The illustration depicts information about the loads of products shipped to the UK from 1974 to 2002, by several means of transportation (road, water, rail, pipeline).
Overall, the most used shipping method was the roadway; it ranked first throughout the period, followed by the waterway, which demonstrated an upward trend, in contrast to the railway method, which occupied the third rank while having a fluctuating trend. The pipeline route came last.
Most goods were shipped to the UK through the roadway. In 1975, around 70 million tonnes arrived in the UK through this route. The quantity slightly dropped to nearly 70 million tonnes in 1982, then it rose back to 80 million tonnes in 1990, to stabilize until nearly 1995. After this, it resumed a markedly increased trend until it reached around 95 million tonnes in 2000. The waterway was the second most used method in shipping to the UK, with 40 million tonnes transported this way in 1975. The number of goods slightly increased to 45 million tonnes in 1980, and to around 50 million tonnes in 1985. The quantity remained unchanged until nearly 1998, then it started to rise again to reach about 60 million tonnes.
Goods transported by railway came next; they showed a fluctuating trend, starting with an amount of 40 million tonnes. Then, the quantity steadily declined to approximately 30 million tonnes in 1985, to rise back to nearly 40 million tonnes in 1990, then dropped again to 30 million tonnes in 1995. The shipped products’ load slightly increased to 40 million tonnes in 1998 and remained unchanged since then. Products shipped by the pipeline route had a gradually increased rate from around 10 million tonnes in 1975 to nearly 25 million tonnes in 1983. The rate remained the same from 1983 to the end of the period.