Transportation

Services

From its earliest colonial history, transportation has always been a challenge for Brazil because of its size and topography. In the last 40 years this challenge has finally been met: a systematic approach has been adopted to plan and implement a national system of integrated surface transport – road, rail, air and water.

Although road transportation is often more expensive than other modes, it is virtually unmatched as a fast means of moving comparatively small amounts of cargo and passengers over short distances, and it constitutes the main transport system in Brazil: 56 percent of freight in the country moves by road, as opposed to 21 percent by rail and 18 percent by water. In 2000, the total road network of Brazil was of 1,071,821 miles (1,724,929 km), of which 9.6 percent are paved.

As the most appropriate method of moving non-perishable cargo over long distances, railways are the second most important transportation system in Brazil. The country has an 18,196 miles (29,283 km) long railway network. Almost half of this network is concentrated in three states: São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio Grande do Sul. They are largely concerned with freight transport of iron ore, petroleum derivatives, grain and steel. Long distance passenger railway services are practically non-existent in Brazil. Passenger lines are limited to the suburbs of the great urban centers. The government sold off its controlling shares of railways in 1997, although many states and cities retain control of local lines.

Brazil’s long coastline and vast waterways in most of the hinterland have not been fully exploited for waterborne transport. The government invested significantly in the 1990s to promote the integration of road, rail, and water transportation systems in order to reinforce the trend toward inter-modality. Brazil’s major port facilities were significantly improved in the late 1990’s, mainly through privatization. Brazil has 46 organized ports, 24 of which are ocean ports. Among the busiest are Santos, Rio de Janeiro, and Porto Alegre.

Brazil’s physical characteristics and the requirements of fast economic growth led (starting in the 1930s) to the establishment of a vast network of air services. Although Brazilian air transportation still faces some challenges, the last 30 years have witness extraordinary progress. In 1994, the total passenger movement was calculated at 43 million passengers per year. In 2001, approximately 75 million passengers embarked or disembarked in Brazil. The demand for construction has been enormous. The period between 1995 and 2001 saw the inauguration of 14 newly constructed or renovated major airports. In 2002-2003, this sector has grown at the rate of 8% a year, double the world average. Numerous airlines flourished in Brazil at one time or another, but they have been consolidated into four major companies that compete nationwide: Varig, Tam, Vasp and Gol. The busiest gateway in the country is the Congonhas domestic airport (São Paulo), which manages an average of 22 thousand embarkations and disembarkations a month.