| Abstract from DBPedia | Maritime transport (or ocean transport) and hydraulic effluvial transport, or more generally waterborne transport, is the transport of people (passengers) or goods (cargo) via waterways. Freight transport by sea has been widely used throughout recorded history. The advent of aviation has diminished the importance of sea travel for passengers, though it is still popular for short trips and pleasure cruises. Transport by water is cheaper than transport by air, despite fluctuating exchange rates and a fee placed on top of freighting charges for carrier companies known as the currency adjustment factor. Maritime transport accounts for roughly 80% of international trade, according to UNCTAD in 2020. Maritime transport can be realized over any distance by boat, ship, sailboat or barge, over oceans and lakes, through canals or along rivers. Shipping may be for commerce, recreation, or military purposes. While extensive inland shipping is less critical today, the major waterways of the world including many canals are still very important and are integral parts of worldwide economies. Particularly, especially any material can be moved by water; however, water transport becomes impractical when material delivery is time-critical such as various types of perishable produce. Still, water transport is highly cost effective with regular schedulable cargoes, such as trans-oceanic shipping of consumer products – and especially for heavy loads or bulk cargos, such as coal, coke, ores, or grains. Arguably, the industrial revolution took place best where cheap water transport by canal, navigations, or shipping by all types of watercraft on natural waterways supported cost-effective bulk transport. Containerization revolutionized maritime transport starting in the 1970s. "General cargo" includes goods packaged in boxes, cases, pallets, and barrels. When a cargo is carried in more than one mode, it is intermodal or co-modal.海運（かいうん、英語: marine transport）は、水運のうち、海上を利用した貨物輸送や旅客輸送である。 特に貨物輸送は、国際物流の主軸であり、国際物流を支えており、巨大タンカー、巨大バルカー、大型コンテナ船などで世界各地の港が結ばれ、重要な燃料・穀物・原材料などの物資や他種多様な製品類を運んでいる。特に鉱物資源などの重量物や原油・液化天然ガスといった液体を安く大量に輸送するのに適している。 海運は他の運輸手段に比べて以下のような特徴を持つ。 低コスト重量・距離当りのコストが他の運輸手段に比べて格段に低く、大量・長距離の輸送に適する。航空機や鉄道では運べないような重量物や嵩のある貨物もあまり制限を受けずに輸送できる。低速度航空機、鉄道、自動車に比べ速度は低く、他の運送に比べて日数がかかる。ただし消費財貿易でもコンテナ輸送の拡大により荷役時間が短縮され、効率性が向上してきてはいる。他いくつかの海峡などの重要な戦略ポイントを通過することが多いため、シーレーンが安全保障や地政学上、ボトルネックとなってはいる。（なお、貨物の積み下ろし場所が限られている（貨物用港限定）ということのは鉄道運送（貨物駅限定）も航空運輸（貨物の積み下ろし用設備群も備えた空港限定）も同様である。旅客輸送の場合は船酔いに弱い客が一部にいる、という課題はある。 上記のような特徴がある。船の長所と短所も参照可。 (Source: http://dbpedia.org/resource/Maritime_transport) |
