| Transportation Systems
The goal of most transportation systems is to facilitate the rapid, safe,
and economical movement of people and goods. Transportation systems can
include traveling on foot, on horseback, on camel, on bicycle, by car,
by train, by boat, by subway, by airplane, and many more ways.
We are very dependent on transportation systems for the quality of our
lives. Trucks, trains, boats and barges--these all transport goods. Transportation
systems deliver all the food to grocery stores, all the toys to toys stores,
all the televisions and computers to electronic stores, and all the medical
supplies to hostpitals and doctors' offices. Airplanes transport our mail,
and mail trucks deliver it to our homes. A bus may deliver you to school.
Sample some of the following activities to learn more about transportation
systems.
Places To Go | People
To See | Things To Do | Teacher
Resources | Bibliography
Places To Go
The following are some places to go (some real and some virtual) to find
out more about transportation systems.
 Did
you know that Utah used to have an elaborate trolley system--just like
San Francisco? In the 1870's, Salt Lake City had a trolley system that
was mule-powered! By the 1890's the trolley cars were electric. This early
system of transportation was run by the Utah Light & Traction Company,
and Trolley Square was one of the main hubs. At its peak, this system
included about 146 miles of tracks and and power wires, and the price
for a ride was $.07. The cars were heated but not air-conditioned, and
they moved along at about 30 miles per hour. The last electric trolley
cars made their final official runs in 1941, but a few of them were used
again a few years later due to fuel shortages in WWII. Visit Trolley Square
in Salt Lake City and find out more about the trolley system. Talk to
an older friend or relative who has lived in the Salt Lake area for many
years and see if they ever rode on the trolley cars!
 Watch
a stock car race at Bonneville Speedway in Magna. (Are these cars really
used for transportation?)
Take a ride on the Heber
Creeper.
San Francisco
Cable Car Museum
Visit San Francisco’s Cable Car Museum. The museum provides historical
perspective on the importance of the cable car to the city as well as
insight into the cable car system’s current operations.
People To See 
Send your aviation questions to Ask
Propellerhead.
Thomas
Telford: The Road Builder
Learn more about the Scottish stonemason turned civil engineer. Telford
improved the method of building roads by building roads with broken stones
and analyzing road traffic, road alignment and gradient slopes. His design
eventually became the norm for all roads everywhere.
Things To Do
United States Department
of Transportion
From the main page, select "Bureau of Transportation Statistics" to find travel
statisitcs for every state.According to this site, during 1995 about
92% of the households in Utah took one or more long-distance trips of
100 miles or more. People in Utah travel more--because the national average
for such trips is 80%. The most popular destination states for travelers
who live in Utah are Nevada, Idaho, and California. Idaho, Nevada, and
Colorado are the most common origin states for travelers TO Utah.
 Utah
Department of Transportation (UDOT)
Their motto is "Going the extra mile." Is it snowing and you're on your
way to Logan and you're worried about making it through Sardine Canyon?
From this site, you can check on road conditions for all interstate routes
throughout Utah. Or you can call them to find road conditions--from within
the Salt Lake area, dial 964-6000--from outside the Salt Lake metropolitan
area, dial 1-800-492-2400.
 The
Wright Brothers
Find out about these aviation pioneers. Do you think that Wilbur and Orville
were popular names for the time? They had two older brothers, Reuchlin
and Lorin, and a younger sister, Katharine.Wilbur was four years older
than Orville.
New York City Subway
The New York City subway is famous. Find out what other big cities have
subway systems. At this site, you'll find information about the history
of the New York subway system, how it was built, and information about
other subway systems around the world.
 The
Balloon Channel
Read daily updates on worldwide balloon news and find answers to frequently
asked questions about ballooning. There's going to be a Millennium balloon
race across the Atlantic Ocean! The lift-off from the USA to Europe is
scheduled between July and September, 2000. Attend the Autumn Aloft Balloon
Festival in October in Park City, Utah.
 Aero
Design Team Online
Do a flight simulator word search. Your browser needs to be java-enabled.
Paper
Airplanes
What is your system for making a really good paper airplane? (It's a
known
fact that airplanes constructed during Math fly higher, stronger, and
longer). The world record for the amount of time a paper
airplane has remained aloft is 27.6 seconds.
Iditarod
In the spring, follow the Iditarod. Doug Swingley was the top musher in
1999.
 Roller
Coaster
Is a roller coaster a system of transportation? Where exactly does it
take you? A roller coaster has no engine. What makes it go? From this
interesting site, learn about the conversion of potential energy to kinetic
energy which is what drives a roller coaster.
How
a Car Engine Works
Cars are one of the most popular systems of transportation in the world.
Using this site, you can find out everything you ever wanted to know about
internal combustion systems.
 How
Bicycles Work
Other than by walking, more people travel by bicycle than by any other
system of transportation. Find out how bicycles work. Bicycles have been
around since the early 1800's. Early ones were called walking machines
and velocipedes. Find out why early bicycles were even called boneshakers
as well as other elements of bicycle history. Don't forget to always wear a helmet when cycling. Did you remember that the Wright
Brothers owned a bicycle shop where they repaired bikes and even made
their own bicycles. They used some bicycle parts when they were first
experimenting with and making flying equipment.
How
the Wheels Got Turning: A Historical Perspective on American Roads
Read this article to learn about the development of a system of roads
in America.
Teacher Resources
Lesson Plans/Webquests/Activities
Bibliography
- Badt, Karin Luisa. Let's Go! Chicago : Childrens Press, c1995.
- English, June. Transportation : Automobiles to Zeppelins. New York
: Scholastic Reference, c1995.
- Kalman, Bobbie. Wings, Wheels, and Sails. New York, N.Y. : Crabtree
Pub. Co., c1995.
- Kerrod, Robin. Transportation. New York : Marshall Cavendish, 1994.
- Lambert, Mark. Transportation. New York : Thomson Learning, 1993.
- Pluckrose, Henry Arthur. On the Move. New York : Franklin Watts, 1998.
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