Shipping route
Encyclopedia
A shipping route is a trade route
used by merchant ships.
Early routes usually were coast
al in nature as navigators had to rely on the coastal landmarks. As the knowledge of navigation
and mapmaking increased, shipping routes became less dependent on coastal landmarks and spanned to larger sea
s and ocean
s.
In modern global commerce merchant shipping follows the most time efficient route between ports available. The size of the ship is a key factor in determining the best route, for example a ship designed to fit through the Suez canal in Africa with a maximum of cargo will not fit through the Panama canal in Central America, and a cargo ship designed for maximum capacity of the Panama Canal will not fit through the Welland Canal between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. Ships too large for a given route must necessarily seek an alternate pathway.
Starting with test ships in 2009 and the first commercial cargo's in 2010 the Northern Sea Route, a passage between the Arctic Ice Cap and the coast of Siberia has been opened. This allows ships traveling from Europe which can not fit through the Panama Canal to reach the west coast of North America much more quickly and is also much shorter for ships going between Europe and Asia, but the route is only available on average for two months of the year. Even so the fuel and time savings make it well worth the risk during the period when the route is open. Along North America the Northwest Passage similarly has opened but only local ships have used it so far.
Trade route
A trade route is a logistical network identified as a series of pathways and stoppages used for the commercial transport of cargo. Allowing goods to reach distant markets, a single trade route contains long distance arteries which may further be connected to several smaller networks of commercial...
used by merchant ships.
Early routes usually were coast
Coast
A coastline or seashore is the area where land meets the sea or ocean. A precise line that can be called a coastline cannot be determined due to the dynamic nature of tides. The term "coastal zone" can be used instead, which is a spatial zone where interaction of the sea and land processes occurs...
al in nature as navigators had to rely on the coastal landmarks. As the knowledge of navigation
Navigation
Navigation is the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another. It is also the term of art used for the specialized knowledge used by navigators to perform navigation tasks...
and mapmaking increased, shipping routes became less dependent on coastal landmarks and spanned to larger sea
Sea
A sea generally refers to a large body of salt water, but the term is used in other contexts as well. Most commonly, it means a large expanse of saline water connected with an ocean, and is commonly used as a synonym for ocean...
s and ocean
Ocean
An ocean is a major body of saline water, and a principal component of the hydrosphere. Approximately 71% of the Earth's surface is covered by ocean, a continuous body of water that is customarily divided into several principal oceans and smaller seas.More than half of this area is over 3,000...
s.
In modern global commerce merchant shipping follows the most time efficient route between ports available. The size of the ship is a key factor in determining the best route, for example a ship designed to fit through the Suez canal in Africa with a maximum of cargo will not fit through the Panama canal in Central America, and a cargo ship designed for maximum capacity of the Panama Canal will not fit through the Welland Canal between Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. Ships too large for a given route must necessarily seek an alternate pathway.
Starting with test ships in 2009 and the first commercial cargo's in 2010 the Northern Sea Route, a passage between the Arctic Ice Cap and the coast of Siberia has been opened. This allows ships traveling from Europe which can not fit through the Panama Canal to reach the west coast of North America much more quickly and is also much shorter for ships going between Europe and Asia, but the route is only available on average for two months of the year. Even so the fuel and time savings make it well worth the risk during the period when the route is open. Along North America the Northwest Passage similarly has opened but only local ships have used it so far.