Development of the UK Transport System, 1750-1990

The United Kingdom offers a comprehensive example of the evolution of transport technology since the first modern roads (Turnpikes), followed by canal and railway systems. After the introduction of a new transport technology, the system expanded rapidly to service the easiest or most profitable segments first. They often happen to involve the lowest construction costs. Then, once the system has matured and less profitable segments are serviced, expansion slows down considerably, mainly because of diminishing returns. This also correspond to the introduction of a new transport technology that marks the decline and eventually the obsolescence of the previous system. Railways marked the downfall of canal systems as highways did for railways to some extent. Separate waves of development can occur within the same transport system, reflecting a technological shift. For instance, the development of the canal system roughly happened in two phases. The first, from the 1760s to the 1790s, involved limited applications of engineering as canals were following flat surfaces (winding through plains) with little, if any, gradations. Then, the development of locks and better hydraulic engineering permitted a new spatial expansion of the canal system.