises and Applications The chapter also provides exercises that include multiple choice questions about world highways, railways, pipelines, and communication systems, as well as short-answer and long-answer questions to deepen understanding of how these interconnected systems shape societies and economies.

Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 Notes – Fundamentals of Human Geography: Transport and Communication

These Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 notes help you quickly understand key facts about transport and communication systems and their importance worldwide. The notes highlight major transport modes, network patterns, and significant examples, making exam preparation much easier. Carefully organized pointers let you revise efficiently before tests or assignments.

Summaries cover topics like land, water, air, and pipeline transport, as well as advances in communication including satellites and the Internet. These concise NCERT-based revision notes for Chapter 7 – Transport and Communication – are ideal for last-minute review and help connect theoretical understanding with real-world examples.