From the humble karozzin to a wireless metro system

Abstract

Stuck in traffic again? This is a common situation in Malta. It actually should make us think again how important transport is these days. Since as humans we have only two legs that can carry us with a limited speed and payload, we clearly require other means of transport to move heavy, bulky things in short times. Transport vehicles in Malta find their origins in the karozzin, a carriage pulled by a horse. In the mid-18th century these vehicles were used as Malta’s first public transport system. Today, of course, the karozzin is only used as a pleasure vehicle transporting tourists in Valletta and Mdina, while we use cars or the public transport bus system. To transport heavy and bulky goods a wide range of commercial vehicles are used, with engines that are sophisticated pieces of engineering and that burn petrol or diesel in an internal combustion process. These provide a great amount of mechanical energy to make cars drive faster than 100 mph and trucks capable of carrying 40 tons or more in payload.